A new pickle-based eatery in Bang Chak promises customers the real dill, offering a full range of food and cocktails that feature sour, tangy, pickle-y goodness.
Their soft opening is tomorrow, which also happens to be International Pickle Day. The free party starts at 3pm and features DJs, samples of their homemade pickles, pickle cocktails, and samples of the pickle-y foods soon to be on offer at the cafe.
The Pickle Gallery is not just a clever name either. The space will also show the work of local artists and tomorrow will serve as an exhibition launch as well. Check out the work by Satit Raksasri, Harry Naylor, and Gerard Gademann as you munch on the owners’ classic garlic dill spears, spicy garlic dill pickles, and crunchy carrot with daikon pickles.
The spicy spears are their signature item and the one that their Thai fans most often reach for.
The cafe is owned by Swede Anders Svensson and Oraphan “Irine” Khamtan, both pickle lovers. Svensson began making pickles for himself back in 2012 out of his Udomsuk condo because “there were not many pickles around and when you could find them, they were expensive.” He quickly realized that all the ingredients were available locally and cheaply, so why not make them himself?
Soon he was pickling away and serving the spears up to friends who often wanted to buy more. He gave his new business a name too, The Serial Pickler, and those are the pickles served at the cafe, which can also be purchased through the Facebook page linked above.
The pickle business took off quickly and he began making bigger batches and posting them to various expat forums, where they always sold out quickly. And it’s no wonder, the pickles are fresh and delicious with a price on par with (or cheaper than) the mass-produced pickles for sale at Bangkok’s grocery stores. They range from THB150-THB190 per jar.
Further in the future, the couple is testing out recipes in their dedicated pickle kitchen for a pickled beetroot, a homemade sauerkraut, pickled jalapenos, British-style pickled onions, and cornichons.
Coconuts went to visit the cafe and get an exclusive peek at the menu ahead of their opening tomorrow.
Though not all of these items will be available immediately, we were entranced by the idea of a pickled grilled cheese, and the thought of pretzels served with a homemade pickle-dipping sauce had us feeling snacky.
Other forthcoming menu items include: fried pickles (of course), pickle soup, pickle bread, bacon pickle fries, sausages with sauerkraut, pickled beetroot salad, and a pickle platter.
They have wifi and will encourage people to work in the cafe. In the future they plan to offer workshops with “guest picklers” including experts on Arab and Japanese-style pickles.
They ship their products via Grab Bike and they can be ordered through their Facebook page.
At opening, guests will get to sample deep-fried pickles, pickled eggs, and a pickled pasta salad for free as well as pickle spears and drinks.
They plan to offer Bangkok’s first housemade pickleback shot, a drink popular in American hipster bars that involves a shot of whisky followed by a shot of pickle brine. Trust us, it’s awesome.
The cocktail menu is still being finalized but other cocktails to be rolled out will include options such as: a pickled mary (the pickle-y cousin of a bloody mary), a pickled gibson featuring raspberry juice and pickle brine (“It sounds weird but they are magic together — who knew?” said Svensson), a martini with pickle garnish, a pomelo and pickle cocktail, and pickle-infused vodka that can be served as a shot or on the rocks. Rounding out the menu should be a rum and pickle cocktail, and a pickled take on a mint julep.
FIND IT:
The Pickle Gallery Soft Opening Party
163 Sukhumvit Soi 95/1
BTS Bang Chak
Nov. 14, 3-10pm
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