On our first night in Bangkok we went down to the restaurant on the ground floor of the hotel. Into the room at six, at the table by half past. We barely unpacked and went straight to dinner.
You arrive without stepping outside
IGNIV Bangkok is on the ground floor of The St. Regis Bangkok, so there is no sense of having gone out to eat. You cross the lobby and you are in the restaurant. Same street number, 159 Rajadamri Road. If you are staying upstairs, you step out of the lift and you have arrived.
It is the brand of the Swiss chef Andreas Caminada, and it holds one Michelin star — awarded in 2022 and retained through the 2026 guide.
Caminada is head chef at Schloss Schauenstein in Switzerland, which has three stars. IGNIV exists in Bad Ragaz, Zurich and Bangkok, and the Bangkok room was the first IGNIV outside Switzerland. It opened on 9 October 2020, with Arne Riehn as head chef, and took its star in the Michelin Guide Thailand 2022.
Olive sofas and white cloth. Planting set along the glass, a small light on each table. A calm, well-made room.
The tables were almost all empty, though. Quiet to the point of being too quiet.
Checking the opening hours afterwards explained it. Dinner runs 18:00 to 23:00 with last orders at 20:30. I sat down at 18:30, thirty minutes after opening. With a 20:30 cut-off, the room must fill somewhere between seven and eight. The silence was not a verdict on the restaurant. I was simply early.
I did not know it was a sharing format
I learned after sitting down that this is not a place where you pick dishes one at a time. A set of courses all comes out and the table shares them. I had not understood that when booking.
The name had already said so. IGNIV means nest in Romansh, Caminada mother tongue. Something placed in the middle that everyone gathers round and divides — the name is a declaration of the format. Knowing that, I would have arrived with a different frame of mind.
In practice, each course puts several dishes in the centre of the table and you serve yourselves. Across the whole meal it runs to something like 17 to 19 plates. This is not a restaurant where you hunt for the one correct dish; it is one where you take in the table as a whole.
Because it is built around sharing, several plates land at once.
There were more than three of us. Thinking about it afterwards, this is a place that works better the more people you bring. With two, each share gets larger and the back half of the meal might start to feel heavy.
The green was extraordinarily vivid
The first thing that struck me about the plates was the colour. Green sauces and herbs assert themselves clearly against the dish. They photograph beautifully.
Eating it, it was not to my palate. The way the aromatics are lifted and the way acidity is used sit outside what I am used to. I sensed Thai ingredients and Thai aromatics in there, and because of that I never quite worked out how I was supposed to receive it.
A little after eight a rack of lamb arrived on a round stone stand. That one was straightforwardly good.
With last orders at 20:30, a dish arriving after eight is near the end of the sequence. The kitchen puts the heavy plate last and finishes there. That is a deliberate shape, not an accident of service.
I could not get hold of what the star tastes like
Taken as a whole — was I convinced by the one star? Honestly, I did not come away with that feeling. The visual impact is strong. The tableware and the room are good. But the moment where the flavour itself simply overrules you never arrived that evening.
I take this to be about my palate and my preferences rather than the kitchen execution. It was the first day of the trip, we had only just landed, and my body was not settled. Had I eaten the same plates on the last day, I might have written something else.
The bill, and two things to know before booking
With the wine pairing, the bill came to somewhere around 15,000 yen a head. For 17 to 19 sharing plates at a starred restaurant, plus the pairing, the number makes sense. What I failed to get hold of was the direction of the cooking, not the value.
Two things are worth knowing before you book. First, this is not an a la carte restaurant. Second, the timing. Dinner is 18:00 to 23:00 with last orders at 20:30; lunch is 12:00 to 15:00 on weekdays with last orders at 13:30, and weekends are a brunch from 11:00. If you want a quiet room, go at half past six. If you want the room with its atmosphere working, go after seven.
Notes from this visit
- IGNIV Bangkok is on the ground floor of The St. Regis Bangkok (159 Rajadamri Road, in front of BTS Ratchadamri)
- The brand of Swiss chef Andreas Caminada, who holds three stars at Schloss Schauenstein. Bangkok was the first IGNIV outside Switzerland, opened 9 October 2020, head chef Arne Riehn
- One Michelin star, awarded in the Michelin Guide Thailand 2022 and held through the 2026 guide
- Not a la carte: several courses arrive and the table shares them, 17 to 19 plates in all. Worth knowing before you book
- Dinner 18:00 to 23:00, last orders 20:30. Lunch 12:00 to 15:00 weekdays (last orders 13:30); weekend brunch from 11:00
- We arrived at 18:30 and left after eight. Being that early, the room was largely empty
- About 15,000 yen a head with the wine pairing
- Menus, prices and hours change. Check the restaurant own information
Visited August 2025. Prices are as they were at the time of the visit. The origin of the name, the sharing format and plate count, the opening date and head chef, the opening hours and the address were checked against the IGNIV Bangkok official site in October 2026.
Frequently asked questions
Is IGNIV Bangkok a la carte?
No. It is a sharing format: each course places several dishes in the middle of the table for everyone, running to roughly 17 to 19 plates. Knowing that before you book changes how you approach the evening.
What does the name mean?
IGNIV is nest in Romansh, the mother tongue of the chef, Andreas Caminada. The name is effectively a statement of the format.
What time should I book?
Dinner runs 18:00 to 23:00 with last orders at 20:30. At 18:30 the room was nearly empty. For the room to feel alive, after seven is the better bet.
How much does it cost?
Our bill came to around 15,000 yen a head with the wine pairing. Prices change, so check with the restaurant.
How many people should go?
It works better with more. We were a party of more than three. With two, each share is larger and the later courses could feel heavy.
Do I need to leave the hotel?
No. It is on the ground floor of The St. Regis Bangkok, so you cross the lobby and you are there.
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