It’s the Tops!

Award-winning Tree Tops restaurant takes fine dining to new heights.

It’s a frequent question: “What’s the best restaurant on Samui?” But it’s a hard one to answer; it’s like saying, “How long is a piece of string?” It all depends on what you’re looking for! There are more than a few places where the food is just fab. There are others where the ambiance is amazing or the location is simply stunning. There are even one or two where these all come together. But we know of one that’s close to home. It’s in North Chaweng, and can be found at Anantara Lawana Koh Samui Resort.

There are 122 luxurious rooms, pool villas and suites laid out in delightfully landscaped grounds on the lower hillside. In a stroke of architectural genius, the huge, rocky, tree-covered ridge at the top has been left untouched. And it hosts one of the most spectacular restaurants that you’ll find anywhere in the world!

The appropriately named Tree Tops restaurant is unique. Open-sided restaurants are common in Thailand, but this takes the idea, quite literally, to new heights. The ‘restaurant’ is a series of teak platforms in and around the branches of gigantic trees, each at a different level, and linked by rising and falling wooden walkways. On each of those platforms there’s a spacious, open-sided teak-framed ‘house’.

Not simply spectacular, but a clever concept too. It means you can enter at either end of the treetop walkway, looking down on the sea and curve of the bay as you go. At the far end, the walkway drops down into a circular space with a group of intimate tables and a round thatched bar – the Tree Tops Bar. There are eight well-separated tree houses, each able to seat a maximum of six people – house number seven being the most sought-after, as it is the highest and commands the best views.

And the cuisine? It goes without saying that it is some of the finest on the island. This is mostly due to the art of the Malaysian-born Executive Chef, Azizskandar Awang. He’s a modest and unassuming man, despite the fact that he’s won international awards, as well as run the kitchens in five-star resorts (for names such as Marriott and Hilton) in Malaysia and Thailand. His background is in classical French cuisine, and he’s adopted a personal approach to creating his international menu, giving all the sauces a light touch and employing sous-vide techniques extensively.

His menu is impressive, and Chef Aziz is truly a master of his craft. The starters are simply super – and as with all the items, each one is not only a sublime harmony of textures and interplay of flavours, but beautifully presented too. The French Quail, for example, is a little symphony of a quail leg stuffed with forbidden rice, roasted quail breast, grilled yellow corn and finished with Jerez sauce. This is also one of the gourmet dishes you’ll find on the tapas menu at the Tree Tops Bar.

The main courses are a sheer delight, particularly the Australian Wagyu Beef and the Canadian Lobster. Plus there’s a Salt Guru on hand to help you match your dish with one of a number of gourmet salts. But pride of place has to go to the two different and superlative Candlelight Degustation options. These are the pinnacle of romantic dining pleasure, and have uniquely paired wines to complement each of the courses. The fascinating menus are too detailed to go into fully here, but it’s all itemised on the resort’s website, listed below. And starting this month, Tree Tops will be open for lunch every Saturday from 12:30 pm until 3:30 pm.

But don’t just take our word for it. Chef Aziz and Tree Tops have been collecting prestigious awards, including ‘Asia’s Executive Chef of the Year 2018’ by Hotelier Award, and Minor Group’s own ‘Executive Chef Award of Excellence’. Other awards include World Luxury Restaurant Awards’ ‘Fine Dining Cuisine – Thailand Winner’, a TripAdvisor ‘2017 Travellers’ Choice Award’, Thailand Tatler’s ‘Best Restaurant 2017’ and the ‘Award of Excellence 2017’ by Wine Spectator.

Rob De Wet