The most anticipated restaurant for this trip with friends was Karmakamet Secret World - Aromatic Shop & Diner, highly raved for its beautiful and charming interior.
Karmakamet started as an aromatics brand, and allocating a huge chunk of space in their new F&B establishment for their products is probably what makes them stand out from the rest. The moment you enter the restaurant, you are embraced by a unique mix of essential oils and food. I mean that in a nice-smelling way. =D The allure of scents is wasted on me though; I didn’t buy any essential oil or aromatherapy products. It smelt good while it lasted.
It was close to 6pm when we arrived, and by the time we were done with phototaking, the skies had turned dark, creating an ambience that was extremely romantic and cosy. If there weren’t so many mosquitoes outside, or the weather so hot and humid, I would have loved to cuddle against the gigantic cushions outside and chat into the night with friends. Lush greenery, huge glass windows that let you peer in and out, old-school medicine cupboard-like walls displaying products, red brick walls, dim hanging lamps, rustic furniture, long wooden tables, nice scent, made one feel transported from the busy world merely 200m away.
Karmakamet At Night
Let There Be... No Light!
We ordered our food, and bread rolls and butter arrived first. They looked pretty normal so I didn’t think of taking pictures of them. I mean, how special can bread and butter be, right? WRONG. The plain bread rolls and butter combination was the best I’ve ever had in my life. The bread rolls were freshly baked so they were still warm and crisp on the outside and soft on the inside when served; the butter was sooooo creamy and rich I could not get enough of it. My friends donated theirs to me. Lol.
Then right before the appetizers and mains were served, Karmakamet experienced a BLACKOUT. Hahaha ohmygoodness. Many people have blogged about Karmakamet Diner, but I haven't read any one who survived a blackout there. 😆
We were in almost complete darkness, save for little candles in glasses. Romantic factor x10. LOL. To take pictures of food, we had to help each other out with our phone lights. With the power supply gone, there was no air-con and it felt increasingly stuffy, but bearable. Most saddening was the sudden termination of bread rolls. Bread and butter are free-flow for dinner, but all electrical appliances including the bread maker had stopped working. Boohoooo!! I had planned to eat maybe three more (or ten) breadrolls for the night.
The Onion Soup was fab, my Chilli Crab Pasta was expensive but worth the price tag, and the Salad was such a darling! There were so many different things on one plate - fig, ham, olive, walnut, apricot, sundried tomatoes - and they came together surprisingly well.
Karmakamet In The Day
Because I loved the bread rolls SO MUCH, and because I was deprived from the free-flow of breads on the night of blackout, I returned on the last day of our trip on my own, to get bread.
Karmakamet at night and in the day looked very different. Felt very different too. The huge glass windows let a good amount of sunlight in, while leaving the heat out. I saw things I didn’t get to notice at night, like hanging colorful buntings and dried flowers.
I’ve had so many blah-tasting Eggs Benedict before so I didn’t expect much even though this seemed like a popular choice. It turned out pretty good, I must say! The coasters are handwritten notes between Edge and Sam. Everyone loves a handwritten note. 🙂
From that solitary breakfast, I learnt that as much as I am an independent woman, I do not think I would want to travel solo. Eating on my own during lunch is fine, but I draw the line at traveling solo. I want to share experiences and have conversations with family and friends!
Night Or Day?
Night or day? If someone were to ask me which is a better time to visit, I'd say............ night. Definitely, night. I don't know, maybe it was the whole ambience-friends-food-blackout experience that made the first night more impactful.
Karmakamet Diner Secret World
10110, 30/1 Sukhumvit Rd, Khlong Tan, Khlong Toei, Bangkok 10110, Thailand
Opening Hours: 10am – 11:30pm
Although the name makes it sound like some hidden magical sanctuary, it is actually very accessible. Take a 5-minute walk from BTS Phrom Phong, on the side of Hotel Emporium Suites. It was just nice for us as we had to take a shuttle bus to and from our Airbnb apartment every day anyway. Walk straight ahead and you’ll spot the sign from afar, not inconspicuous, but enough to let people unaware miss it. You might completely miss the turn into the path, even Google Maps was confused. That was what happened to us, luckily the local security guards saw our flustered faces and asked ‘Karmakamet?’, and pointed us the right alley.
