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By Peter Bream
We all know that a good meal should be complemented by a good wine
(or wines), and this is something for which The Boathouse has become
world renowned. Over the years, successive F & B managers have
created an awesome cellar of around 460 labels which have won the
Wine Spectator's Award of Excellence for no less than the last eight
successive years.
Who could have told, 15 or so years ago, that a small restaurant
on the southern end of Kata
Beach would soon become something of an icon in the hotel industry
of Phuket? Well, one man, perhaps, although his modesty is not likely
to have had him thinking in such grandiose terms. Mom Tri Devakul,
then artist, sculptor and architect of three Phuket
hotels, fell in love with what was then simply The Boathouse Restaurant
on Kata Beach in the south-west of Phuket. He bought the property
and converted it into what he called, "a restaurant with rooms
around". The fact that is was situated next to one of Phuket
island's finest and whitest beaches may have been a factor in
Mom Tri's purchase.
The Boathouse (as it was then called) was opened with great fanfare
in early 1989. It opened with 36 rooms and, of course, its restaurant,
and remains largely as it was then, apart from some upgrading here
and there. Although occupying a relatively small land area, Mom
Tri's Boathouse has all the facilities of much larger hotels. Unseen
to the casual observer, it has a pool and Jacuzzi, fitness and massage
centre and all the services of a 5-star hotel. It is, perhaps, its
compactness, coupled with the dedication of its staff, that helps
create such a welcoming and friendly atmosphere. Indeed, the place
has developed a following among discerning travellers from around
the world who prefer its discreet sophistication to the many larger
hotels on the island. The Boathouse has played host to the rich
and famous from many countries.
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From the very outset, the focus has always been on fine dining,
and The Boathouse Wine and Grill has notched up some high scores
on the gastronomic side. Executive Chef Tamanoon Punchun has created
a superb menu of what he calls his "Eurasian" food combinations.
He's not afraid to experiment to keep producing new dishes and regularly
takes his expertise to Europe where he conducts cooking workshops
at various restaurants and hotels, in addition to the regular cooking
classes he runs at The Boathouse.
We all know that a good meal should be complemented by a good wine
(or wines), and this is something for which The Boathouse has become
world renowned. Over the years, successive F & B managers have
created an awesome cellar of around 460 labels, each of which has
been carefully selected. Testament to this is that they have won
the Wine Spectator's Award of Excellence for no less than the last
eight successive years. The current F & B Manager, Rodolphe
Gay, is a most enthusiastic wine expert and has the distinction
of having been butler to the former French Prime Minister Edouard
Balladur.
Keeping the whole ship firmly afloat is General Manager Louis Bronner,
a native of Paris who arrived in Phuket
in 1986 after a long career in the travel industry and a spell running
hotels in Egypt in the early eighties. Mr Bronner was recruited
to manage the Phuket
Yacht Club at nearby Nai Harn Beach, and found himself managing
both the Yacht Club and The Boathouse for a while in 1990 before
taking over as full-time GM in 1996. Doubtless it is his elegant
French style combined with the affable Thai attitudes of his staff
that help create the friendliness for which Mom Tri's Boathouse
has become so well known. Yet it is more than that. It is somewhat
indefinable, but may have something to do with the decor. With an
abundance of dark colours, from the terracotta floor tiles, to the
massive wooden bar and ruddy wood panelling, all set off by elegant
wicker and wooden furniture, the setting is reminiscent of the 1950s;
elegant and sophisticated.
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Mom
Tri's Boathouse has become a hub for art and culture lovers
in Phuket. Mom Tri himself formed the Chao Phraya River Club in
order to focus attention on the state of the River of Kings in Bangkok,
and to help clean it up. Under the auspices of this club, he has
held many art exhibitions for local, national and international
artists at The Boathouse, in addition to shows of Thai handicrafts
and the formation of a Literary Society. For the last nine years
he has also hosted the Baan Kata Arts Fest, a two-day festival of
art and music, in his own splendid house - Mom Tri's Villa Royale,
just a few hundred meters away from the Boathouse. (The 9th Baan
Kata Arts Fest will take place on the 1st of March.) These latter
activities have been something of a cultural oasis for many of the
island's resident expats, not to mention the many wine tastings
and vintners' dinners that have been held there.
There is no doubt that this splendid little hotel has made its
mark on Phuket, and that it will continue to do so for a long time.
Perhaps Mark Ottaway, correspondent for The Sunday Times of London,
summed it up succinctly when he wrote: "Small but ample, simple
but stylish, The Boathouse is one of the few hotels in which I could
linger indefinitely."
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