FLOW is the main restaurant of the Millennium Hilton Bangkok; open all day from breakfast to dinner.
It offers refined dishes resulting from the skilful mix of Southeast Asian flavours – Blazing wok dishes, simple sliced sushi and Mediterranean delicacies, all whilst overlooking the tranquil waters of Chao Phraya. 

The requirement

• The decor of the hotel and restaurant looked rather dated and had In fact remained unchanged since the opening in 2006.
• The buffet area was poorly equipped with refrigeration and food storage and the open kitchens were completely inadequate for modern service and the varied food offer.
• The use of the terrace overlooking Chao Phraya was limited as it lacked adequate sheltered areas to protect guests during the rainy season.
• It was therefore necessary to re-design and re-configure the restaurants both back and front of house. In detail, the objectives were:
  • optimize the layout and use of the buffet
  • move the bar area
  • increase the number of seats inside the restaurant
  • increase the number of seats on the terrace area utilising a special cover
  • renew the main cooking island
  • renew and increase the capacity of refrigeration.

The solution

• The dining area has been renovated with flexibility in mind and incorporating a smart, modern design to make it more appealing to guests and practical for the dining room staff.
• The new concept revolves around the offer of a unique and authentic dining experience in a dynamic setting, where you can choose between à la carte and buffet menus. Everything has been designed using natural materials and surface coatings that are both hardwearing and easy to maintain.
• The open kitchen is the heart of the new restaurant and Ambach System 850 was selected. The modular approach of the System 850 line proved to be the best choice, allowing for delivery of the suite in two separate parts and assembled on site, incorporating a pasta cooker, griddle, bain marie and fryers, perfect for cooking both Western and Asian dishes.
• The suite needed to be capable of meeting the increased demand as outlined in the brief.  The interior space was set out to accommodate a greater number of seats (260) and the outdoor area has also been better exploited through the installation of an arbour that can accommodate up to 160 seats and a maximum of 300 guests for events.
• The buffet consists of 4 areas separated into hot and cold areas.  Air curtains help to define these zones and keep the dishes at the optimum temperature using forced air. The hot dishes are freshly prepared utilising wok stations and tandoori ovens for Thai cuisine.
• The project was six months in design (September 2019 – February 2020) and took nine months to execute, finally reopening in December 2020.