Business Daily Business Daily meets: Thailand's Chef Pam
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Oct 2, 2025 
Join award-winning Thai chef Pichaya Soontornyanakij, also known as Chef Pam, as she shares her incredible journey from childhood in a Thai-Chinese-Australian family to becoming the best female chef in the world. Listen as she takes a vibrant tour of Bangkok's Chinatown, explores the cultural significance of Thai-Chinese cuisine, and reveals the challenges and triumphs of running her Michelin-starred restaurant, Potong. Discover her passion for sourcing local ingredients and the heartfelt story behind the restaurant's historic setting.
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Early Family Kitchen Roots
- Pichaya Soontornyanakij learned cooking from her mother who stopped working to cook for the family.
- She began cooking meals at about age 10–12 and used her parents as guinea pigs, sparking her chef career.
Restaurant In The Family Home
- Pam opened her first restaurant inside her parents' house and her parents had to use a back entrance.
- They climbed stairs to reach their room because strangers sat in the dining room.
Thai-Chinese Cuisine As A Subculture
- Thai-Chinese cuisine is a subcategory within Thai food with distinct identity and history.
- Pam frames Potong as a space to evoke memory, heritage and a spiritual dining experience.