Michelin-star Bo.lan’s attempt at building a zero-carbon footprint restaurant in Bangkok

“The best Thai restaurants should be found in Thailand.”

The above line, mentioned in the website of Bo.lan—a Bangkok-based Michelin star restaurant—emphasises on its founders’ vision of sharing Thai food heritage and eating culture with their guests. 

Founded in 2009 by husband-and-wife duo, Chefs Duangporn Songvisava (also known by ‘Bo’) and Dylan Jones, Bo.lan draws inspiration from an extensive collection of rare and antique Thai recipes and the founders’ travel around the country. It is acclaimed for its stand on sustainable practices, and advocating bio-diversified produce and practices with its ever-changing menu comprising local, seasonal flavours. 

Working with a wide network of farmers and artisans, the restaurant is constantly pushing its boundaries to achieve a zero-carbon footprint restaurant. Bo.lan is not just ‘green-washing’ its principles, but has incorporated initiatives like replacing bottled water with in-house reusable glass bottles to minimise single-use plastic waste. It makes staff uniforms from organic materials, sans toxic dyes; and reduces  chemicals used for cleaning by producing in-house soaps from waste cooking oil. It has also set up a never-ending exchange system of reusable crates and cloth bags with its farmers; among other things. 

Recently, the chefs visited Rim Naam, a fine-dining Thai restaurant at The Oberoi in Bengaluru, offering guests an immersive journey into the heart of Thailand. 

In an email conversation with YS Life, Chef Dylan Jones, Co-founder and Partner at Bo.lan, dives deeper into their sustainability principles and practices, breaks myths associated with Indian-Thai food, and about re-creating a similar sustainable fine dining experience in a different country. 

Edited excerpts:

YS Life [YSL]: What inspired this commitment to sustainability, and how did it shape your culinary philosophy?

Dylan Jones [DJ]: Short answer is we need nature to keep doing our job; without healthy soil we can’t get good produce. We are passionate about sustainability and believe as cooks we have a responsibility to ensure we are sourcing as ethically and regeneratively as possible. We also believe that just because you have a fine dining restaurant doesn't mean you shouldn't care about waste management and best practices. 

Our culinary philosophy is rooted in what nature provides, so we will do our best to make sure we are not making a negative impact on that. 

YSL: How do you balance traditional Thai cooking techniques with sustainable practices?

DJ: They go hand-in-hand. The best produce is produced by the people who care for their environment, and the best tasting food comes from doing things properly from scratch (avoiding industrialised food products), seasonality is inherent in all great cuisines and Thai is no different. 

YSL: How have you cultivated relationships with local producers in Bangkok, and how do you ensure ethical sourcing?

DJ: Like all relationships, it’s based on trust built over time, it’s about understanding and being flexible to each other’s needs. We have something like 60-plus suppliers that we deal with directly. We've visited their communities and experienced their daily life in order to understand their challenges and their strengths. We don't dictate what they produce, they tell us what's available and we run the menu accordingly. 

YSL: When bringing the Bo.lan experience to Bengaluru, how did you adapt your sustainability principles in a different culinary landscape?

DJ: This is always a challenge and let's be honest, flying from one place to another in a tin can, fueled by petro chemicals, is hypocritical. We will always try to bring some of our base products from Bangkok. Then it's about working with the local hosts to  help us with local knowledge. Obviously, there is no way we can do it to the same extent we do at Bo.lan, but we try as hard as possible to stay true to our principles. Again, it's a lot of back-and-forth communication before we even get there. 

YSL: What is one misconception that Indians have about Thai food? 

DJ: That it's interchangeable! For example, the curry can be with whatever veg or proteins you want. The truth is Thai curry paste changes depending on what goes in them, and 90% have shrimp paste, which causes another issue!

YSL: Have you tried Thai food in India yet? 

DJ: No not really, when we travel, we want to experience the best of the local food culture.

YSL: What are some of the similarities between Indian micro-cuisines and authentic Thai food? 

DJ: I think the complexity of flavour is something that is similar, whilst the flavour profiles are distinctly different, the balance of flavours is a technique they share. 

YSL: Can you share some innovative strategies Bo.lan uses to minimise waste, from kitchen to table?

DJ: Used cooking oil is turned into soap; herb scraps, spent coffee, and spent citrus is upcycled into craft cola syrup; fruit peels are turned into EM (effective microorganism) for cleaning and gardening; citrus zest is processed to get the pectin to add to cleaning agents; cooked rice is turned into desserts and teas. 

YSL: How do you think global dining experiences, like this collaboration, can help spread awareness about sustainable gastronomy?

DJ: It’s a new platform and a new set of customers, even if only one or two customers take something away from it regarding sustainability, it's two new people who might affect change in their daily lives. 

Honestly though, it's really hard to say as once the promotion is done, we leave and don't personally see the impact, if any, of what we've done. We'd hope we also influence the partners we work with like The Oberoi. Everyone, even us, can make better choices and use better practices to create a more equitable future on this planet. 

YSL: Looking ahead, how do you envision the role of sustainability in the future of fine dining?

DJ: If we don't seriously change the way we operate—not just restaurants but all aspects of our lives—it's going to be a challenge. Sustainability is no longer a choice, it's a necessity and if you're not getting on with it, you're probably already way behind the global culinary scene! And don't just green-wash it, actually do it.