Thailand’s Pichaya Soontornyanakij, widely known as Chef Pam, was this year named the best female chef in the world by a panel of more than 1,000 gastronomists assembled by 50 Best, a food and drink sector brand. She’s the first Asian woman to win that award.

Gideon Long meets her at her Michelin-starred restaurant in Bangkok, in a building which has deep personal meaning for her and which she and her family have lovingly restored.

She takes him on a tour of the gastronomic delights of Bangkok’s Chinatown and tells him about her Thai-Chinese heritage and the challenges of the restaurant business.

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Presented and produced by Gideon Long

(Image: Thai chef Pichaya Soontornyanakij at her restaurant in Bangkok.)