Lodge manager and chef, George Newling-Ward, has once again transformed the food and beverage offering at a popular southern Thai ecolodge — Anurak Community Lodge beside Khao Sok national park in southern Thailand.
His aim is to make food and drink at Anurak Lodge a reason to visit as much as hiking, biking, kayaking and planting trees in one of the most visually spectacular nature settings in southeast Asia.
After a previous stint as manager at the ecolodge between 2018 and 2022, Newling-Ward, an acclaimed chef from the British Virgin Islands, returned to Anurak Community Lodge in October 2024.
His motivation, second time around, was to offer mouthwatering southern Thai specials with high quality international favourites, while using the lodge’s own herb garden and locally-sourced ingredients as much as possible.
Guided by a respect for conservation, community, culture and sustainable profitability, the new menu introduced by Newling-Ward now features southern Thai favourites such as Kua Kling dry curry with minced pork and kaffir lime leaves, and Gaeng Som Pla, spicy sour orange curry with fish and bamboo shoots.
Mainstream Thai essentials such as Pad Thai, Geng Keo Wan, Panaeng, Massaman and Pad Kra Pao, and many more, are also available.
Garden to Table
“Our Anurak vegetable garden is now producing a variety of veggies that go onto daily specials such as our cucumber, watermelon and feta cheese salad, stir-fried Bok Choy and stir-fried pumpkin with egg,” said Newling-Ward. “Exact ingredients for our menu depends on each day’s harvest. It is garden to table at its best.”
One of the features of the ecolodge is the open-sided sala bamboo dining space which has been refurbished to host fire-side ‘jungle curry’ nights with much of the cooking being done inside hollow bamboo wood.
On Anurak Lodge’s new wine list, Newling-Ward recommends the 2014 Bordeaux, a 2022 Rose, the extra dry prosecco blu 2022 from Italy, and the Ki Raro Blocks sauvignon blanc 2023 from New Zealand.
“I believe we have the best wine selection at reasonable prices in the whole Khao Sok area,” he said.
Coffee now comes with a community flavour. The shade-grown single source arabica by Seed of Hope, is grown in the coffee belt in northern Thailand, where a percentage of profits provide scholarships for hill tribe students.
To accompany coffee at breakfast, the lodge is now making its own jams. Newling-Ward recommends the pineapple-ginger preserve.
British Virgin Islands
After stints learning his trade in the British Virgin Islands, Turks & Caicos and the Savoy Hotel in London, chef Newling-Ward opened a catering business in Bangkok in 2012. He subsequently worked as a food and beverage director and executive chef in resorts, hotels and restaurants in Phuket. He transformed the food and beverage of Anurak Lodge in his first stint as lodge manager 2018-22.
“Anurak Lodge has aspirations and quality control mechanisms over and above what you may expect in a 19-key 3.5 star ecolodge in Khao Sok. Anurak Lodge’s various awards prove the point,” he said.
Awards
In November, Anurak Lodge won the Tourism Authority of Thailand 2024 Responsible Tourism Award in the “Responsible Tourism Accommodation” category. In 2019 it won the SKAL Sustainable Tourism Award for rural accommodation. In 2020 it was the PATA Grand Award Winner in the sustainability category.
The lodge runs a popular “Rainforest Rising” project where guests plant indigenous species of trees to help rewild land formerly used as a palm oil plantation.
“Anurak Lodge has always been strong on sustainability,” said Newling-Ward.”But I also want guests to know that we offer a great food and drink experience. Indeed, I like to think that our dining more than matches our sustainability and ecotourism credentials.”
You must be logged in to post a comment.