The Tastemakers

Recently awarded the First Runner Up at the Top Chef Thailand Dessert Edition competition in May 2020,Executive Pastry Chef Anupong Nualchawee, Chef Aey's flair for pastry arts was evident early on in his career, when he won a gold medal in cake decoration at the International Food & Hospitality Show when he was still a Professional Culinary Arts student at the Dusit Thani College. Throughout his nine years in pastry arts, he has worked at private country clubs in the USA, as well as part of the pre-opening team for Le Méridien Bangkok. Prior to joining The St. Regis Bangkok, he was the Executive Pastry Chef at The Athenee Hotel, integral to the team that assisted in the hotel's rebrand into A Luxury Collection Hotel.

Swiss-born David Hartwig, new Head Chef at IGNIV Bangkok, was handpicked by IGNIV´s founding chef Andreas Caminada to bring the concept's unique joie de vivre to diners in Bangkok. 

Prior to Chef Andreas's 3-Michelin-starred restaurant Schloss Schauenstein in Switzerland, the talented 29-year-old chef worked in the kitchens of other highly acclaimed restaurants including Maaemo (Oslo, Norway), The NoMad Hotel (New York, USA), Wallsé (New York, USA) and Hotel Paradies (Ftan, Switzerland).

"A meal at IGNIV is like visiting friends - friends who want you to experience the best time and make you feel at home. At IGNIV Bangkok, guests can expect a thought-through, but easy and not stuffy, full experience in terms of choice of dishes, cooking techniques products, flavor profile and balance of seasoning. The use of fresh and top-quality ingredients is very important to me and Bangkok has many fresh ingredients to choose from," said David Hartwig, Head Chef at IGNIV Bangkok by Andreas Caminada.

German-born Chef Arne Riehn was personally selected by IGNIV founder Andreas Caminada as Sous Chef and Pastry Chef for IGNIV Bangkok. In his dual role, the 30-year-old chef assists in all aspects of planning and managing the kitchen, and is in charge of the signature IGNIV Candy Store.

Chef Arne joins IGNIV Bangkok from Andreas Caminada's team in Fürstenau, Switzerland, where he was responsible for the organic wood-fired stone oven bakery and its fine selection of handcrafted artisan breads. Being a professionally trained baker and confectioner, Arne has gained wide experiences as pastry chef in acclaimed restaurants - including 3-Michelin-starred Vendôme in Germany. In 2018, he was chosen as the first Uccelin Scholar by Fundaziun Uccelin, a foundation initiated by Andreas Caminada which fosters promising chefs and service talents with individually composed training units at the world's best restaurants. 

"The IGNIV way of cooking is rooted in Swiss traditions but brings in styles and techniques from around the world. The choice of ingredients is amazing in Thailand and for chefs this is heaven. We play with local ingredients and adapt those products in the style of cuisine we do at IGNIV," said Arne Riehn, Sous Chef and Pastry Chef at IGNIV Bangkok by Andreas Caminada.