Wild ginger chicken thighs at Singburi, pictured last month. Photo: Stephen Emms
Unbelievably, it’s been well over a year since I visited the Shoreditch reboot of Singburi. And so a return has been on the cards for a while.
With that in mind, on the last Tuesday in August, my friend and I swung by without a booking for an impromptu lunch. Just after 2pm, the shinily industrial interior was perhaps a third full, although every counter stool was unoccupied, and so the young front-of-house staff seemed relieved when we requested a kitchen-facing perch.
After all, these 19 seats, overlooking the custom-built grills and rows of woks lining the shelves, feel like the heart of this fresh iteration of Leytonstone’s infamous former eating destination.
Walking straight into Singburi without negotiating legendary front-of-house Thelma’s handwritten bookings still feels a little surreal. Back on Leytonstone High Road, a dinner came heaped with anticipation: even securing a two-top felt like something of a coup, an almost impossible feat for those who hadn’t already made it through the door (unless you were lucky with a phone call).
Now, of course, their card (as opposed to cash-only) payment policy, alcohol license and online booking system have removed any (delicious? frustrating?) sense of jeopardy. And thankfully, in 2026, it couldn’t be easier to step inside.
Singburi, on a Tuesday lunchtime in late August. Photo: Stephen Emms
Rewind to February 2025 and the news that the closure of Singburi, a restaurant that had existed on Leytonstone High Road for thirty years, was a big food media story. Head chef Sirichai Kularbwong’s new chapter came about simply because his parents were retiring (Singburi is named after the town where his father was raised), while the Shoreditch relocation was courtesy of new business partners Nick Molyviatis (Kiln and Oma), and GM Alexander Gkikas (Catalyst Roastery).
Some important artefacts remain in the interior. If you’ve been to the shiny Montacute Yards development in the last year, tucked away off Shoreditch High Street, you’ll have seen the old yellow Thai Food sign and, once inside, the iconic Singburi Tasty Thailand Food signage, both in pride of place. And a version of the old chalkboard still hangs to the left of the door listing that day’s dishes, along with the date.
Other than that, with its huge wraparound windows and terrazzo floor, the sleek chrome and orange interior is distinctly different, while the menu, without the laminated list of pad Thai and green curries, is solely shaped by the original restaurant’s pioneering specials.
On my first visit in summer 2025 the plates were undeniably flawless, from the acclaimed watermelon with prawn floss to white cabbage smokily coated in pork fat. Fifteen months and one Bib Gourmand from Michelin later, I’m more than ready for round two.
In today’s issue, scroll down to find out what we ordered — aside from the butter-soft signature chicken thighs, pictured above — as well as my wider thoughts now the hype machine has moved on. @singburi_e1
Welcome to Issue 97. As you will know, today is the 25th anniversary of 9/11. This has particular resonance to me as I was staying nearby at the Tribeca Grand when the planes hit. I’ve written about it several times over the years, but if you’re interested, here’s a 2006 piece I wrote in The Guardian to mark five years since the attacks.
Thanks again so much to everyone for supporting this newsletter, which hit 10k free subscribers this summer and continues to weave in and out of the Global Top 100 Food & Drink charts.
But I can only afford to continue writing it thanks to the generous support of paid subscribers. So as usual, if you enjoy the value you get from this weekly read and can afford to upgrade, it really would be so appreciated.
Paid subscribers have access to the entire archive of 90+ issues, with hundreds of frank restaurant reviews, interviews and food stories you won’t read about anywhere else. No other title writes in depth about the swathe of East London from Stratford, the Olympic Park and Forest Gate to Leyton, Leytonstone and Walthamstow.
Other ways to support include hitting the heart button (for the all-important Substack algorithms), or sharing with friends for up to six months’ credit. And don’t forget you can listen to this newsletter like a podcast on the Substack app (press the play button top right).
In this issue for paid subscribers:
Singburi in 2026: thoughts on the rebooted former Leytonstone institution now in Shoreditch
And speaking of Thai food, I take another look at the much-loved resident kitchen at Bushwood’s tucked-away The North Star
Talented young chef Ollie talks about his new tapas pop-up at Leytonstone’s multi-tasking bar and venue Stone Mini Market
Plus your responses and additional recs to last week’s Top 50 autumn to-do list and all the latest news, gossip and foodie titbits in the regular column Side Portions
