When Suwincha “Chacha” Singsuwan of Bangkok Supper Club was named the MICHELIN Guide’s Exceptional Cocktails Award winner for New York in 2024, hardworking Americans who respect craft should nod in approval — this was recognition earned by skill, discipline, and a lifetime in the trade, not by a social-media campaign or political favor. The MICHELIN announcement makes clear this was a prize for mastery of flavor and technique, the kind of meritocratic achievement conservatives rightly celebrate.
Her so-called Fish Sauce cocktail is the kind of bold, kitchen-driven innovation that turns heads: gin brightened with Napa cabbage broth, a whisper of fish sauce, pear, citrus, and clarified milk to smooth the edges. It sounds daring because it is, but the result is a layered, fragrance-forward drink that proves flavor and tradition win customers, not virtue signaling.
Chacha’s program pairs tightly with Chef Max Wittawat’s menu, and her work shows the conservative virtues of patient craft — long practice, exacting prep, and a refusal to cut corners — rather than chasing cheap trends. The MICHELIN profile even traces her Truffled Pandan back years, underscoring that real innovation comes from steady refinement, not instant fame.
That said, there’s a national conversation to be had about culinary elites and the balance between technique and common sense. The move toward savory, kitchen-inspired cocktails is interesting and sometimes brilliant, but publications and food critics should never confuse novelty for superiority; the consumer’s palate is the final arbiter, not a protected class of trendsetters.
This award is also a reminder that America — and New York in particular — still rewards enterprising people who bring talent and tenacity to the table, often immigrants who embrace opportunity and deliver goods for paying customers. Conservatives should celebrate that dynamic: individuals succeeding because they earned it through craft, not because of cronyism or quotas.
Local restaurants and bars are small businesses that deserve support, and programs that reuse kitchen byproducts to build cocktails show responsible stewardship alongside creativity. If we care about community and thrift, we should applaud those who turn what others toss into something valuable, and vote with our wallets by dining where quality and accountability meet.
So go taste for yourself before you scoff at the headline — the Fish Sauce cocktail isn’t a stunt, it’s a statement that bold flavor and old-fashioned hard work still get noticed. In a country built on enterprise, let’s back the cooks and bartenders who hustle, innovate, and earn true recognition rather than bowing to culinary fads or snobbery.
