Khao Bird is a Northern Thai BBQ restaurant and bar on Brewer Street in Soho, from restaurateur Mike Palmer and Head Chef Luke Larsson. Following a year-long residency above The Globe Tavern in Borough Market, the team have opened their first permanent London site, continuing their focus on bold regional cooking shaped by time spent in Chiang Mai and Northern Thailand.
The restaurant centres on live fire cooking, with an open kitchen anchoring the main dining room. The menu draws on traditional techniques and hyper-local dishes, interpreted through a contemporary lens. Many recipes are inspired by communal staff meals from Thai kitchens, with influences from restaurants such as Samuay & Sons and Bo.lan.
Dishes include prawn khanon jeen with fermented rice noodles, minced prawn curry and mustard greens, and khao soi with beef brisket and all the fixings. Other plates include Shan BBQ meatballs, fermented tea leaf salad, and a reworked version of beef larb made with Campari in place of the blood and bile typical of the traditional dish. Vegetarian and vegan options are integrated across the menu.
Guests arrive in a space framed by a curved stainless steel counter bar, serving drinks and off-menu snacks like house-made beef jerky with fried lime leaves. Upstairs, a central kiosk doubles as both a music booth and second bar. Ceiling fans, plants and reflective steel finishes nod to Thai design influences, while maintaining a casual, modern energy.
Designed by architect Ben Spong, the interiors feature galvanised steel, oak flooring upstairs, concrete flooring below, and a palette of blue and metal inspired by Chiang Mai traffic signage. Walls display Thai artwork and objects collected during the team’s research trips. The restaurant seats 48 on the ground floor and 30 above.
The drinks list is curated by sommelier Zeren Wilson and includes low-intervention wines chosen to complement the aromatic spice of the food. A rotating cocktail menu, led by the kitchen, features Thai herbs, seasonal fruits and icy slushies. Thai beers, UK craft brews and small-batch producers round out a drinks offer that reflects the restaurant’s wider commitment to sourcing with care.