Quick Facts
Biography
Pichaya "Pam" Soontornyanakij (Thai: พิชญา สุนทรญาณกิจ, born Pichaya Utharntharm; Thai: พิชญา อุทารธรรม) is a Thai-Australian chef and the owner of Potong, a Thai Chinese fine-dining restaurant, in Chinatown, Bangkok, Thailand. In the 1880s, her family migrated to Thailand from Fujian southern China.
Born and raised in Bangkok, Chef Pam Soontornyanakij attended Saint John's International School, and graduated from Chulalongkorn University in 2010 with a bachelor of arts in communication arts. A 2013 graduate of the Culinary Institute of America, Soontornyanakij became the youngest chef to win the 2011 Asia Youth Hope Cooking at 21, and was named Asia's Best Female Chef 2024 by Asia's 50 Best Restaurants. Potong earned her first Michelin Star in 2023.
Chef Pam's ancestor opened the 120-year old 'Potong Pharmacy' in a building she inherited, upon which she constructed Potong restaurant in 2021. In 2023, it was awarded Asia's 17th best restaurant and the world's 57th by 50 Best.
