About Us
About Koh Thai Tapas™
Koh Thai Tapas was born out of our frustration with the status quo. We wanted to create a place where we would like to eat. A place where the holy flavours of Thai cuisine could be shared and sampled with fiery cocktails, farflung beers and world-class music. A place at once authentic, beautiful, unpretentious, relaxed and refined. Was that too much to ask?
Our first Koh, proud among its arty neighbours on Boscombe high-street, was a handcrafted shrine to our ideal. We were building a sanctuary, or as the name translates, an ‘island’. Little did we know that so many others shared our vision, that our island could grow to become an archipelago.
Our journey
In its first year of trading, Koh Boscombe won Bournemouth’s 2010 Restaurant of the Year. This gave us all the encouragement we needed to take our concept on tour. Our flagship venue, in Bournemouth’s ‘Soho Quarter’, then proved its mettle with the accolade of Reader’s Recommended Dorset Restaurant in the Good Food Guide. This cemented our suspicions that our success was grassroots; our customers were on our side.
Thai Tapas proved a flexible concept. We launched Koh Lounge, our touring pop-up bar and beach lounge that has brought the party to Bournemouth Air Festival, Poole Thai Festival, and Boscombe Tea Party. Our takeaway trade has made our distinctive Koh Smarties a feature across the South.
Our recent expansion to Southsea, Bath and Bristol, with its new challenges and new audiences, has honed our concept. Although every venue is unique, born out of the marriage between historic locations and fresh fusion design, we continue to deliver on exquisite food, drink and that eclectic atmosphere. We keep striving to hit the mark of the CDE - the Complete Dining Experience.
What is CDE?
CDE is the backbone of our brand. CDE is our attention to every detail; every customer, every welcome, every goodnight.
It is the placement to the candle, the polish to the wood, the garnish to the cocktail.
It is the artist in the chef, the joker in the barman, the friend in the manager.
It is how nothing is forgotten and how everyone is remembered.
CDE is why you come back.