It was 2004 and the grand Mandarin Oriental Dhara Dhevi was opening its doors. Four hundred dignitaries, led by Prince Bhisatdej Rajani (who stopped the entire parade to tell yours truly, editor of Citylife, that she was a cry baby when he first met her decades ago), were seated at the grand courtyard in front of the hotel’s majestic reception.
The sight of 400 waiters, bringing out 400 dishes carved into flowers and lit by a tiny light, served up foie gras and caviar along with free flowing champagnes, in an extravagant evening never seen before in Chiang Mai.
The so-called six star resort, with an investment of three billion baht, was soon touted by world travel experts as the finest resort in the world.
It was a crown jewel of Chiang Mai tourism.
The resort’s owner, years later, sold his shares to a Chinese investment group, the Mandarin Oriental was removed from management and the resort suffered from years of neglect, bad PR, and disgruntled staff as well as guests.
Recently, the resort, under the name Dhara Dhevi, has been making moves to reopen. It launched a charming and successful monthly market and has attracted some big names back to its Kad Farang area, including Portuguese Chef Carlos Gaudencio, who has returned to helm Allegro Italian Restaurant’s kitchen.
Last night’s fire destroyed the resort’s long neglected Dheva Spa, at its peak, one of the most awarded and coveted spas in the world. The building itself was a homage/replica of Mandalay’s famed teak palace. Thai wood craftsmen were flown to Mandalay for months to train under the expertise of Burmese craftspeople, who in turn were flown to oversee the project here in Chiang Mai. The result was an exquisite teak palace replica right here in Chiang Mai, its interior housing sumptuous spa suites as well as indoor spa pools and other extraordinarily lush offerings.
While the Dheva Spa has been completely destroyed in the fire, the entire Kad Farang area with Allegro Restaurant, the Dhara Dhevi Cake shop and other businesses are still open and happy to accept customers.
The planned Dhara Dhevi Summer Music in the Garden event will go ahead as usual, but be moved from 25th-27th April to 1st-4th May instead.
