Maroochi Mountain Club, Mae Sa Valley’s new destination

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This open-aired mountain club offers sweeping views from an elegant interior which is all about comfy sofas, colourful soft cushions, sloping English lawns complete with blooming rose bushes, and of course the sweeping views of the undulating waves of mountains fading into the distance. With its enviable position in the heart of Chiang Mai’s playground – Mae Sa Valley – Maroochi has grand plans and great ambitions.

With a steady stream of locals and tourists heading up the mountains on any given day, as well as a fair number of people living or having second homes in the area, owner Narapimm Sundaravej, who has recently shifted from a glamorous career in the film industry, hopes to offer a club with delicious international cuisine, fine wines and cocktails as well as regular activities for her Bangkok friends and hopefully new Chiang Mai ones to gather.

“We have spent the past few months exploring the area,” said Narapimm, who goes by Kiki. “Just yesterday we climbed up a mountain and found a charming lake where we are planning to organise exclusive picnics for our guests, serving fine wines, fabulous food and a bit of an adventure.”

Maroochi plans to invite musicians and famous artists from Bangkok and beyond – hopefully, regularly in the post-pandemic future – for special events which it hopes to turn into weekend-long activities.

“We will be having concerts with dinner and drinks, while also offering accommodation with our partner hotels and rental homes in the area with day time activities from picnics to trekking to horse riding along trails we are continuing to discover.”

In the meantime, Maroochi Mountain Club is a destination unto itself and since its official launch recently has seen a steady stream of Chiang Mai visitors, Thai and expat, who have driven up for a decadent long lunch, a cup of coffee with a slice or two of any of the freshly baked pies, cakes and cookies, or a romantic dinner under the twinkling stars.

The cuisine Boombera Wild Bistro is Thai and international fusion with some very unique dishes worth driving up for. Surrounded by vales and mountains filled with some of the best and freshest produce found in Thailand, Maroochi’s Chiang Mai-born and New Zealand-trained chef serves up some wonderful salads, freshly-plucked from surrounding farms. The Caesar salad with tender bites of chicken, the mountain bowl of cherry tomatoes, orange and avocado with parmesan cheese and the mozzarella croquette with fruity mixed tomato salad and pesto, are three light and refreshing dishes to start with. Classic fare such as spaghetti carbonara, pumpkin, carrot and coconut soup, or grilled tenderloin beef with spicy grape salad are all delicious, though we got rather excited by some of the more innovative creations, especially the pom pom pomelo salad which is a twist on the yam som-o; the pomelo salad is served with Hokkaido scallops with a deep-flavoured spicy field crab dressing for punch.

The drinks list is what makes a party, and Maroochi promises to be a great place for groups of friends to gather and indulge in a long lunch or lingering dinner over a solid selection of both old and new world wines, starting at around the thousand baht mark and climbing up to giddying heights to rival the surrounding mountains. There is a creative cocktail menu with single malts and other fine spirits also available behind the bar. For those who must drive home, mocktails are just as delicious as cocktails and there are coffees, teas, fruit juices and sodas from which to choose. With all those lovely drinks, sometimes finger food is needed and we recommend the fried tortilla with nam prik ong, nam prik noom and avocado dip as well as the cold cut platter of cheeses and meats…which includes local fermented pork and sai-ua sausages.

Watch this space for announcements of future events to come, and in the meanwhile why not drive up the beautiful Mae Sa Valley and spend a day gazing at the mountains while leaning back on a comfy sofa with friends digging into fine food and wines.

Maroochi Mountain Club
Muangkam Village, Pyongyang Chiang Mai
Open: 10am – 10pm
Tel: 062 304 5999