World's super rich spend millions on Bangkok dinner

Bangkok, Feb 11: Forty odd unidentified super rich gourmets dined in unprecedented luxury last evening at a Bangkok hotel to raise funds for charity.

The diners, several of whom arrived in their private jets, paid one million Baht (about 30,000 US dollars) each for the ten-course meal prepared by the world's best chefs for the event titled ''Epicurean Masters of the World''.

''I cannot reveal the guests' names, but we have two gaming tycoons, one based in Asia and the other in London. Other guests include wealthy businessmen in energy, infrastructure, real estate, investment and other sectors,'' said Deepak Ohri, managing director of Bangkok's luxury Lebua Hotel, who hosted the dinner.

Six Michelin-starred chefs from France, Italy and Germany created the gourmet dishes using fresh greens, seafood and meat flown in from several countries.

The hotel is to donate the profits from the event which has drawn a lot of media attention in Thailand, to the Thai King's Chaipattana Foundation and Medcins Sans Frontieres.

According to Mr Ohri, the hotel organised the event to tap into the world's super luxury gourmet market. There are an estimated 8.5 million US dollar millionaires in the world spending an average of 224,000 US dollars a year each on personal entertainment, he said.

UNI