Ministry of Crab Bangkok
15, 1 Sukhumvit 31, Khlong Toei Nuea, Watthana, Bangkok 10110
Order by crab size and pick your preparation. The menu runs from a 500g half-kilo crab up to the 2kg Crabzilla, and the kitchen applies preparations ranging from a Black Pepper Crab made with hand-crushed peppercorns ground on a traditional miris gala stone to an Olive Oil Garlic Chilli Crab that blends Italian olive oil with Sri Lankan chilli flakes and Japanese soy. The Spicy Thai Basil Crab is the Bangkok-specific addition, built on an aromatic Thai basil sauce.
You walk 300 metres into Sukhumvit Soi 31 and reach the Sam-Ed Building, home to the Bangkok edition of a restaurant that Sri Lankan chef Dharshan Munidasa co-founded in Colombo in 2011 alongside cricketers Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara. The original location held a spot on Asia's 50 Best Restaurants list every year from 2015 to 2019, finishing 35th in its final ranked year.
The concept centres on Sri Lankan mud crab served absolutely fresh. A strict no-freezer policy applies across the kitchen, meaning every crab you order arrived alive. Sizes run from 500g to the two-kilogram Crabzilla, and you choose your preparation after you choose your weight.
The Black Pepper Crab is the original preparation. Peppercorns are hand-crushed and rolled on a miris gala, a traditional Sri Lankan grinding stone, then combined with whole peppercorns and a pepper dashi for a layered heat that builds slowly. The Olive Oil Garlic Chilli Crab takes a different direction, blending Italian olive oil with garlic, Sri Lankan chilli flakes, and Japanese soy sauce in a cross-continental combination.
For the Bangkok location, the kitchen developed the Spicy Thai Basil Crab, drawing on the aromatic qualities of Thai basil street food traditions. The Baked Crab pairs tender crab meat chunks with a Japanese rice risotto. Alongside crabs, the Prawnzilla and the Clay Pot Prawn Curry, made with half a kilo of two prawn varieties in a medley of spices, round out the seafood-focused menu.
Start with the Crab Liver Pate, a 20-gram appetizer of creamy crab liver served with square-cut toast and a beaker of sweet palm sugar syrup. The restaurant also operates across Mumbai, Shanghai, Manila, and the Maldives, making the Bangkok branch part of an international group that maintains the no-freezer standard at every location.