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This is another place that doubles as a restaurant and picks up pace later in the evening as customers clean their plates. Live music, generally easy-listening, and the crowd is both Thai and expatriate. Laid back and comfortable. Menu mostly Thai.
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This place is probably no different from any other disco—the music’s loud and almost everyone there who is single hopes to meet someone of the opposite sex. All the women are Thai, all the men are foreigners, and almost no one goes home alone. Go figure.
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Maybe the most famous bar in Bangkok, without a doubt it’s the classiest. Smart yet relaxed. A favourite hang-out and jazz venue for almost 60 years. If Bogart was meeting you for a drink, it would be here.
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If you’ve never been here or to its namesake in Amsterdam, the concept sounds a bit far fetched, but it really funky and fun. Sexy young women in futuristic gear serve drinks to a stylish, well-heeled clientele. As the name suggests, all customers sprawl on oversized white beds, although there are chairs if you really want them.
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This small, dark place is cosy to some, smoky and crowded to others. It doesn’t matter which side you’re on, you’re here for the jazz, which can be superb. It can be a bit rough around the edges, but surely that’s the point. The staff and clientele are welcoming and friendly.
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A place that must be seen to be believed. Built against the outside wall of a building, the bar is a gnarled mass of wood, bone, shells, stuffed animals and sexual paraphernalia. A bar without comparison. Sip on cheap beer and watch the passing parade.
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Lovely, large new pub popular with expatriates. Lots of polished wood and televisions. It’s known to fill to the rafters when there is an international or English premiership match of note. Good food. There’s another one on Khao San Road.
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A long-time favourite among expatriates, this is one of the few places in Bangkok you can get Guinness and Kilkenny on tap. The food is good, the portions generous. Live music and dancing.
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This British-style pub is probably the most popular expat hang-out in Bangkok. Everyone knows everyone and pretty soon so will you. The dining room upstairs serves big helpings of food. The chilli is exceptional and the beer is cold.
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The home of the only beach in the city, this qualifies as a sports bar if you’re a diver and actually do it rather than watch it on TV. A relaxed, friendly bar with a sense of humour. Organises diving trips and lessons, with class time in Bangkok and water sessions in Pattaya.
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Another roomy pub with pool, darts and a big screen for watching primarily English sports. But there are lots of TVs, so even if you want to watch something less popular, no one will complain. Its home-brewed English bitter and Pilsner are popular.
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Soi Cowboy, between Sukhumvit Soi 21 and 23, is a very short street crowded with adult bars that are filled with many young women. The popular Long Gun puts on the Soi’s best shows, with teams of costumed women dancing unclothed throughout the evening. Management doesn’t allow the working girls to pester you for ‘lady drinks’. No cover charge.
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Slick and sophisticated with, for Bangkok, a snooty air. Darkly lit with a neon glow and somewhat industrial look. The place to be for a certain crowd.
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There aren’t too many choices in Bangkok if you like reggae, this being the only club that touts itself as reggae to the core, even if hip-hop and Afro beats do sometimes creep in. Good food, elaborate cocktails and DJs with electricity
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This New Orleans-style bar is the place for lovers of jazz and blues. Good vibe, generally easy going, but sometimes the musical offerings and weekend crowds perk up the pace. The restaurant serves high-quality Thai and Western food quickly with grace and a smile.
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Housed in a giant barrel, this popular and lively beer hall brews excellent Germanstyle beer. You can order deep-fried pork knuckle with sauerkraut, wash it down with beer, then stick around and make a night of it. But don’t expect German drinking music and lederhosen when the live music starts up.
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