FRIDAY, March 29, 2024
nationthailand

Living it up in the ALLEY

Living it up in the ALLEY

The secret is out, Sathorn is the new 'in" place to be in Bangkok

FOR DECADES bustling Sathorn Road has been regarded as the upscale central business district of Bangkok, where the narrow streets are lined with skyscrapers and embassies, and smartly clad workers mingle along the pavements in the daytime.
While most of the area is deserted after office hours, a small area tucked away on Sois 10 and 12 slowly comes alive at dusk, drawing foodies and homebound workers with an extensive selection of good-quality restaurants and bars.
Only a short walk from Chong Nonsi BTS, or a quick shortcut from Silom Soi 9, the U-shaped alleys of Sathorn Sois 10 and 12 are still very much residential and surprisingly low-key, despite being right in the heart of the city.
From about 6pm, when offices and shops start closing, tables and chairs are set up in front of various restaurants and bars, enticing passersby with food and drink special menus, hand-written on big chalkboards. By 8, the alleys are busy, with faint background music to calm customers and diners.
Could this be Bangkok’s new happening spot? Thanaruek Laoraowirodge, founder and co-owner of Supanniga Eating Room, believed the area would become more popular when he expanded his home recipe Thai cuisine restaurant chain to the area last year.
“It happened very quickly and gradually,” Thanaruek told XP of the area’s development.
“Last year when we first opened Supanniga Eating Room on Sathorn Soi 10, there were only a handful of old-school style restaurants and maybe the coffee shop Rocket over in Soi 12. The rest of the area is very residential – condos and houses that look like they’ve been here for a very long time.
“After our success with the first branch on Thonglor, I looked to expand and found a nice spot here where our restaurant would benefit from the office crowd at lunch and the nearby residents at dinner and weekends. I was right about the business gain, and I’m still surprised how these two sois have become so “happening” in just a year.”

Living it up in the ALLEY

Thanaruek Laoraowirodge of Supanniga Eating Room

Proof that the Sathorn area was the up-and-coming nightlife and dining hub probably came with the opening of W Bangkok and Ce La Vi in 2013, near the corner of Sathorn and Narathiwas junction, only a few minutes walk to Sois 10 and 12.
In early in 2013, young hotel brand W Hotels & Resorts arrived in Bangkok with the signature Woo Bar with the “mix and mingle” concept, drawing expats, discerning tourists and local young professionals to venture out of their usual areas in Thonglor, Ekamai and nearby Silom. The House on Sathorn, the hotel’s extended dining venue opened two years later, offers an upscale dining experience in a well-preserved 100-year-old colonial mansion previously owned by Luang Sathorn Ratchayuk, a Chinese merchant who dug up Sathorn canal to accommodate the booming foreign trade in King Rama V’s reign.
The bigger impact came with the opening of international nightlife brand Ku De Ta (now rebranded as Ce La Vi) that touched down in Bangkok in late 2013 at the top of the Sathorn Square building. Serving up sophisticated cocktails and an upscale clubbing experience with big name DJs and local stars, the thumping beats soon attracted big crowds who brought with them an appetite for more to do, more to eat and more to drink.
Following suit was the talk-of-the-town complex Mahanakorn Cube, which is now home to premium outlets like Dean & Deluca, swanky Vogue Lounge and high-end French restaurant L’Atelier de Joel Robuchon by Michelin-stared chef Joel Robouchon.
The Sathorn crowd is not young and wild. They are sophisticated locals, expat professionals and discerning travellers who are looking for nice ambience in well-curated establishments.
More stand-alone chefs’ restaurants and artsy bars started to emerge along the Sathorn stretch, although, in the past year they are clustered around Sathorn Soi 10 and 12.
New territories with existing amenities and conveniences are always attractive to entrepreneurs, especially when land prices and rents are still manageable. One small, multi-storey shop house would cost easily between Bt100,000 to Bt200,000 per month on rent alone in a hip area like Thonglor, while it would cost about 40-per-cent less in Sathorn.
Despite the fast-paced change, the sois are still mainly residential. You can still walk comfortably on wide pavements and there are only a few food carts around. There are no booming cocktail vans in sight (yet) or the throng of tuk-tuks targeting innocent-looking tourists.
Coming into Sathorn Soi 10, you’ll be greeted by casual Italian restaurant, Sorrento, which recently re-opened after a long hiatus. There are a few lofty cafes and Latin-themed bar Revolucion Cocktail that serves hearty cocktails and reinvented signatures, along with vibrant, colourful Latin groove.

Living it up in the ALLEY

Revolucion Cocktail

A little further along the road you’ll find Marcel, which opened May last year, serving Gallic classics in a casual, friendly ambience. Then there’s Supanniga Eating Room that is renowned for Thai home cooked dishes in contemporary chic Thai decor.
At the bottom of the street, where the two alleys meet, you’ll come across Bunker, a bare-looking concrete building. Opened in April, the bar and restaurant is designed by Kelly Wheatley while the kitchen is manned by Arnold Marcella, formerly head of The Elm in New York City and a protege of two-Michelin-star chef Paul Liebrandt. It’s a decent spot to people-watch on the street down below. Food and drinks here don’t come cheap but the service is nice and the building itself is very inspiring.
As you walk up Sathorn Soi 12, you’ll have a hard time deciding where to eat when choices include old-timer Rocket Coffeebar, western comfort food restaurant Lady Brett Tavern and cocktail lounge U.N.C.L.E on the second floor, that also serves steak and various meat and seafood dishes. Not too far from that, on the other side of the road is Kai, an authentic Kiwi restaurant with a pleasant outdoor seating area.
“I come here a few times a week for business lunch or dinner, as well as drinks with friends,” says Guillaume, a Bangkok-based French architect. “I like that there is everything for everyone – Thai, Italian, Japanese, French, fusion or even Chinese, and you don’t need to do the hopping – a dinner here, then a few drinks there then a more lively place later at night. You can pick one place and have dinner and drinks, and just chill. Everywhere here serves both very good food and good quality beverages.
“I like it here particularly because it’s very nice to walk. You don’t get to enjoy that as much in Bangkok if you go to, say, Thonglor, Silom or Sukhumvit Soi 11. There’s no hassle and you can really relax.”
At the beginning of Sathon Soi 12, you’ll hit a vintage neighbourhood bar named after the French phrase for a trainees hang out, Le Cafe des Stagiaires. Opened just last year, the three-storey shop house, which was once a bicycle shop, was fully converted to maximise space and has been filled with 70s and 80s brick-a-brac, vintage signs and old telephones that let you call the bar to order drinks. The cafe serves tasty small dishes and has an extensive list of drinks. You can sit indoors or on the street and enjoy a late dinner and drinks with friends until you’re ready to hit the dance floor, manned by local spinners every Friday and Saturday.

Living it up in the ALLEY

Le Cafe des Stagiaires

Another interesting aspect of Sathon Sois 10 and 12 is that most new restaurants and bars are converted from old offices and shops, which makes it visually harmonious and pleasantly subdued. It’s refreshing, and a relief that for once in Bangkok’s bustling nightlife scene, there are no funky, massive clubs or bars that stick out like a sore thumb.
Next year will no doubt see more bars and restaurants popping up in the area. No one can guarantee that this little nook on Sathorn Road |will maintain its peace and pleasantry forever.

 

On Sathon Soi 10
Sorrento
Call (02) 349 933 and |(02) 234 9841
@SorrentoSathorn

Revolucion Cocktail
Call (02) 235 4823
@RevolucionCocktailBangkok

Supanniga Eating Room
(02) 635 0349
@SupannigaEatingRoom

Marcel
Call (02) 635 3533
@MarcelRestaurantBangkok

On Sathorn Soi 12
Bunker
Call (02) 234 7749
@BUNKERBKK

Rocket
(02) 635 0404

Lady Brett Tavern
(02) 263 50405

U.N.C.L.E
Call (02) 635 0406
@UNCLEcocktailbar

Kai
Call (02) 635 3800
@KaiNewZealand

Le Cafe des Stagiaires
Call (081) 207 3077
@csbangkok

 

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