Showing 1-10 of 88 results
-
Red hot and raring
Guru, Richard Mcleish, Published on 28/11/2014
» With the launch of new tapas-style food bar Hot Rod in Ekamai, Ash Sutton is back and racing. What to do when your bar empire gets pulled out from under you? Start rebuilding, of course. Positioned in the front of the cordial Park Lane precinct, the place is a great pairing with the equally aesthetic AR Sutton & Co Engineers Siam colonial den right behind. Maximising the modest dimensions of the room, Hot Rod’s interior is a jungle-laden tapas bar to sit up at in one of the 12 over-sized swivel chairs and take in the action. Outside is plenty of space for bigger groups and overspill (30+), particularly nice at this time of year, but inside is where you want to be. Sit up at the bar and watch the chef wield the wok as the many staff scurry around the shadowy recesses behind you. The pulsating deep beat soundtrack fuels the futuristic feel further. The crowd is a mix of well-rehearsed Sutton followers, restaurant hoppers and thankful Ekamites.
-
Gate crasher
Guru, Richard Mcleish, Published on 07/11/2014
» Welcome to Guru’s Gate Crasher, your ultimate guide to finding something fresh to do in this big city.
-
Peppy Peppina
Guru, Richard Mcleish, Published on 07/11/2014
» These days in Bangkok, it's not just about choosing simply "pizza" for dinner, but what style of pizza you'd prefer. It's a good problem, after all, but we'll have to get used to such discernment. In the latest contender in the pizza race, the team behind Appia has delivered Peppina, a bustling mid-Sukhumvit spread that has somehow become everything from a Sunday evening pizzeria to a Friday night hot spot. It has only been open a few months and it's already full, all the time, so book in advance — something else that will need getting used to in this city. The kitchen dominates the warehouse-style room to good effect, involving you right in the action among the countless food and floor staff buzzing about the place. It's great for big groups (definitely book), and during our early sitting we were flanked by two tables of at least 10, who were easily accommodated. Nooks in the back section (under the stylish wall tiles that spell "Peppina") offer more intimacy for smaller groups. Overall, there's room for 80 or so.
-
Small talk
Guru, Richard Mcleish, Published on 31/10/2014
» While the little venue has been gaining a reputation for being a nifty neighbourhood bar, we think its kitchen is worthy of some attention too. It’s the latest chapter of regional proprietor stalwart David Jacobson, who first came to the region in the early 90s to open the pioneering Q Bar in Saigon. The New Yorker is a gracious host, often on hand to decipher the nuances of his cocktail list and jazz collection, with plenty of juicy anecdotes in between for good measure. This latest local pad, Smalls, is just that, quietly occupying a corner on the leafy Suan Phlu (where Chez Pepin formerly stood). It’s three levels of kooky stylings, with DJs and live acts downstairs in the ornate parlour room, a kitchen and balcony on the middle floor and a rooftop upstairs for open-air action amid upholstered chairs and cosy tables. All corners of the adult cubbyhouse have something to offer, in a feast of textures (brick, recycled timber, corrugated iron, padded stairwell) and details (Jim Thompson photo outside, a caged Barbie, ceiling mirrors). The crowd ranges through the week (and night), attracting everyone from locals having knock-off drinks to dining daters to a dedicated bar crowd into the smaller hours.
-
Sushi supreme
Guru, Richard Mcleish, Published on 17/10/2014
» While the arrival of another sushi restaurant in Bangkok might elicit groans instead of grins, Sushi Ichi is not your average semi-frozen fish dispenser. The Michelin-starred original incarnation exists in retail mecca Ginza in Tokyo, which conjures images of the famed Sukiyabashi Jiro restaurant of Jiro Dreams of Sushi documentary. Its basement setting is not unlike a Tokyo subway station location — a little unusual for Bangkok but completely normal in the homeland. The cosy dimensions are split into two rooms for 12 and 14 diners, with a narrow corridor connecting the two. The indirect lighting and ample use of hinoki wood (sourced locally) soften voices and light, transporting you seemingly far away from the bustling Ratchaprasong intersection just outside. An indirectly shared experience in the counter-style rooms, present during our lunch visit were well-dressed pairs of locals, execs eating alone and a Japanese couple that seemed right at home.
-
Gate Crasher
Guru, Richard Mcleish, Published on 26/09/2014
» Welcome to Guru’s Gate Crasher, your ultimate guide to finding something fresh to do in this big city.
-
Sets to impress
Guru, Richard Mcleish, Published on 26/09/2014
» And Bo.lan has a new home. The dynamic culinary duo behind the original incarnation over on Sukhumvit Soi 26, Duangporn "Bo" Songvisava and Dylan Jones, have transplanted themselves to Soi 53 and spread out into a more spacious (and stylish) premises not far from the Thong Lor BTS. While they had plenty of renovations to do, Dylan assures us, it seems the place has been there for decades with an already settled feel. Again, it's a house set among a well-kept garden — this time with a pool — that colour the main view and light source of the moodily-lit house. It seems they are enjoying the bigger space, particularly in the kitchen apparently, again creating a transporting effect through the portal driveway entrance to the secluded surrounds. There's enough room for 60 diners (80 at a push), with two private rooms available. They are pushing the environmental aspects of the place, (which is still largely overlooked in this city of appearances), reducing waste, installing LED lights and recycling organic matter and grey water. They are also moving towards being carbon-zero and hope to achieve this by 2018, which by then the city should have a better handle on such issues (and the real definition of words such as "farmer's" and "organic"). During our mid-week afternoon sitting, many local Thong Lor ladies were lunching with their well-dressed mums, but things get decidedly more moody in the evenings with all the mood lighting and timber, and the crowd morphs accordingly. Tunes sound like reminiscent of a molam Paradise Bangkok party, right in line with the other sensory stimulus.
-
Gate Crasher
Guru, Richard Mcleish, Published on 05/09/2014
» Welcome to Guru’s Gate Crasher, your ultimate guide to finding something fresh to do in this big city.
-
A restaurant for all seasons
Guru, Richard Mcleish, Published on 15/08/2014
» While the main arteries of the city remain clogged with traffic and chain restaurants, it's exciting to see the emergence of back-soi venues. Settled on a quiet block of the Silom banking district, Le Du Wine Bar & Restaurant has been catering to an in-the-know clientele that likes to think outside the box, both in terms of location and menu, since opening in November. The boxy space has enough room for around 35 people in dainty surrounds that look more suited to high tea than gastro adventuring. The ornate room features a large viewing window into the kitchen, highlighting what is really on show here - the food. The night we visited was a little quiet, with a table or two of well-heeled Thais present - such is the trappings (and joy) of a destination venue.
-
Gate Crasher
Guru, Richard Mcleish, Published on 08/08/2014
» Welcome to Guru’s Gate Crasher, your ultimate guide to finding something fresh to do in this big city.
Your recent history
-
Recently searched
-
Recently viewed links
Did you find what you were looking for? Have you got some comments for us?
