Your Top 5 Bars

[The Dude]

I know as well as anyone that if one wishes to drink liquor in a bar, they are going to pay a premium.  That has always been the norm.  What is bad in bars is how they make us non-drinkers pay a lot too for soda or something else.  Not fair at all I don't think.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Well dude, the party is over on cheap water or soft drinks in BKK bars. I see current prices on a water and non alc drinks in regular, no entertainment pool bars btw 80-100. Based on the budgets on expats in bkk on other threads, I would say that only a small percent of expat residents could even think about frequenting bars around the city at this point. How on earth is a guy on a 50K/mo. budget going to fit 1000+ check bins into his budget, he'll be flat broke on his as$ by the 3rd week of the month or sooner. I spend over 100K/mo in BKK and I NEVER go to bars anymore due to these outrageous prices. If I got back into my old bar habit, I'd be shelling 130-150K/ mo on overall expenses. I guess traffic will be slowing down in bars as mostly only tourists will be in them. Hopefully we will see more of them go out of biz so that perhaps a message might get across, doubt it though. Another thing driving away biz, as if outrageous prices weren't enough, is the loud, majorly annoying hip hop rap that many establishment's DJs like to blare. This horseshit offends the majority of paying customers. The DJs are playing this music for the employees and not the customers; what a great way to do biz, allowing this incredible nonsense to go on. Exceptions are few and far between. Perhaps bar owners might learn something from the likes of Morning/Night bar down in Nana who have tunes cranking which cater to PREMIUM PAYING CUSTOMERS. Check out how PACKED that place is daily. The Dude stuffed all of his remaing shovels into his maid's qtrs cause they won't be needed to dig the current bar situation in BKK

Edited November 26, 2005 by The Dude

[Girlfrombar]

u & me (kueng ka mu)

2 satang (song sa-lueng)

snob

monkey shocks

riverside (cm)

1.(no rank, actually)

2.(dont go more than 4 times/month --rather stay home)

Edited November 26, 2005 by Girlfrombar

[TRIPxCORE]

Another thing driving away biz, as if outrageous prices weren't enough, is the loud, majorly annoying hip hop rap that many establishment's DJs like to blare. This horseshit offends the majority of paying customers. The DJs are playing this music for the employees and not the customers; what a great way to do biz, allowing this incredible nonsense to go on. Exceptions are few and far between. Perhaps bar owners might learn something from the likes of Morning/Night bar down in Nana who have tunes cranking which cater to PREMIUM PAYING CUSTOMERS. Check out how PACKED that place is daily. The Dude stuffed all of his remaing shovels into his maid's qtrs cause they won't be needed to dig the current bar situation in BKK

Bangkok has had for some time a major inferiority complex. BKK wants to be contemporary, on par and trendy. This is the reason for the inflated prices because they want to look like they are the same high-priced type of establishments one would find in HKG, Seoul, Shanghai or Tokyo. The reason for the rap music is because "hip-hop" music is trendy nowadays and they want to appear to be on the cutting edge. It's all about portraying an image of parity with the bars in the "big-time" cities I listed above.

Problem is that these things are not what a majority of foreign patrons come to BKK for. BKK nightlife spots don't know who their customers are for the most part. They are doing what they feel is right and not what they actually should be doing. Most patrons visiting a bar in BKK have come here for cheap drinks, cheap entertainment and a good time. This is after all a third world country and this is whats expected. Its a simple case of nightclub managers being out of touch with the demographics in BKK. They just don't know and your expectations should be kept quite low. Not knowing the nightlife scene much myself I would be comfortable guessing that the most popular places here are owned and operated by farang. Is that right?

It's the same dilemma with the country of Thailand itself. They are a third-world country and we all know it. Seasoned farangs expect things a certain way knowing where they are but LOS wants to think they are equal to a Japan or Singapore. It just isn't so. Kuala Lumpur and BKK making new airports hoping to turn into the regional leader is a futile exercise IMO. I can't see them surpassing the class-act operations out of HKG or SIN for some time. Thailand being how we all know it to be is part of its charm.

Edited November 27, 2005 by TRIPxCORE

[snoophound]

Yes ODD they think rap and hiphop is cool.

Here in AU most the good bars avoid this crap like the plague.

Its definitely seen as Westie music that attracts the wrong crowd.

I always like CM2 for a great BKK bar,club experince,good party every night,hundreds of Gals for lease,

I hate it when they have res bands that play hiphop and the fact that they changed the really cool boom room trance room and started playing all the YO yO yo wave hands and fingers in the air music ...well that ruined the whole place.

Rivas really screwed up too ,it was great two three years ago with a really good AUS band,now its very average.

Another thing driving away biz, as if outrageous prices weren't enough, is the loud, majorly annoying hip hop rap that many establishment's DJs like to blare. This horseshit offends the majority of paying customers. The DJs are playing this music for the employees and not the customers; what a great way to do biz, allowing this incredible nonsense to go on. Exceptions are few and far between. Perhaps bar owners might learn something from the likes of Morning/Night bar down in Nana who have tunes cranking which cater to PREMIUM PAYING CUSTOMERS. Check out how PACKED that place is daily. The Dude stuffed all of his remaing shovels into his maid's qtrs cause they won't be needed to dig the current bar situation in BKK

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Bangkok has had for some time a major inferiority complex. BKK wants to be contemporary, on par and trendy. This is the reason for the inflated prices because they want to look like they are the same high-priced type of establishments one would find in HKG, Seoul, Shanghai or Tokyo. The reason for the rap music is because "hip-hop" music is trendy nowadays and they want to appear to be on the cutting edge. It's all about portraying an image of parity with the bars in the "big-time" cities I listed above.

Problem is that these things are not what a majority of foreign patrons come to BKK for. BKK nightlife spots don't know who their customers are for the most part. They are doing what they feel is right and not what they actually should be doing. Most patrons visiting a bar in BKK have come here for cheap drinks, cheap entertainment and a good time. This is after all a third world country and this is whats expected. Its a simple case of nightclub managers being out of touch with the demographics in BKK. They just don't know and your expectations should be kept quite low. Not knowing the nightlife scene much myself I would be comfortable guessing that the most popular places here are owned and operated by farang. Is that right?

It's the same dilemma with the country of Thailand itself. They are a third-world country and we all know it. Seasoned farangs expect things a certain way knowing where they are but LOS wants to think they are equal to a Japan or Singapore. It just isn't so. Kuala Lumpur and BKK making new airports hoping to turn into the regional leader is a futile exercise IMO. I can't see them surpassing the class-act operations out of HKG or SIN for some time. Thailand being how we all know it to be is part of its charm.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

[The Dude]

That's right there, snoop dog, that finger in the air crap is enough to make you puke. I'd say that Hollywood pulled off a massive brainwashing campaign to get people to dig that garbage with a shovel; either that or the morons who dig it are a bunch of cretins or both. Can not dig

[The Dude]

There is a market out there however for these hi-so hip hop bars. I suppose there are people who want to be cool so they scramble to places like Bed-Supper Club on Soi 11. The NY Times has had at least 2 articles in the past few months touting that place and Bangkok in general for all the wrong reasons. I think that Bed Club is scary myself. It looks like a major fire trap; It looks like an oil tanker on stilts with only a single exit linked by a super long concrete stairway. The place is packed nightly with morons

[kayo]

mAktUb`ar

never gonna mention it again.......... just can't seem to get it right!!!  

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Never been... but heard it's a top class bar....

totster

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

YAY!!!!! Darn Right Totsterss...!!!

Photo`s are available in the gallery @

The Bar that Kayo Runs... maktub`ar LIVE!!!! (including NEW recent photos)

[snoophound]

HISO and Hiphop do not go together anywhere that I have seen.

Its gangster music at best.And Hollywood is to blame for sure,

BED IS BORING

I think it only gets press beause of its unusual design.

I heard the owners were trying to franchise it.

There is a market out there however for these hi-so hip hop bars. I suppose there are people who want to be cool so they scramble to places like Bed-Supper Club on Soi 11. The NY Times has had at least 2 articles in the past few months touting that place and Bangkok in general for all the wrong reasons. I think that Bed Club is scary myself. It looks like a major fire trap; It looks like an oil tanker on stilts with only a single exit linked by a super long concrete stairway. The place is packed nightly with morons

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

[Baal]

Bars in BKK are really getting arrogant with what they charge for beers. The Dude here wonders where the ceiling's gonna be on these prices cause they've gotten outta sight outta mind. We should coinjoin this thread with those BKK-cost-o-living threads where the cheapo chuckies claim that one can live on anywhere from 10-50K in the big city. Hopefully the said claimants never ever step into a BKK bar these days! It was bad enuf to shell out 70 baht for a Singha, but now hole-in-the-wall pool bars are charging 110 baht!!!!! This is not a joke folks. Then all the while they blast your brain out with ghetto blaster playing hip hop. Wow what a joy! This is what it has come to in the Sukhumvit ghetto bar scene. Hardly worth going. The Dude is on a major boycott. Just think about those cheapo dudes if they went out 8 times a month x 8 beers@110 bt/beer. kinda blows out their budg, wouldn't ya say? and they didnt play pool or tip or buy a single lady drink! and those dudes never go out with ladies, good god no! not possible . if they did, there budget blown on the bar scene alone!

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Im trying to figure out if you're concerned about the price of beer or more concerned about those "cheapos dudes".

Ive never heard someone so "rich" so concerned about poor peoples budgets before.

Thats really sweet!

That being said a lot of your post are pretty funny.

Edited November 28, 2005 by Baal

[MiG16]

for the more pricey place (but def worth it): Virtigo

(better than distil or sirocco at the state tower)

Brown Sugar in LangSuan if you like Jazz (mix of expats and local crowd)

plus the other bars next to Brown Sugar attracts mostly locals

A blues bar near phra athit/khaosarn area

a small little bar with life band and blues music, audience can join in...cant remember name of place

the little bars in liberty square at thonglor (Suk 55), including Song Salueng that the other member mentioned. Also Tuba on Ekamai soi 21 isnt too bad.

cant comment on the Nana area cos I dont hang out there

[CheshireCat]

Larry's Dive- wouldn't walk 100 yds to that place when I lived nearby.

Titanium has up and down nights although again rarely go in- nice looking girls though.

Do frequent O'Reillys in Silom (am I the only one on here who can spell it )?

Afternoon in the Down Under on 7/1 a couple of times a week.

Like the Star Bar in Pattaya on Walking St for watching the talent go to work.

[Indo-Siam]

I long ago got tired of all the "posturing" at the "clubs" - plus the "cutting edge" music does nothing for me. Very impersonal places.

Members places like "Soprano"or "Caribbean" are interesting to see - but again, it's all social posturing.

Suan Lum Night Bazar can be a great night out - but it will close within the next 30 days.

So - I just fall back to some favorite beer bars where either the rock and roll music is good, or the story-tellers make things interesting, or the barkeep and regulars make things fun:

1) Det 5 Crazy Night - Soi Zero

2) New Wave pool bar - Soi 7

3) Down Under Bar - Soi 7/1

4) Sports Corner - Soi 20

5) Hog's Breath Inn - NEP (weekend afternoons/ early evenings).

If you toss food into the picture:

1) Victoria Restaurant - Soi 7

2) Beer Garden Soi 19

3) Bus Stop - Soi 4

4) Tokyo Joe's - Soi 26

5) Great American Barbecue - Soi 36

Cheers!

Indo-Siam

[bkkmadness]

Suan Lum Night Bazar can be a great night out - but it will close within the next 30 days.

Whats the info you have on this place closing? I often pop down there for a Pilsner or two, be gutted if it closes.

[alexth]

Sorry to Butt-in,

but, what happened to Bus Stop on Soi 4,

not there any more ?

or has it been moved elsewhere.

Cookie did some great food there.

Bus Stop is just a bus stop, nothing more, the food is as good as any other food is, the girls are just like in common bars, everything is common, plus, me thinks it's for oldies...

[expatgaz]

What abt Jools on soi 4 ? Thought that had a popular following and good food ?