SAGuy

Backstory My work requires meticulous planning, but when it comes to social occasions, the average Thai has better planning skills than me. So here I was at midday on Christmas Day, nursing a hangover and thinking where can I go for Christmas Lunch? I live on soi 13 and whilst having a lung torpedo on the balcony, I looked down to the soi for inspiration and saw two very easy options - The German Beer House or the Red Lion... OK that was easy, Red Lion it is. Crimbo Lunch By the time I got myself together it was around 1700, which was fine, as by my logic, most Brits eat Christmas lunch around 1500, so there should be some tables free. I crossed over the soi and walked in and luckily the theory was right. They also served until 2000 that night. There were 2 options: main course only for THB 595 or 3 courses for 895. I decided on the latter. The food options harkened back to the 1970s, which was fine by me, so I chose the prawn cocktail to start, washed down with a bottle of water as I couldn't face any more booze. For the main course they offered turkey and ham with all the trimmings. It was served on a very large plate, so what looked small,, was actually very large. You could not fault the serving size or the quality of the main course. For dessert I had the traditional Christmas pudding and another bottle of water. Service was excellent, it was busy and I was lucky to get a table, as it filled up with what seemed like a second sitting around 1730. I'd give it 8/10 for what was a last minute decision. Very good value and close(ish) to original food, as I remembered it. They also have a happy hour every day up until 2000 with cheap beer and they serve Baht Buster breakfasts, which I will give a try over Christmas, as they are served up until midday. The only 2 negatives I had (which were minor) were a. The prawn cocktail had onions in it, which I've never come across before and the raw onions overpowered the taste of the rest. b. The Christmas pudding was served as a slice. I have never seen that before either. I'd recommend the Red Lion overall and now have a go-to Christmas place for next year! SAG

@Danum99 contacted me about the same problem today, just by coincidence. He has not had access for a few weeks and uses a VPN, but all the usual fixes are not working for him either. He is based in a SEA country. SAG

Backstory ToTo is visiting BKK as she is looking for wholesalers for her new Laos business and has also been invited to the WN04 Staff Trip later this week. @Behan suggested we take her to No Idea, which is a really nice restaurant on soi 18. I had visited No Idea with @Behan once before and remembered that it was a favourite of Iain's when it was located on soi 22. As Iain was a qualified chef, that was quite the recommendation. There was a comical episode when I was trying to give the directions to ToTo: ToTo: Where we meet? SAG: No idea ToTo: What name of restaurant? SAG: No idea ToTo: How I find it? SAG: On soi 18. ToTo: How I know I am there? SAG: Stop at No idea etc. I finally managed to cut through the confusion, but must admit, it is a daft name for a restaurant! The Restaurant No Idea is situated about 300 metres, or a 5 minutes walk, inside soi 18, on the left hand side. It is set back from the road, with steps leading up to an outside area. The inside is spacious and feels very roomy, with a modern decor and tables far enough away from each other that you can have a private conversation. There is also a bar area, which has a bar menu, and there must be 1,000+ bottles of wine on the walls. The cocktails and wine menu is extensive, What makes the restaurant stand out is that there are a lot of staff, who are very attentive and are well trained, with excellent English. The menu has about 8-10 starters and the same number of main courses and desserts. But what is quite unique about No Idea is that the list of specials is probably bigger than the menu itself. I have never seen so many specials and they definitely change from visit to visit. The type of food is modern farang, and is probably most similar to the Wine Connection on soi 11, although the quality at No Idea is way better and the service cannot be compared. If you're thinking that it is expensive, you would be wrong, I had the grilled chicken and seasonal vegetable, which was about THB 500 and the portions were very generous. ToTo had the Wagyu Carpaccio as a starter and then the seafood pasta, which she seemed to enjoy. The carpaccio was THB 550 and the seafood pasta, which had a lot of seafood in it was 950. A sign of a good restaurant is that there is little to no staff turnover and I recognised three of the waiting on staff from the previous visit. Summary If you are looking for a nice place, that has very good food and excellent service, but is neither pretentious nor over-priced, then No Idea ticks all of the boxes. It is a perfect place to take a LB out for a special occasion, without her feeling intimidated or like a fish out of water. If you set the benchmark at Wine Connection, then that place gets a 3.5/5.0 from me, as it is just OK food, with cramped tables and so-so service, as compared to much better quality food, way better service and a nice spacious layout. It is the difference between a corporate chain restaurant and an individually owned establishment. I give No Idea a 4.5/5.0 and IMHO it cannot be faulted. Highly recommended if you fancy some farang food and it has a highly extensive drinks list! The customers were mainly farangs and it was a nice relaxed atmosphere. Cheers SAG

Very confusingly the website www.noideabkk.com directs to a place called Pasha. It is very odd as it is the same place and all the signage is No Idea. Everything is the same, except for the name! There must be a backstory there, which I will ask about on the next visit, as I love mysteries like this. It comes across as daft and must be very confusing! SAG

Yes the new owner makes a point of coming over to every table after your meal to check if everything was OK etc. It is a great personal touch and you can see he takes a lot of pride in his restaurant. SAG

Backstory Nan, who works at WN04, was off last Thursday and wanted to go out. When asked where did she fancy she replied: burgers, KFC or pizza! There is no pretence about Nan! I'm not a fan of fast food and so pizza seemed like the best option. Ordering pizza in BKK is like the proverbial 'game of two halves'. There is the mass market version, much beloved by the locals, which IMHO is a gooey mess of dough, stodge, oil and cheap cheese, all topped off with Ketchup! However, BKK also does boast some very good pizzerias and one of my favourites is Vesuvio. Vesuvio This Italian owned pizzeria serves authentic wood-fired Neapolitan-style pizza. There are no stodgy thick crusts to be found here! It is a small place, which maybe seats 15 inside and another 15 outside, so you need to be mindful of this when you visit. We were there just after 20.30 on a Thursday night, so the evening rush was over and there were free tables inside. It is quite easy to find. When walking into Soi 8 from Sukhumvit Road, it is located down the first side alley on the right hand side of Soi 8. About 30 metres in on the left hand side and there it is, bang opposite a very gaudy looking bar. The menu is to be expected and has all of the usual antipasti and salads etc. The choice of pizzas is extensive and there is one for every taste, even Hawaiian! The Italian mixed platter as a starter looked very appetising and the Roman tourist sitting next to us rated it highly. A good sign for an 'ethnic' restaurant is if they attract visitors from their own country and it is very commonplace to find diners from the 'old country' eating at Vesuvio. Nan went with the seafood pizza and I chose the ham and mushroom, because I am boring. Both pizzas came out within about 15-20 minutes and they are large! This is why I skipped the starter. The look on Nan's face was priceless as she was more used to the smaller sized circles of dough served up by Pizza Hut etc. To be fair to Nan, who normally has a sparrow-like appetite, she managed to finish off half of hers and had the waitress wrap up the other half to take back to WN04. She claimed she was going to give it to Tew, who had a bad month, but who knows? I then persuaded her to try the tiramisu, which I knew she would enjoy. That was demolished and so was a great suggestion! Summary A great place for authentic pizza. Most of the pizzas started at THB 370, although they have a lunch time special that runs until 15.00 where you can get 2 for THB 650. I try to visit there once a quarter and it has always been consistent. It was Nan's first ever visit and she enjoyed it very much. The quality of ingredients is very good and you can tell that the owner runs a tight ship in terms of standards. Service was very efficient and friendly, with 3 waitresses. The atmosphere is not what you would describe as romantic, like some trattoria-style restaurants, as it is too small for that. We were there for about an hour. All of the customers were farangs, including Italians, Brits and some Scandis. I would certainly recommend Vesuvio if you want that pizza fix and it is open for lunch and closes at 22.30. Nan's Pizza - Plenty of Seafood Toppings Nans Pizza again, but also a view of my ham and mushroom pizza The Bottom Line - I thought it was very reasonable for quality food Special Bonus Photo - Nan's Mai Tai at the bar we went to afterwards (the first of many cocktails!) Ciao SAG

For Brits living 'up norf', this could be a useful travel option for the LOS high season. I have never flown on Norse, but as a low cost carrier (LCC), it could be a great budget option. https://www.businesstraveller.com/business-travel/2025/07/03/norse-atlantic-airways-launches-direct-flights-from-manchester-to-bangkok/ Norse Atlantic Airways to launch direct flights from Manchester to Bangkok 3 Jul 2025 by Alice Henderson Norse Atlantic Airways is launching flights from Manchester Airport to Bangkok, which will make Manchester the only UK city outside of London to fly to the Thai capital. Tickets are already on sale, though the service doesn’t begin until 26 November this year, running until March 2026. Flights will be operated by Boeing 787-9 aircraft, departing Manchester at 2330 every Wednesday, with arrival into Bangkok scheduled for 1800 the following day. Meanwhile, return flights leave Bangkok on Thursdays at 2000, landing in the UK at 0215 on Friday. Manchester Airport managing director Chris Woodroofe, said: “Here at Manchester Airport we’re proud to connect the North to the world. Bangkok is one of the most exciting destinations on the planet – and is rightly one of the most popular. “Many people from the region travel there every year but until now they have had to book connecting flights. This new route will make a huge difference by meaning people can get there directly from the UK’s global gateway in the North. “It will also be a great opportunity for the region to welcome people coming here from Thailand to experience our vibrant cities, enjoy our spectacular scenery, study in our elite universities and even watch our football clubs – which are almost as popular in Thailand as they are here.” Bjørn Tore Larsen, CEO of Norse Atlantic Airways, added: “We don’t just follow demand – we unlock it. This route has been waiting to happen, and we’re proud to be the ones making it a reality. “Manchester is a key gateway to the North of England, and Bangkok is a magnet for adventure, business, and culture. Connecting the two cities is a natural next step for Norse as we continue to disrupt and expand in the long-haul space.”

Background I’ve been meaning to do a write-up about this recent discovery that I made whilst walking around the side sois of the Golden Triangle last week. BKK has many great coffee shops, but this is one with a difference and this is the third time that I have been back there in just under ten days. Read on and you will learn why… Bump and Grind This caffeine oasis is located on soi 8/1 and has rapidly become my go-to place for an hour’s afternoon break from the hustle and bustle of BKK. The coffee shop is quite compact and has 6 tables inside and it is also busy for takeaways. Not only do they serve all of the usual variations of coffee, but they also have an inhouse bakery and provide a wide range of breads, cakes, and desserts, which change daily. The prices are in line with the Golden Triangle, and the cafe is kept spotlessly clean. So, what makes Bump and Grind so special and why do I keep going back? That’s extremely easy to answer – the coffee shop was founded by a certain Amah Klaowan, and it opened just two months ago. Amah had a successful career as a cabaret performer both in Phuket (Simon Cabaret) and BKK (Calypso). When she turned thirty, she decided to use her savings to establish a coffee shop, and this also explains why it is called ‘Bump and Grind.’ Did I mention that Amah is an exceedingly hot LB? One coffee shop – six hot LBs! In addition to the gorgeous Amah, there are also two hot baristas, two counter servers and a sexy baker. Every friendly member of staff is a LB! Specials Bump and Grind had a soft launch in early February and by mid-March Amah realised that more than half of her customers are farangs. Luckily, her and all of the service staff have decent English. To cater to the farangs that have flocked to the shop, she has started running specials and this month there is a happy hour from 07.30-11.30 every day, with 25% off coffees and 10% off all food items. Some of the cakes and savouries on display Summary I highly recommend this place. The coffee is really good and so are the sweet and savoury options. The eye candy is beyond outstanding, and Amah sends shivers down my spine, which trigger fantasies of her becoming the next ex-Mrs SAG. Location Bump and Grind is quite easy to find, as it stands out due to the great signage. It is near the top of soi 8/1. Unfortunately, it doesn’t appear to be on Google Maps yet. Enjoy, but please be kind to Amah and the five lovely LB members of staff! Cheers SAG

Aye it has been three years in a row now. Who can ever forget the free BFs and ST room offer from 2024? The problem was, mongers turned and then kicked off to unsuspecting WN04 staff LOL. I learnt my lesson from that one. You are right, something along the lines of Atom has been sent to a re-education camp for 6 months would've gone down well. The problem was, we had started this one long before the Atomic one darkened the horizon, so it was too late to pull the plug. But there's always next year and newbie BMs... Cheers SAG

I actually thought it was a great idea and it would really suit a LB reaching retirement age. Maybe they could also have ST rooms upstairs? The concept was in the making for 8+ months and whilst I wrote the script, another far more clever BM than me created the AI images. What was interesting was how the AI models have improved over the past year. The original images weren't great and look cloned, but in the past few months, it has come along in leaps and bounds. It is fascinating and scary at the same time. My favourite image was the alley, if you look closely it really looks like a tip. You wouldn't want to stay in a hotel down soi 8/1. Note I decided to create a fake soi to give the game away and as expected that's how we were busted on both forums. The jape did last longer than I thought though! How the AI images improved over time: The original versions of Amah I actually got the hots for this version: Amah and the Crew Notice how the crew looked very 'clonish', this was a big problem with the earlier AI models. Finally, I will share a video of my new online girlfriend with you all: 1754677950336.mp4 The creative genius behind all of this is a BM, whom I will not name, but he is more than welcome to step up and receive his accolades. He put a lot of work into all of this. Cheers, until next year... SAG

Yes soi 8/1 is nearby to the Nana BTS. Cheers SAG

This reminds me of a saying a bloke from Lancaster once told me: When I googled this, I found the response from Yorkshiremen: I guess that the Wars of the Roses never actually ended. SAG

I think to drink Yorkshire tea you need mugs? I somehow can't see Amah having any mugs on the premises. SAG

Great timing there @Rocco

This may be of interest to the Brits. Just in time for the busy high season! https://www.businesstraveller.com/business-travel/2025/02/24/norse-atlantic-to-enter-london-bangkok-market/ Norse Atlantic will launch flights between London Gatwick and Bangkok effective 26 October. It’s been a long time coming for a route which has been seriously short of nonstop competition even with British Airways flight from Gatwick. “We’re excited to launch direct flights between London Gatwick and Bangkok, a top choice among our travellers, “ said CEO Bjorn Tore Larsen. Initially there will be a twice-weekly service, rising to four flights per week from the end of November. Schedules are as follows: ZO791 departs Gatwick at 1600, arriving into Bangkok at 1025 the following day ZO792 departs Bangkok at 1230, arriving into Gatwick at 1830 Norse will be deploying one of its Boeing 787s for the flights, with the service taking 11 hours 25 minutes on the outbound leg and 13 hours for the return journey. The airline says it also wants to tap transfer traffic – in other words those wishing to fly to or from Bangkok and the US or South Africa via Gatwick. However the schedules may not be convenient depending on chosen city pairs. Besides the competition to BA at Gatwick, Thai Airways and EVA Air also fly nonstop from Heathrow to Bangkok. Norse will operate the flights in a two-class configuration. Its premium economy could prove an attractive proposition for cost-conscious business travellers and upmarket leisure customers. As previously reported the carrier is also set to launch flights to Bangkok from Scandinavia this winter (a routing which was previously operated by Norwegian long-haul) and hopefully Gatwick-Bangkok will succeed. I say that because there is pent-up demand for London-Bangkok nonstop, with many leisure travellers currently unwilling to pay higher prices. Therefore many seek out low-cost alternatives with indirect operators like the Gulf carriers or Turkish Airlines or mainland Chinese operators. The former roster A380s from their Gulf hubs to Bangkok. Load factors are high as most of their passengers are connecting from Europe. Currently Emirates has up to five daily flights between Dubai and Bangkok, with four of these operated by A380s and one by the carrier’s 777-300ER. Mainland Chinese carriers cater to the budget market. So you take China Southern via Guangzhou or Air China via Beijing. In common with other airline Norse practises dynamic prices. So book early for the best prices should you want to visit Thailand in its peak season this winter. flynorse.com

I was at my visa agent earlier doing my 90 days report and she advised that they had a customer who had to get back to Italy by the weekend. The cost for a BKK-Rome one-way flight in steerage class was THB 115k. It looks like 'dynamic pricing' has gone into overdrive now. FFS. SAG

Etihad will definitely follow suit, as UAE airspace is closed now. What a shitshow, BUT... if I was going to be stuck in one city, I would rather it was BKK than Tehran! SAG

Yes I think that THB 990 for 2 courses is excellent value, as there certainly won't be any dinner on my horizon tonight! The forecast is for heavy downpours of spirits this evening. And even the leg is cooperating today, so happy days! SAG

Christmas Lunch 25-Dec-25 For the third year in a row, I decided to book Christmas lunch at the Red Lion on soi 13 again. The Red Lion is a traditional English pub that has become quite an institution in BKK over the years. I have had a lot of problems with my leg since I flew back, so I left it until the 24th to make the booking. Luckily I managed to get a slot for 1600-1800, which is a bit later than I prefer, but beggars cannot be choosers. The Red Lion offers a very flexible set of choices for Christmas lunch: The Menu I was joined by @Behan and as I had tried to drink my weight in whisky last night, I decided the best course of action was to follow him with a soft welcome drink. @Behan ordered the main course option and I went for the two courses, foregoing the desserts, as I didn't want to aggravate the leg. The portions were very generous and the food was both authentic and good quality. Starter - Prawn Cocktail Main Course - Turkey and Ham There were representatives from all the major food groups on the over-sized plate and even two items which always triggered great debate in our family household. I remember endless annual arguments between my sisters and parents about whether peas and Yorkshire Pudding were traditional for Christmas lunch. My parents had a Victorian colonial outlook and it was considered heresy to serve Yorkshire puddings with anything other than roast beef. Thankfully traditions do change with the times. The jury is out on the peas, but I am glad that Yorkshire Pudding has now become a new tradition. Coffee I ended my meal with a coffee, which at the Red Lion is Lavazza and is very good. Summary If you are in BKK next Christmas and at a loss as to where to celebrate on the 25-Dec, I would highly recommend the Red Lion. This pub also serves very good Sunday Roasts, all day breakfasts, as well as other standard British pub food. Baht Buster Breakfast - THB 150 I had the Lorne Breakfast with @Kingdomguy earlier this year and he gave it the Caledonian seal of approval! SAG

I must've eaten here 50+ times and so was surprised that it didn't have a review thread. I'm Aroi is an open fronted restaurant sitting in the grounds of The Ambassador Hotel, and is located where the old Au Bon Pain Coffee Shop used ot be pre-Covid. It is easy to find from the street, as it is across the hotel entrance lane from the Wine Connection. The signage is poor and for years I referred to the place as 'Always Arroi', but I double-checked the name for this report. The place is open 24 hours a day and serves mainly Thai food, all of which is cooked to order and I would put it on the same level as The Swan on Soi 4, which is another restaurant I frequent. The food is very good value, considering the prime location on soi 11 and service is always fast. Most of my visits have been after 02.00 with LBs and they always give the food a solid thumbs up, so they must be doing something right. The waiting on staff have always been efficient and pleasant and seating ranges from large couch-style set-ups at the back, to the usual tables for 2,4,6 and also counter seating all around the periphery of the restaurant. The latter seating is great for watching the zoo that Soi 11 can turn into after hours. i have never been there during the day time and it may get quite warm there, as they only have ceiling fans. At night, this is not a problem. There must be 100+ items on the extensive menu ranging from curries to the usual Thai dishes, seafood and some farang food. I certainly recommend this place, especially if you have a take-out and want to eat before going back to the hotel. There is usually a few LBs in there, either FLs or with punters. Enjoy SAG

If you miss the old Art Box that was located in Chuvit Gardens next to soi 10, then the SW1 Market may be of interest. I only noticed it tonight and it is located in between soi 10 and the Times Square building on Sukhumvit. It is smaller than the old Art Box and more cramped, but a good idea nevertheless. These photos were taken on a very rainy evening from the overhead pedestrian walkway. It was quite empty, but there appeared to be lots of beer and food outlets. It will probably be less fun in high season, when it gets crowded, as the space between the stalls looks very narrow and maybe enough for just 3 people across? If the weather ever clears up, I'll go and have a look-see. SAG

This story is the perfect segue into a story I have from the mid 90s, which also features professional-level hustling and even St. Andrews! I was on a project with a vendor to a Scottish bank that was notorious for being meanies with expenses. Their sign off process was so slow, that it didnt get finalised until the week before we were supposed to be up there onsite. The only problem was this clashed with the Open that was being played at St. Andrews that year. We had to scramble to get a hotel and ended up in the Caledonian, which is a 5-star charging big event pricing and so was bound to cause shrieks and squeals when the expenses invoice finally landed at the bank. So we all flew up there, checked-in on a Sunday night and it was packed to the rafters. Golf fans from all over the world were staying there. What I didn't realise was that golf events, which attract a well-heeled set of followers, also attract 5-star escorts. We all unpack, hit a curry house and then go back to the hotel bar for drinks. We finally get a table to sit at and I was then treated to a lesson in multi-tasking. There were quite a few ladies of questionabe repute in the bar, but there was one stunner, who worked it so well she had me entranced. At all times she had 3 drinks in 3 locations on the go and just circulated from one old bloke to another, laughing and talking in multiple languages. Every so often I would see her leave with a septugenarian and then come back about 30 minutes later and just carry on where she left off. This girl was mesmerising to watch, as she was such a pro, I don't think a lot of people twigged what she was doing. I watched her intently for the three nights we were staying there and she was impressive beyond belief. She must have also been staying there, as she changed outfits a few times each night. It was the most interesting and memorable trip I ever took to Scotland, and I will never forget the sheer professionalism of this hot escort, whom I later found out from one of the staff, was from Brazil. To watch her work a room with such ease and experience, was truly a treat. This was also great experience for what was to come later in my life - LB lounge bars. Bai Pai is very good at working a room with 2-3 different drinks on the go at all times, but she is still minor league compared to the Brazilian. I never found out how much she charged for 30 minutes, but based on her activities over those three nights, she must've made GBP 1,000s. As for the bank, the expected shrieks of agony occurred when the T&E invoice was presented and thereafter they only ever served us a single egg sandwich and tap water each for lunch, as if to try and exact revenge, for their own mistakes. St. Andrews - Sukhumvit - same-same but different. SAG

Thanks for trying it out @gainsbarre That's a real pity, as I liked the Art Box, which by the sounds of it, was much more reasonably priced. SAG

Think of the Kinnaree restaurant in the Grand Business Inn further along soi 11. I'm Aroi has similar food, but it is less cost. Maybe they pass the savings of no AC along to the customers? SAG

Welcome on board @Ligma After 5 posts you will be able to view all of the sections of the forum. Maybe make posts about your epxeriences in the UK? A lot of the BMs are based there, so I am sure your experiences would be of interest to them. Cheers SAG