in't it funny how time slips away... We had been putting off, month by month, revisiting Soi Udom Suk, and when we actually got around to getting off our lazy backsides, we realized it had been more than four years since our original survey... We, then, hoped Udom Suk had, in those 4 intervening years, somehow blossomed into a full-blown Night Entertainment Area. Alas, it hadn't, but there were a number of interesting changes....
The New Star Cafe (previously the Doc Mai Cafe) is in the entertainment compound located between Subsoi 56 and Subsoi 58.
Udom Suk Road (Soi 103) is 4 km from Sukhumvit Road to Sri Nakarin Road, so it is, by definition, too long to be a single Night Entertainment Area, but it is a reasonable expectation that an area or areas along Udom Suk could develop into a Night Entertainment Area(s).
First and foremost, what has not changed on Udom Suk ; the Night Entertainment is oriented exclusively for Thais, but foreigners are most welcome. For farang planning on visiting that neck of the woods - it goes without saying, an ability to speak Thai, at least to a small degree, would be a huge advantage. In our map-making and photo identification we note that many of the Nitespots have no English language signs. We have transliterated those names into English equivalents. (Where problems of identification occur, one can refer to our new map.)
Rao is a large Night Entertainment Complex located at the intersection of Sri Nakarin Road and Udom Suk.
In comparing our earlier map from December 2011 and the current map, we see a slight increase (7) in the number of Nitespots, which is not a significant increase in total numbers.
The Bik Mai Sai Lom is supplementing with a sponsored (285) curbside sign, as many of the venues have done.
What is most apparent, however, is that the concentration of Nitespots has shifted slightly towards the Sri Nakarin end of Udom Suk, specifically between Udom Suk Subsoi 52 and Subsoi 58 (see map). More importantly, the variety and sophistication of the Nitespot Venues has greatly improved. Should Udom Suk continue to develop (however quickly, however slowly), it is anticipated that it's first Night Entertainment Area would likely be at this location.
The Life / Babylon are located nearer the Sukhumvit Road end of Udom Suk. Life (spa, etc) has been there for a number of years.
If you are the adventurous type, and if you want to try something on the weekend outside your normal Night Entertainment circle, you might consider a trip down to Udom Suk. A proposed "starter list" for farang heading down that way, might include the following Nitespots :
RaoNight Entertainment Complex (Thai sign)
Lan Lom (Thai Sign)
Ton Chabab (Restaurant / Bar, outside dining)
Ting Ting Pub & Karaoke 55 Udom Suk (indoor / outdoor pub)
Cherpond (Indoor / outdoor dining / clubbing)
Pretty House (....)
Ruen Morokot (Thai sign, traditional massage)
Udom (1)ne - Thai nightclub / dining
The Lan Lom is probably the most popular Venue on the Strip. Worth checking out.
The following photos are of other Nitespots of interest :
Ting Ting has a number of hostesses ready to serve the customers.
The Sun Cafe is a 'Thai cafe', that is to say, it has entertainment (it is not the Western equivalent of 'a small restaurant').
The Jan Pen is also a 'Thai cafe' - you might see three or more Thai entertainers on stage at the rear of the Venue....
What can you tell me about Nancy Bar which was located in Nana Plaza? It was on the second (middle) floor just to the right of the escalator and has been closed for several years now (I think the time frame for that bar was mid-1990-early 2000. It was just a small non-descript beer bar with nothing notable about it. I hung out there for awhile and played darts with friends. They would give out tee shirts if you spent 1000 baht and I have collected a few (still have some as a matter of fact). I believe the owner also owned the jewelry shop directly beneath the bar. Whatever you can tell me about that small bar is appreciated.
S.
Greetings, S.,
Nancy Bar was an open-fronted bar that first opened it's doors in January of 1998. It was on the 2nd floor, as you have noted. There was no bar at that loc previous to the Nancy, and it was the second bar to open along the 'Front' of Nana Entertainment Plaza on the 2nd floor on that side, being next door to Vixens.
Nancy Bar closed in April 2002. After a long renovation it became part of the Silver Dragon (/Mandarin) bars that November.
There were other changes along the way, but today that real estate is home to Mercury Bar (A Go-Go). Mercury was on the 2nd floor also, but on the other side of the NEP, and moved across in April 2008 when the space again became vacant. The upstairs bars along the front - like Nancy and Vixens, etc, - were (during that early period) leased from the shops (jewelry, tailor, etc) immediately below on the ground floor level.
We can answer virtually any (reasonable) question on
the Expat Night Entertainment Scene in Bangkok - be it Historical or
very recent. Send us an e-mail and we will do our best to answer you soonest.
The Tokyo Girls Collection (TGC), in spite of talk it had closed it's doors, continues to operate - 5th floor, in the large building facing Suriwong Rd which stretches fro PPI to PPII. They have made a very conscious effort to cover over the word 'Tokyo', for what ever reason... perhaps because all the staff are Thai. The polite young Japanese manager advises all gaigin that TGC is 'Japanese only', so you may want to save yourself a trip up the elevator....
The Thai Smile Bar has opened newly between Pinocchio's and Tavern Two. Modus operandi : lounge bar. Welcome them to Darwin's trials of attrition. (The 'ladies' in the photo are employed at Pinocchio's.)
PATPONG II
What was once G's Bangkok will soon be The Dragon's Head Tea House & Sake Bar. It will be opening on or about 19 April (after everyone gets back from Songkran), however it is now 'pre-opened', and offering 100 Baht beers..... (G's Bangkok has moved, most successfully, to Soi Katoey.)
Club Rio has reopened - for real this time. Status quo ante. Has anyone noticed that the topmost sign still displays the original, legal name 'Our Place'?
A 'For-The-Archives' pic of the central barbeers - currently nameless, which replaced Pharaohs, Roadhouse and Alibi in December of 2010. Originally re-designed to be narrow enough for fire truck access, we wonder how the current build-out affects this?
A quick pic of the Rajah Hotel, whose grounds are home to no less than 14 separate Night Entertainment Venues - nearly large enough to become it's own Night Entertainment Area....
A snapshot for the Archives of the Sugar Bowl Bar & Restaurant. The Sugar Bowl officially opened in December of 2010 (with a soft opening a few months earlier).
The new Quicky Massage has opened it's doors to weary revellers. It occupies the digs that were formerly the 'Massage' massage parlor - located deep in Soi 22 across from the New Cowboy Bar. Welcome them to the slippery slope.
SOI 22 - (Sukhumvit)
The Happy Pub Bar has reopened full-tilt. Same tarpit, different day - nevertheless, wish them well in their trials of attrition....
Mojos has spruced up - the House of Blue Lights, no less.... The prime agendum unchanged. Get down tonight.
SOI DEAD ARTISTS - SOI 33
Originally the Honey, the new Love & Service has recently opened, offering, well, love and service.... As an ancient comedy skit so aptly put it, "You can't tell me the authorities don't know about this..." Welcome them to the neon jungle....
SOI DEAD ARTISTS - SOI 33
Joy, located up one flight of stairs at the S 33 Compact Hotel, has reopened. The opening and closing of Joy is not news, it is ingraned habit....
SOI DEAD ARTISTS - SOI 33
What was the Love Teen is now the brand-new New Massage. (The Love Teen has moved just across the street.) There are already a number of massage parlors of virtually every description on the Soi, and more on the way - let's see if they can beat the wolves at their own game....
SOI DEAD ARTISTS - SOI 33
Originally, deep in Soi Dead Artists, the "Teen" massages numbered three : the Teen 3 VIP, the Teen Massage and the Love Teen Massage. First, the Teen 3 VIP closed, and the Teen Massage became the Teen VIP. Now the Teen VIP has closed, and the Love Teen Massage has moved into it's digs, leaving only one of the original group of specialty massage parlors. Proof, if more proof were needed, that the Nightscene is a high-stakes table.
Something's afoot..... Prior to July 2014, the large building on the large piece of land that wraps around and behind the Q Bar was occupied by the St. Moritz. In December 2014, the Elite Music Theater opened in it's place. The Elite went out of business in July 2015, eventually to be replaced by the Escape Club in December of 2015. And now it gets interesting.... the Escape stayed open all of one month. It was eventually replaced by the Vegas Entertainment Club just last month. This month, the Vegas Entertainment Club is closed, having barely opened it's doors. The entire property is wrapped in emergency tape, making it look like a crime scene investigation. Two notices are posted in profusion, one, shown below, and the second one being a transcript from the court (not shown).
This most unusual series of openings and closings follows closely on the heels of the rushed openings / closings of the next-door four bars that eventually replaced the Q Bar : the Vault Speakeasy, the Azura Loungebar, the Q Up, and the Derriere. These four bars rushed to completion, and in likewise fashion, one month later (again, July 2015) they had all closed down. They remain closed today. If you are planning on investing in a bar at either of these locations, might we suggest a financially more secure investment opportunity... such as lottery tickets?
The sign reads, briefly :
"Private Property
Forbidden to enter before obtaining permission.
Violators will be prosecuted to the full extent of the law.
Fico Land Ltd."
The New Life Bar has gone the way of the Pelagornis Sandersi, and the new occupants are using the old name Sweet Heart Bar. Let's see what the actual name is once they have got their permanent neon nailed up. In the meantime, welcome them to the machine.
Bangkok Eyes goes back in time to
see
Who was new - And who was through
in the Expat Night Entertainment world.
How many of these old 'oases'
do you remember ?
Patpong I
* No changes that month / year.
Patpong 2
* Up on The Ramp, Sajo (Thai oriented) closed it's doors. There is currently no Night Entertainment Venue at that location.
Soi Cowboy
* The Long Gun (Lucky Star) was closed for part of the month, while they widened their premises to 2 shophouses-wide. They are still there today.
Nana Plaza
* The previously unused area next to the spirit house started renovations on what would become the Spirit House bar beer.
Soi Katoey(Silom Soi 4)
* The Telephone Pub & Restaurant and the co-located Telephone Karaoke closed temporarily. The Telephone Pub & Restaurant is still there, however the Karaoke is no more (absorbed into the Telephone Pub).
*Milk Bar closed again. There is currently no Nitespot at that location. It was located between Telephone Pub and the Rome Club.
*Rome Club, the most prominent Nightclub on the Soi, (on both sides of the Soi) closed under a dark cloud of fraud, scandal and murder, never to reopen.
*Molly's Jump (Cafe Alley) opened newly that month.
*Divine -the upstairs to Sphinx- closed again.
Buckskin Joe Village(~ October 1988 to
October 2006)
(Also known -originally- as Tobacco Road or Soi Rot Fai or,
'The Tracks', and later as Machim [Thai] and Soi Zero)
*Emu Bar opened in the then-recently closed Butterfly Bar.
This graphic excerpt from Internet is, under current legal precedents and prevailing interpretations considered 'Fair Use' under copyright law.
Opinions are like, well, specific bodily orifices, or noses, we all have one. And McDonald's, the hamburger folk, have stirred up a hornet's nest of them. It seems McDonald's, U.K. has a new interior decorator, and he has convinced the management that a 'graffiti - street art' motif is going to make McDonald's more 'relevant'....
This graphic excerpt from Internet is, under current legal precedents and prevailing interpretations considered 'Fair Use' under copyright law.
Now that McDonald's has nearly completed it's UK-wide interior transformation to the graffiti motif, to include it's Brixton branch, they are sticking their heads out the door to see what the public's response is. In their advertising hype they tell us, “The exciting and fresh designs used in Brixton are in use across the UK and in other markets and have received a great reception. With self-order kiosks and free-to-use tablets, the refreshed restaurant has digital innovation at its heart and provides customers with more choice in how they order and pay." And then they go on to say, "We look forward to hearing what local residents think of their new McDonald’s.” In hindsight, perhaps they could have left that last sentence out altogether.... Because that is exactly what has happened - they have been hearing, and hearing, and hearing what local residents think of it since the day they reopened.
This graphic excerpt from Internet is, under current legal precedents and prevailing interpretations considered 'Fair Use' under copyright law.
Brixton, a multiethnic community (a district in Lambeth, South London), is a graffiti 'nexus' of long-standing, and has recently been rocked by riots precipitated by the ongoing 'gentrification' of their way of life. Originally a low-income neighborhood, it has recently seen soaring rents, trendy shops and building renovations - all of which have caused extreme dissatisfaction with the long-time residents. This fake McDonald's graffiti has been perceived by the locals as an indirect 'slap-in-the-face' - a cheap attempt to capitalize on their plight, while at the same time attempting to make McDonald's appear 'fashionable'.
But the volumes of criticism come from all quarters, not just old-time residents. The anti-graffiti sector of the population sees it as a cheapening, an offense to the eye, a lowering of standards, a pandering to the vandalism that is graffiti, and even the acknowledgement of graffiti's territorialism and gang-style image. Even the Guardian'sJay Rayner (a food critic) said McDonald's 'celebration' of graffiti was "truly offensive". He did, however, later rephrase "truly offensive" to read, "sad", stating that this phoney tagging was "territorial". (This begs the question, what would a real food critic know about McDonald's in the first place? The very fact that he let the word, 'McDonald's' pass his lips casts very serious doubts on his credentials....)
The somewhat smaller, but equally vocal sector of society - the graffiti artists, and those who are pro-graffiti, have been no less harsh in their criticism of McDonald's. The general opinion is that poor old McDonald's is 'trying too hard' - that this faux graffiti is an "epic fail".
Even the head of the youth network St. Matthew’s Project, has put his two-cents-worth in. Lee 'Lino' Dema stated, “This is just another misguided attempt by 'suits' to identify with ‘edgy’ Brixton."
To be fair (and to perhaps put it into perspective), others have voiced their opinion that this rash of complaints was nothing more than "first world" problems .
PATPONG I 
TOP
April's Nightlife News 
in't it funny how time slips away... We had been putting off, month by month, revisiting Soi Udom Suk, and when we actually got around to getting off our lazy backsides, we realized it had been more than four years since our original survey... We, then, hoped Udom Suk had, in those 4 intervening years, somehow blossomed into a full-blown Night Entertainment Area. Alas, it hadn't, but there were a number of interesting changes....
2002 - 2016, BANGKOK EYES /
bangkokeyes.com