Bangkok's 1782 Chinatown and the city's most theatrical food street, neon-lit stalls of grilled seafood, dim sum and shark-fin shophouses jamming the kerb from 18:00.
Potong in Bangkok's Chinatown is Pichaya 'Pam' Soontornyanakij's five-element tasting room set in her family's century-old apothecary, one Michelin star.
Signature: Five-element tasting menu, Aged duck with five-spice, Crab and salted egg
Order: The full five-element tasting menu. The aged duck and the salted-egg crab are the through-line.
Tip: Closed Mondays. Three seatings nightly; book on Resy six weeks ahead. The cocktail bar upstairs is worth a pre-dinner.
Nai Ek in Bangkok's Yaowarat has cooked rolled-rice-noodle kuay jab in peppery pork-offal broth since 1960, Bib Gourmand since 2018, crispy pork belly.
Signature: Kuay jab Yaowarat, Crispy pork belly noodles, Pork offal soup
Order: Kuay jab Yaowarat with crispy pork belly and an order of the pork offal on the side.
Tip: Open 08:00 to midnight daily, cash only. Closed for Chinese New Year. Queue from 11:00 onwards on weekdays.
Tep Bar in Bangkok's Chinatown is the Soi Nana shophouse bar opened in 2015. Live Thai folk and classical music Fri-Sun from 19:00, house-infused Thai herbal cocktails.
Tip: Live music charges around 200 baht on performance nights. Walk-in for the early set, reserve a stage-front table after 20:00 on weekends.
Brown Sugar in Bangkok has been the city's jazz pub since 1985, now anchored on Chinatown's Soi Nana. Two sets nightly with veterans Chai Blues and Mellow Motif regulars.
Tip: Closed Mondays. Showcases for touring acts run the last Fri-Sat of each month. No cover, food menu through the night.
Opium Bar in Bangkok's Chinatown sits above Potong restaurant in a five-storey heritage shophouse. Asia's 50 Best 2025 entry, liquid-surreality cocktails with oyster salt.
Tip: Reservation only via the Potong site. The hidden staircase leads up two floors; allow two hours for the seasonal tasting.
Teens of Thailand on Bangkok's Soi Nana was the city's first specialist gin bar, in a renovated Chinatown shophouse. House gin infusions and an art-led listening room upstairs.
Tip: Around 15 seats plus standing. Unusual G&Ts (chrysanthemum, salted guava) the move; reserve a stool by phone for Fri-Sat.
Asia Today in Bangkok's Soi Nana is the neon-lit back-alley cocktail bar from the Teens of Thailand team. Asia's 50 Best Bars list since 2022, wild Thai herb infusions.
Tip: Enter via the fire-exit door at the rear. No menu beyond a printed list; cocktails 350-450 baht. Walk-in only, fills by 22:00.