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Soi Thonglor
- SOI 55 - A 'BRIDGE-TOO-FAR'
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We at Midnight Hour have heard several times recently that Soi Thonglor had blossomed in the last few years, - in the Night Entertainment sense. And in that we are former residents of Soi Thonglor, we could not resist a trip down (and a quick survey):
The Witch's Tavern is the granddaddy of them all (or should we say, 'grandma' ?) on Soi Thonglor - none of the other Nitespots currently on Soi Thonglor were in existence back when the Witch's Tavern first came on the scene. Located on the main soi near Soi 10.
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 SOI THONGLOR (SOI 55)
Our first impression was that there were not really that many Night Entertainment Venues on Thonglor, but after a half an hour of surveying, we were surprised to find that there are now quite a number of Nitespots on that once-quiet soi (we surveyed the soi from top to bottom - finding over 30 such venues).
We immediately became interested in whether or not Thonglor would meet our 'metrics' on qualifying as an "Expat Night Entertainment Area". While we found many farang-friendly Nitespots, the predominance of venues were geared for exclusive Japanese patronage. Another group of Night Entertainment Venues, while farang-friendly, were geared mostly to local patronage.
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Self-explanatory. Hobb's House of Beers is located on Soi Thonglor near Soi 16.
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SOI THONGLOR (SOI 55)
*Click* and Go >>>>
to see our full Soi Thonglor Pictorial
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The Exotica Exclusive Club is a member's club for wealthy Thais, replete with gaudy pseudo-Greco-Roman 'architecture'.
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SOI THONGLOR (SOI 55)
Another criterion we at Midnight Hour consider is whether the Night Venues are in a reasonably contiguous area - are they grouped near enough to one-another that a typical nightcrawler could reasonably expect to walk to either of the venues from any other, and make an evening of visiting the various venues on Soi Thonglor? (Or to say the same thing another way - did any grouping of Nite Venues reach 'critical mass'?) We did in fact find a grouping around Soi 9 (see map) which numbered about twelve venues, however they were predominantly a mix of Japanese and Thai - not really attractive to the average long-stay farang or tourist.
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The Spa de Bangkok is an upstairs, upmarket spa for hi-so clientele - just above She Bar and Hob's at Thonglor Soi 16.
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SOI THONGLOR (SOI 55)
Our last consideration as to whether Soi Thonglor would make it as an Expat Night Entertainment Area was whether it was in a location likely to be frequented by us 'Expats'. In fair consideration, we do not feel that Soi Thonglor is yet enough of a 'draw' - it currently doesn't have the type and quantity of Nitespots that would entice the farang nightcrawler to take that longish trip down to that soi. In this sense, Soi Thonglor is still a 'bridge too far".
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The To Die For should win a prize for the most illegible sign in all of Bangkok Nightlife - first time around, we thought it was written in Cyrillic - but no, it is in English. They are located deep into Soi Thonglor on the right just before the new bridge over the khlong.
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SOI THONGLOR (SOI 55)
But don't get us wrong, we are not suggesting you scrub Soi Thonglor off your list of places to visit - quite the contrary, it would be well worth the visit - if you were, say, looking for a change of scenery....
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The staff of the Miyabi are not overly fond of picture-takers. They appeared to be quite concerned that the photos we took would capture their souls. Let's put the world, and them in particular, on notice - photos taken from a public place are not illegal - if you don't want something to be seen by others, it should not be visible from the public roadway. This should not need to be explained.
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SOI THONGLOR (SOI 55)
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The poor old Morakot Hotel - slowly being taken back by the rain and the weeds (only closed last year). This once-popular R&R hotel, which sides-up to Soi Thonglor, and fronts on "New" Petchburi Road, was almost directly across the street from the legendary Thai Heaven - talk about location, location, location - come evening time (in the '60's and '70's), you couldn't find a room. Fare thee well, ye ghosts of the Morakot....
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SOI THONGLOR (SOI 55)
*Click* and Go >>>>
to see our full Soi Thonglor Pictorial
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- In the LAND OF SMILES -
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This month's Thai Smile Award is awarded to a young lady who prefers the outdoor life on Sukhumvit Road.
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Historical Minutiae Dept.
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The Tiger Den Revisited
- LUCY'S NOT FORGOTTEN
Hello,
Any idea what ever happened to Lucy’s Tiger Den?
Thanks,
D.
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Greetings, D.
Lucy's was originally on Silom Road, but later relocated to Suriwong Road. Tiger suffered with diabetes for years, eventually losing one foot, and things went downhill from there. He eventually died of further complications from diabetes in the mid-1980's, and Lucy's Tiger Den closed down shortly thereafter.
A good book on Tiger is still available for purchase on the Internet:
The Tiger of Bangkok by A.J. "Tiger" Rydberg with Alan Dawson
A lot is mentioned on the web about Lucy's being a CIA hangout, blah, blah, blah, however, the Tiger Den was at that time (pre-Internet) a rallying point for overseas expats - and Tiger was a font of information on which overseas projects were starting up, and which companies were hiring. Of course, we were all saddened to see Tiger go.
Best,
'Boge' Hartman
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? ASK
US (ALMOST) ANYTHING !
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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.
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'Boge' Hartman
Historical Research
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* Zootramp Publications
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 TOP
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Let the August 2009 Follies begin...
BANKOK EYES' Expat Night Scene.
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The Takara Massage has some new neon up. It's pretty cheesey, but it's new. Might we suggest something in keeping with the surroundings? Nevertheless, when all is said and done, the new sign hasn't affected the quality of the massages. Keep on a slippin' and a slidin'.
PATPONG I
The Funky Dojo is undergoing some major renovations - and when completed, will continue all the way back to Patpong II, and will face the Electric Blue across the Soi. We will, hopefully, be bringing you the photo coverage two months from now....
PATPONG I
Yet another bit of neon that goes virtually unseen by the passing hoards - almost completely covered by the hideous tent city that sets up each evening in the middle of Patpong Road. (Yes, the Gold Finger's is one of the few true rock 'n roll bars....) Let 'er rip, then, gentlemen.
PATPONG I
As we haven't seen any progress on the so-called 'renovations' at Radio City for several months - we are expunging them from our rolls. They came on the scene in October of '94 - having taken over from Smile Club. Looks like they, and the joined-at-the-hip Lucifer Disco Tk (upstairs) have bought the farm. We'll let you know when we see any signs of life at these digs...
PATPONG I
The Queen's Castle is closed down yet again. Looks like one of their typical 30-day closures....
PATPONG I
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Light, not Illumination...
The Star of Light has also got some new neon nailed up - shared with the next-door tattoo parlor. "Fram"? "Pieveing"? Don't ask - we haven't the foggiest.
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PATPONG II
The Rock , located on The Ramp, is in lockdown mode. However the chattel remains inside, so we are likely to see a reopening. We'll get back atcha.
PATPONG II
The Royal Salute Cocktail Lounge , also located on The Ramp, is yet again closed. Several lessees over the last couple of years have played out their hand trying to breathe new life into this venerable old bar - and gone bust trying; the tattered bronze plaque over the door a testament to the ravages of time
PATPONG II
This time next month Patpong II will have a brand-new triple-shophouse-wide A Go-Go, which is now abuilding in the defunct Siam Drug across from Foodland. These three loc were home to several single-shophouse bars in the '80's.
PATPONG II
The Marco Polo is closed for business; major renovations are afoot - we'll let you know what Bobby has up his sleeve in our coming issue.
PATPONG II
The Park Bridge, open in August of last year looked darker than a poisoned well when we passed by the other night. Somehow, we suspect it will be reopening - we'll give you a come-back next time.
PATPONG II
A pic of a smiling Our Place girl....
SOI COWBOY
The Mandarin Club has got some new neon out in the main gallery where it will do some good....
NANA PLAZA
This pic a for-the-archives shot of Nana Plaza's rear upper floors.
NANA PLAZA
The Nursery has gone the way of the touchhole cannon - only darkness shining out from within...
SOI KATOEY
Last month we noted Superstar Frank's Noriega's Bar was closed for what was claimed to be "renovations". Alas, it looks like ashes-to-ashes, dust-to-dust for Soi Katoey's only 'straight' Nitespot....
SOI KATOEY
Last month we noted that the Vanilla was poised to open forthwith. And open, it did - it's full name is Vanilla Sexy Cafe & Bar. They mean that quite literally, by the way. It is a sexy cafe - details too many and varied to go into here.... Located on the 2nd floor of the Peep In Plaza - a Nippon-owned establishment, however gaijin welcome. You may find it worth a visit. Welcome them to the neon jungle.
SOI DEAD ARTISTS - SOI 33
Welcome the Zoo. It now occupies the old Tsukasa digs on the second floor of Peep Inn Park. Japanese in flavor. Welcome them to the vicissitudes.
SOI DEAD ARTISTS - SOI 33
No sooner than we praised their graffiti-like door art (see last month's issue), than the Big Shots tore down their "Non-Members Only" sign, and took a swan dive into the Abyss.... As they say, Darwin plays no favorites.
SOI DEAD ARTISTS - SOI 33
We don't know what to make of the Suay Khom - it is for the time being, a Thai Karaoke - and soup kitchen. It moved into one of the abandoned shophouses near the Happy Pub. They tell us the Happy Bar (no relation) is up for sale (deeper in Soi 22) - for what it's worth....
WASHINGTON SQUARE
The Queen's Park Massage has been at this location for several years - an adjunct to the Asia Massage across the street (with similar services). Also first cousin to the two karaoke bars next door. Keep on keeping on....
QUEEN'S PARK PLAZA SOI 22
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Door Art Of The Month
Award
The recently opened J. Hong was using the old Tequila Dragon signage while they got their own neon fabricated to specification. This month, it is nailed up in place - and looking good.
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SOI EDEN - SOI 7/1
Dick's Cafe located in Bangkok's gay 'Twilight Zone' has some new signage blowing in the breeze....
SOI TWILIGHT
! ORDER IN ADVANCE !
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Archives
2002 - 2009, BANGKOK EYES / bangkokeyes.com
August's Nightlife News 
PATPONG I 
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