Nightclubs
Bed Supperclub
Bangkok's trendiest and most sophisticated club with a sparsely minimalistic yet jaw-dropping decor. Acclaimed international DJs have made their appearance at this all-white spacepod, and there is even a separate VJ taking care of the visual effects. There are different theme nights; Tuesdays are hip-hop night, Wednesdays are models night and Sundays are branded as "Think Pink", being the only gay night of the week. There is a dining lounge at the left side of the club where traditional tables made place for mattresses and pillows. Dining on weekends is recommended, as you'll be treated to a four-course surprise meal and a weekly-changing floor show. Reservations are essential, by telephone or online, as there is only one single serving nightly at 9PM; be sure to request a bed and arrive at least 30 minutes early. Dietary restrictions can be catered for if informed in advance. The bill for all this is steep: the four-course meal will set you back 1750 to 2000 baht plus drinks at around 200 baht a pop.
Narz
Catering mostly to moneyed Thais, this funky dance club is most reminiscent of the clubs in Ibiza. There is a whole lot going on with on-stage-performances, shiny disco balls and light shows. It is one of Bangkok's top clubbing spots, and a place to see and be seen, especially if you're into trance or house music. It is renowned DJ Paul Oakenfold's venue of choice.
Q Bar
A hip two-floor bar often likened to a New York cocktail lounge, renowned for its massive drinks list, generous pourts and always packed dance floor for nearly ten years now. The visitors here are very fashionable, the kind of people who think something is good because it's expensive. If you want a seat, show up before 11PM.
If it wasn't for the superhip nightclubs Bed Supperclub and Q Bar, Soi 11 would be quite an ordinary soi. But now it is known as Bangkok's clubbing soi, and in part contributes to Sukhumvit's image as the most cosmopolitan area of the city. An alternative is Soi 23, also home to some of the trendiest clubs in town. These venues are all about seeing and being seen, popular among the well-to-do Thai and expat crowd. Soi 55 Thong Lo and Soi 63 Ekkamai also have their fair share of places to spend the night, but these are somewhat more modest and have more in common with traditional bars.
Note that fairly strictly applied dress codes apply to the following listings, so no flip-flops, shorts or sleeveless shirts. Always bring your passport as club owners must and will check it upon entry.
Beer gardens
Cheap Charlie's
An outdoor beer bar, not a garden, that looks like it grew out of the side of the building. Pull up a stool anywhere on the Soi and enjoy a cold one. It's a good place to start the night as the beer starts at 60 baht, a lot cheaper than elsewhere in the area. Seems to mainly attract the young expat crowd.
Old German Beerhouse
The only place that looks like a German Brauhaus. The beers served are Warsteiner and Erdinger, but they also have the Frankfurter Apfelwein a sort of German cider. Along with the beer go their simple Thai or European dishes for 120-200 baht. Free WiFi is also available.
In the winter time "beer garden season", popular beer gardens pop up in front of CentralWorld Plaza and Suan Lum Night Bazaar, serving up cold beer and live performances. Sukhumvit has a few places that are open year round:
Beer Garden Soi 7
For men only! It is a pick-up joint where men easily get numerous young and not so young ladies for a night, particularly at weekends. It is popular as there is no "barfine" here. It can also be a nice place to relax with moderate Western music, if you tell the ladies to go away. They serve German and other beers, including wheat beer Franziskaner. You can eat European food at the tables or just have a drink at the bar.
Singha Beer Park
This is a modern open-air beer garden. If you choose to sit inside, you'll see its flashy interior and its laid-back couches on which you can enjoy a cold beer. They also have the usual Thai dishes on offer.
Sports bars
The Australian
Good food; excellent but expensive wine, and the most attractive waitresses in Bangkok. But you have to tolerate Aussie Rules football on the TVs!
Bradmans Sports Bistro
An Australian bar and bistro with many TVs everywhere for watching different kind of sports. There are several sound rooms, so customers can watch different sports at different parts of the bar. The owner is actively involved in the business, and sometimes asks his customers which sport should be on.
Bully's
A typical Sukhumvit-style bar with drinks, food, pool table and football screens. Beer is averagely priced and always cold, but a simple bottle of water is expensive at 80 baht. The owner can be rude, and drunk, too. But at least they have free internet and you can read the newspaper.
Gulliver's Traveler's Tavern
A large, western sports bar with English-speaking staff serving Western and Thai food and drinks. There are large flat screen TVs all around, so a variety of sports are shown simultaneously baseball, soccer, rugby, golf, etc. Plenty of pool tables are in the rear, with female Thai players ready to open up a can of "whoop-ass" on you.
The Londoner
Remarkable about this bar is that it is Thailand's only pub that brews its own beer. It has a good atmosphere that's nice for watching sports, and is targeted at ex-pats and tourists alike. Happy hour every day at 4PM-7PM and 11PM-1AM so most of the day actually. "Quiz night" every Tuesday night at 8PM. Free WiFi.
The Office
Another bar on Sukhumvit with beer, music, live sports, pool tables, hostesses and grill menus. Heineken is on draught for 75 baht each.
The Robin Hood
English pub with pub grub and daily happy hour specials. Australian and British sports on large flat screen TVs. Popular with ex-pats.
The Sport Corner
The Sport Corner offers numerous big flat-screen TVs, both indoors and outdoors, showing sports from around the world. Friendly, hassle-free hostesses, along with affordable drinks and Thai and Western food, make it a fun place to cheer your favorite team on.
Witch's Tavern
This is Bangkok's original English pub, kind of an institution in the Thong Lo area. It has live music every night. Wednesday 5PM-9PM is "ladies night", which means free drinks for the girls. Many secretaries from the surrounding office buildings seem to come over at that night. There are at least five English/Irish brews on tap, and you can order pizza.
Looking for a place to watch your favorite sport on the big screen? Sukhumvit from Soi 2 to 33 offers plenty of choices. The stereotypic bars here are British pubs with rugby on, selling lots of beer and pub grub be it grill menus or other simple snacks. The workers are young Thai hostesses in tight outfits who serve Western ex-pats that generally are older than 40.
Wine bars
Lake House
An old house, that was once home to famous writers and artists, has now been turned into a wine bar and tapas restaurant. The house sits on a large, turtle-filled pond and is surrounded by a tropical garden. Seating is available in the house, on lake-side gazebos or in the garden.
With a growing interest in foreign as well as local wines, there is a growing number of wine bars in Bangkok and many of these are in the Sukhumvit area. Most of these are trendy establishments with selections of exclusive French, Italian, Spanish and other international wines.
Go-go bars
Rainbow 4
Squeezes two stages into a small space, and is always packed with girls and punters.
Long Gun
Not the largest or flashiest bar — indeed, it has seen better days — but is reputed to be the oldest bar in the Soi and by extension the oldest go-go bar outside of Patpong. It's got a somewhat less frenetic atmosphere than some of the bigger bars, and may be worth a visit as well as a piece of possibly apocryphal history.
Angel Witch
A single stage, with choreographed shows most evening at 10PM until midnight. Not as heavily packed outside of showtimes, nor the best place for a single man on the hunt, but an excellent "gentler" introduction for couples and those merely curious to see the sights.
Suzie Wong
Small and unprepossessing at first sight, the only hint of a Chinese theme are the cheongsams of the waitresses, but this go go and its sister operation Sheba's across the street are famed for putting on some of the best shows in Bangkok.
Soi Cowboy off Asoke Road and Nana Entertainment Plaza Soi 4 are packed full of go-go bars much like those in Patpong. Soi 33 is packed with hostess bars, which are more upscale than the Soi Cowboy and Nana Plaza bars and do not feature go-go dancing. Since the establishments are jammed side by side on the streets or along the interior courtyard, in Nana Plaza, it's easy to go go-go bar hopping: they all come in different sizes, music, lighting, and dancer physiques. You'll probably find one to fit your preferences.
While the places all operate with more or less the same concept, the following four have been around for a while and are unlikely to rip you off:
The Sukhumvit area contains more watering holes than can easily be counted, and touts are not as big of a problem here as in Patpong. However, the scene is oriented towards Western ex-pats and wealthy high-society Thais, for more of a local ambience and local prices head a bit north to Ratchadaphisek instead.