Bangkok: Bartels & Ban Tha Thong

There were two places of significance that we went to today. 

First was Bartels, whose food I'd actually had had for breakfast a couple of days ago but instead of the morning meal today we had it for lunch instead. 

Second was Ban Tha Thong. 

But that was only in the evening. 

Morning we had our now-regular meal of eggs and toast, then we got some work done until early afternoon when we tried making up our minds what we ought to have for lunch, and finally decided that we could go to Bartels further up the road. 

Google Maps tells me that there're three Bartels around the area, including Asok, but the one here- the one we went to- was at Khlong Toei- opposite Sukhumvit 47 Alley in the area Thong Lor. 

Two-storeyed, we gave our orders at the counter downstairs, then went up where we found a table and settled down. 

Looking at the menu now it's easy to see why Bartels is so popular amongst the health-conscious community in Bangkok- and I don't mean just the expats or the digital nomads. There're a fair number of locals too. 

For one thing, their sandwiches are really, really good. 

They've got the classics, like Bartels Deli and Stacked Eggs & Bacon, but the best charm has to be their Grilled Sandwiches on Sourdough. 

The variety- no kidding. 

Past few times we've tried Grilled Cheese, Grilled Tuna Melt, and Scrambled Eggs Salmon on Sourdough but next time I'm there, I'd want to try the Grilled Ham & Cheese, or the Salami & Brie. 

Of course I'm glad to have tried the Grilled Cheese- it's one of those sandwiches I'd always heard about but never had a chance to try, but Ham & Cheese doesn't sound too bad, and I'm curious to know just how tasty (or salty) a Salami & Brie sandwich will be. 

This afternoon we ordered a Grilled Tuna Melt, and a dish they call Turkish eggs. 

The sandwich was so huge it's a miracle I managed to finish both pieces on my own. 

And I still can't get over how there was this huge portion of Tuna Mousse over mild Cheddar with some Parmesan, another generous serving of pesto and a bit of mayo hidden somewhere.

The pesto and tuna went together perfectly well. 

Mushy, yes, but with the melted cheese and the hard crusty toast, it was so good. 

The Turkish eggs had two perfectly poached eggs sitting snug in a thick, creamy ocean of Greek yogurt upon which there was a bit of chilly oil, a scattering of mixed green leaves, and crispy toasted sourdough bread.  

We both fell in love with the bread, and whilst we were feeling full by the Tuna Melt and that huge dish of Greek yogurt, we loved it so much we decided not to let it go to waste and tapaoed it to go. 

I think we went for a quick massage after getting some work done. 

Where precisely it was we went, I cannot recall. 

But when that was over we headed to Banthat Thong.

Unlearned me had at first been surprised by the suggestion, like, why? 

But I had not known- before coming here- that this street was one of the liveliest this side of town here in BKK. Running 2.2km long right through the districts of Pathum Wan and Ratchathewi close to Chulalongkorn University, this street has, apparently a large number of sporting goods shops and is, at all times, a street food haven. 

I had also not known- before coming here- that colloquially this street had, in recent years, become known as Yaorawat 2, or Bangkok's 'second Chinatown'. 

But when we alighted from the Grab and looked around, I understood why. 

This wasn't just a place with street food and restaurants and cafes and eating places. 

This was a place that burst with youthful excitement and groups of young adults milling and chilling about. 

We walked along the road, dodging fellow tourists and locals who had made their way down here for an evening, until we came to this place called Heng Hoitod Chawlae. 

Known for its Hoi Tod (crispy oyster omelet), that, exactly is what we ordered, along with a plate of carrot cake because I looked at the picture and found it impossible to ignore. 

Let's just say we will not be forgetting the crisp of the oyster omelet anytime soon.

Neither will we be forgetting the oil. 

But we didn't care.

You don't give a hoot about the oil when you're eating a very, very crisp cracker-like omelet base instead of the 

For the first time in our lives, we were eating a very, very crisp cracker-like omelet base instead of the chewy, grey-starch ones that we were commonly used to. 

So crisp, dry and crackery was it that we first broke the pieces off with our forks before picking it up to eat with our hands. 

To my surprise, the cracker part wasn't tasteless, and in fact, the salty-savory taste went very well with the oysters and the egg itself. 

Just imagine, there was the crunch of the flour, there was the boing-boing part of the egg, and then the big juicy mush of the oyster. 

A mix of textures and tastes that previously I hadn't had before. 

Same too it was for the radish cake- whose picture in the menu we simply pointed and have now forgotten its Thai name. 

I have had plates of chye tow kuay here on the island, and they've always been good, but few are the places, however, where the kuay is cut into chunks this size, or wok hei-ed to the degree where each piece gives you that slight taste of the burnt mixed with the hint of soy sauce coated all over through. 

I'd love to have a slower time at this place next time. 

Maybe I'll make a proper dinner out of it and try more dishes even.

After this we headed out for a bit of dessert. 

It wasn't planned, actually. 

We happened to pass by just as we were making our way back to MBK Center and Siam BTS Station, but then on the menu outside there were these pictures, and they looked interesting, so in we went. 

It is very, very seldom that I get to try a warm dessert of pumpkin soup. 

Pumpkin bread, pumpkin kueh, pumpkin in all manner of forms, yes, I've seen, but pumpkin mushed up and boiled and made into a dessert like this, no, so we tried.

What surprised me about this dessert was the lightness of taste, and the thickness of consistency. 

I've been so used to the opposite where the sweet is heavy and the texture is thin.

This here held the faint sweetness of the pumpkin vegetable, its bright orange color, and the thick pureed texture. 

So well-cooked was it that it felt like a meal all on its own. 

And I liked it so much we had two bowls. 

This, despite the fact that we'd also ordered a bowl of tofu in ginger soup, which, I too had wanted to try, because whilst I have had tofu (or soy bean curd as we call it here) in sweet syrup and in soybean milk, I've never had it with ginger soup, and I wanted to try. 

It's a very stimulating dessert, actually, and I don't know which I like better- the ginger, or the soft pudding-like texture of tofu that I carved up and ate. 

We finished, and went back to the Thong Lor area, but there were smoothies we wanted to buy, so instead of going to the TOPS on 41, we went to the TOPS at Marche Thong Lor on Thong Lo itself, then walked back to 51, first along (a rather dark) Thong Lo 5 Alley, a left on 53, then one block to 51. 

Bangkok: BDMS Wellness & Central Embassy

There wasn't much that we did today. 

Well, actually it wasn't that we didn't do much. 

Just that I didn't take as many pictures as I ought to have. 

This morning we had a breakfast of eggs and bo luo bun that we ate with butter that we'd brought over from home.

Butter wasn't the only thing we brought over, by the way. 

There were little jars of supplements, I had a bunch of sweets, and I had my sticks of coffee and tea. 

We did some work in the morning, then headed out to lunch at OKONOMI in Central Embassy. 

You will have noticed by now that OKONOMI features much on our meal itinerary. 

It isn't just because they're delicious, but also that they have a lovely environment to eat in, work in, and the prices are affordable. 

Their food is the kind of food you take when you're in the middle of the workday and your brain's churning left and right. 

Their food is the kind of food you take when you want something to fill your stomach but don't wish to overwhelm. 

I've seen digital nomads take their sandwiches and a cup of coffee. 

I've seen ladies chat and catch up with each other over bowls of rice or noodles and a small bite that's shared. 

This afternoon we took our usual favorites of Spicy Salmon, Salmon and Egg Mazemen, and the crab croquettes (again). 

Their crab croquettes are really good- well breaded, perfectly fried. One can appreciate the generous amount of filling that's wrapped inside each croquette. One can also appreciate how clean-tasting the croquette is. 

Eating this I never have to think of the oil.

I just eat. 

Lunch over we went over to the BDMS Wellness Clinic where my friend had an appointment. 

The BDMS Wellness Clinic is a fine example of how I (personally) feel wellness clinics can afford to be. 

I'm not sure what their full suite of services are, but in all likelihood they do range from the aesthetics to the holistic to the weight-loss, and so on. 

The one thing about BDMS that especially charms me is her environment. 

No, it's not merely because she's atas or elegant, or whatnot, but because she's in a place that has, originally, (I think) a fair bit of heritage, and so is remarkably restful. 

See, aesthetic treatments aren't necessarily painless. In fact, there are some rather uncomfortable ones, but what centralizes the whole experience is the Recovery, the place of Recovery, and the speed of it. 

There are some treatments that require downtime.

There are some treatments that- with the proper medication- don't. 

It depends.

BDMS (and her surroundings) cater to both. 

Next to their clinic, connected by a elegant walkway, is the Movenpick Hotel. In and of itself, the Movenpick is a restful, quiet space with its own garden and its own peacocks wandering here and there. 

But in the clinic itself, right behind the registration counter and wait area, is a bright, sunny private space designed like an elegant tea room, drawing room, or a lounge. 

Intended perhaps for patients to rest and recover in between their treatments, this is a place where they can sit quietly on one of the comfortable armchairs and rest whilst gazing upon the manicured greenery outside. 

Should they get hungry, there's tea, and from time to time, snacks and small bites too. 

We were directed to this lounge to wait out the results of the Dexter DEXA Scan that my friend had taken earlier. 

And because their small bites looked delish, we helped ourselves to them, sharing between us a salad roll, a tuna sandwich, two very big dates, and a chocolate granola bar, all the while sipping small little cups of lemongrass tea. 

The results came. 

All was good. 

So back we went to the lounge for another short season of work before heading to Central Embassy.

In the late afternoon we headed to Siam Square where we got a massage- I think it was a Thai one- and then off it was to MBK Center the other side of Siam Paragon where I went shopping for more T-shirts- but didn't get any. 

Instead I got a couple bottles of body mists and massage oils, which, I have to say, do make for a fantastic price and which I'm now wishing I'd bought more. 

We ended the day with dinner. 

At first we'd thought of having steak at this restaurant in MBK Center- the long queue of people waiting outside the entrance was quite encouraging- but I'm not fond of waiting, and then remembered we'd had steak only the previous day- so decided to try this very casual Thai-Chinese cafe where we had fried kuay teow, a bowl of green curry that they served with crepes, and fried spring rolls perfectly fried. 

Will I come back here again?

Yes.

The kuay teow, though a simple-looking dish, consisted of flat rice noodles in the width that I liked. There were a lot of bean sprouts, there was a lot of egg, and there were slices of chicken that seemed to be so clean.

The green curry was normal- sweet, spicy, creamy- but it were the crepes- chewy and hot- that made for all the difference. 

I haven't ever dipped deep-fried floury pancakes into green curry before.

This was my first time. 

The spring rolls too didn't disappoint.  

I wish I knew what sort of spring roll skin they used though. 

It didn't seem to be made from the same kind of flour that I get from the snack shops and dim sum places, more like a (much thinner) fried version of the hum chim pang kind of flour, that same kind of crust, that same kind of crumbly crunch that melts away in your mouth. 

Bangkok: EmQuartier & EmSphere

There aren't many pictures today.

Not because I didn't do anything or eat anything of significance, but because I spent most of my time in two shopping malls and I'm not very much the kind to take pictures of shops inside a shopping mall. 

This morning we had a breakfast of eggs and the bo luo buns that we had purchased the night before. 

Afterwards we decided to explore the EmQuartier and EmSphere area close by, so out to the main road we walked, and took the BTS to Phrom Phong. 

We started with EmQuartier first. 

What makes this mall interesting are the aesthetics. 

It is one of the sunniest malls this side of town.  

It is also one of the malls this side of town with the most indoor greenery. 

Hardly is it that one gets to see a full wall of leaves and ferns (and a waterfall!) cascading down from roof floor to ground. 

Maybe this time I wasn't appreciating it as much as I ought to have, but next time I come I will, especially since the Sephora here is a charm, as is the MUJI, the Zara and the H&M, plus the plethora of restaurants located all on their upper floors. 

How it was we wandered this mall on this afternoon I don' particularly remember, but somewhere along the way we discovered the AEON Theater, and right beside it, Sushi Seki, a franchise-type of Japanese restaurant.

The menu offered a lot of dishes, a mix of familiar and new, all of them very good ones, but we thought we'd try something new, so instead of Ramen or Udon (as I sometimes like to order) or even Oyakodon (another favorite of mine), we ordered a Chirashi bowl that had cubes of salmon, tuna and unagi. 

What made this bowl unique was that the rice had truffle oil, and scattered all over the top were tiny pretty flowers that were edible. 

Then we ordered a plate of snow crab croquettes, all of which were beautifully breaded and fried. 

And then we decided we'd try a plate of Salmon Larb which, to our surprise, turned out to be spicier than we imagined it would be. 

Lunch over we hung around the shopping mall a little bit then decided to visit EmSphere on the opposite side of the Phrom Phong BTS station, accessible by a skybridge that connected EmQuartier to EmSphere. 

Along the way I saw what I think might be an early outlet of Villa Market, and glad I was to find out that the same Villa Market I'd seen in Ploenchit Center last time had in fact been around for 50 years. 

From the outside EmSphere looked like a very fun, youthful-looking mall, and we were right. 

One of two anchor tenants in EmSphere seems to be IKEA. 

Which floor it is on, I don't know- we didn't go up- but it is on the upper floor and seems to be very popular with shoppers who probably come to EmSphere just to look, and shop, for furniture. 

The other anchor tenant in EmSphere is likely Gourmet Market in the basement floor. This supermarket carries a good selection of international produce, including deli counters, cheese counters and salad counters.  

Then there were a whole bunch of eateries big and small. 

Lots of variety.

This was the kind of place where you could have casual fine dining of steak or beef wellington alongside a snack booth selling buns filled with varying flavors of cream. 

We took a toasted bun filled with milk tea cream. 

Having seen enough of the mall, we headed out onto Sukhumvit Road towards a massage place close by where we did a foot massage for 2 hours. 

Very likely I fell asleep, and continued being sleepy for quite a while, because when we finished we decided to hang around the area for dinner, and I was too dazed to make any decisions save for the fact that I didn't want to go anywhere too far away from where we were. 

I had thought we'd be returning to EmSphere for dinner but my friend found this Argentinian steak place opposite EmSphere named El Toro Steakhouse and Churrascaria. 

The Argentinian-style buffet was tempting. 

I like grilled pineapple.

But I wasn't very much in the mood for huge meals this evening and so settled on a pasta carbonara (so heavy with the cream!) and my friend got a very, very good steak that came with baked potato. 

Bangkok: Platinum Mall

Morning today I headed up to the roof for a breather and to do the daily hour-long errand. 

There was a mini golf thing up on this floor.

There were outdoor chairs.

It's surprising- I had not thought the view from this height of this building would be this good. 

I liked it.

It made me feel at ease. 

Afterwards when I went back down we had a breakfast of eggs and tuna toast that we Grabbed in from this place called Bartels. 

The tuna toast was so good. 

Call me suaku, yes, but oy, I come from a side of the world where standards are subjective and I don't always get to have a sandwich as delish as this.

What really impressed me wasn't just the thickness of the perfectly grilled, crunchy toast itself, nor the sliced tomato or the jalapeno that had somehow slid its way in, but the generous dollops of well-mixed tuna that they had placed inside. 

So full was it between the slices of those breads that had I taken them away from the bread, I think they'd have filled up a small bowl.  

It made the meal feel especially full. 

In the latter part of the morning we headed out to the Organic Village shop at Thong Lor to get essentials and snacks. 

There was a time when this shop had an outlet at Siam Square right close to the Siam BTS station, but they had closed down a month or so prior, so all that was left was this one here at Thong Lor. 

Compared to some of the other places, Organic Village here isn't that inconvenient of a place to get to, but what with the weather, what with it being a fair distance away from the nearest BTS, it does take a fair bit of brisk walking to get to the store. 

Nevertheless they do have great prices for some of their powders and snacks, and we always made sure we got two paper bags full. 

From the shop, we walked our way back. 

Along the way we stopped for a Thai massage where today I think we did a 5-in-1 that lasted maybe two hours or so. 

I wish I knew the name of the place, but I think it wasn't too far away from Organic Village and most certainly it lay on the walking route back. 

After we reached back the room, down we placed the two bags of chocolate brownie snacks, then out we went, taking the BTS from Thong Lor station to Chidlom.

I had wanted to visit Platinum Mall, but first, lunch. 

There were options, of course- we could have gone for a simple meal, we could have gone for Tonkatsu at Central World, or even a quick meal at Siam Paragon, but then I had wanted chicken rice. 

So we got down at Chidlom BTS, walked through Gaysorn, out onto the skybridge towards the Big C Mall on Ratchadamri, then down the stairs to Go-Ang Pratunam Chicken Rice. 

This is, in my opinion, one of the best chicken rice dishes to be had this part of the world. 

I know opinions will be divided regarding this, and there'll be disagreements, but let's just say that for someone who usually prefers roasted chicken to steamed chicken dishes, I actually want the steamed chicken here at Go-Ang rather than their roasted ones. 

I don't know if it's the way they've marinated the chicken such that the skin is so good or if it's the way they make their chicken so tender, but that speaks a lot, doesn't it?

What's more, their rice hits different. 

Again I don't know how to describe, but this is the one place where I feel like I can have two plates of rice instead of one- and trust me, I don't normally have that kind of urge to.

But, well, one can't finish, so, yes, sad to say, I have to stick to one.

Yeah, that's how it is here. 

We followed the skybridge over to Platinum Mall where over four floors of clothes, accessories and beauty products made for an interesting walk. 

There were so many shops offering all kinds of stuff. 

And if one thought it were only clothes and bags and shoes, no, there were shops offering aromatherapy soaps, candles, massage oils, body care and room sprays too. 

Here there were clothes that I hadn't seen in other flea markets before. 

There were clothes that looked like they were tryouts for incoming fashion trends. 

And there were clothes for all kinds of personalities. 

I got particularly drawn to several designs of over-sized T-shirts at one of the stalls, so decided to get two- one with a Sailor Moon design, one with an M&M design. 

Afterwards down at the basement we got a new small thermos flask for my friend that I thought might come in useful for all the hot (and cold) drinks that we presently do. 

Not feeling very hungry (yet), we strolled back to Siam Paragon, where at the food court we bought a bag of hot, crispy sweet potato balls, and two bo luo buns for breakfast the next day.

But there's BOOST- at a great price- and so we got ourselves a cup of BOOST Juice each where, instead of the Berry smoothie I used to take, I chose a Cookies & Cream. 

We had our snacks at the Siam Square area, then headed back on the BTS after.

You'd have thought that our day be over, and in a way it was, but late night we got somewhat hungry, so Grabbed in a steak. 

Seeing this cute little box with the steak all beautifully sliced up, the broccoli and carrots steamed just right, the potatoes cut just fine and the little case of truffle salt at the side brought back some lovely memories for me. 

The last time I'd had this steak was a couple of months ago when we were staying at the Shang. 

Today, four, five months later, we were here at Thong Lor. 

Bangkok: Sukhumvit 51- Ploenchit-Ekkamai

It was a very early flight that I took to BKK this morning. 

Hardly is it that I haul myself to the airport at an early hour for a pre-dawn flight, but one wants to max out the time they have when they travel, don't they, so yep, it was a 0550 Scoot flight this time. 

A smooth flight it was, and I arrived at Suvarnabhumi at 0715 local time. 

At the airport we had a quick breakfast of sandwich and coffee. 

I wish I could remember just from where it is that my sandwich came from (or that I even had a picture) but it might well have been from the same place where my big cup of latte had come from- The Coconut Coffee.

Always so thankful I am to see this, honestly, when it means I've not just made it safely here, I've also made it here on time. 

There're times when a latte feels more than just a latte. 

This is one of them.

Plus, this morning there was a special delight in the form of seeing a K9 walk behind his minder, holding his own leash as he went up the escalator on his own. 

Breakfast over, we Grabbed to our hotel. 

Which, by the way, wasn't a hotel-hotel per se, but a serviced apartment slightly out of the tourist area on Sukhumvit 51 near the Thong Lor area. 

Was I surprised we weren't heading to a hotel?

No, not when I had been wanting to try out the serviced apartments of BKK for quite a while, and what better opportunity than this time?

Voque Sukhumvit sits in one of those places slightly off the beaten track. 

It is not the kind of place where you'll find tourists lounging about in groups of 4 or 5 making their way to dinner or the night market or the bar. 

It is also not the kind of place where street vendors have their stalls every two meters apart. 

No, it is primarily a residential area, and whilst there be one or two cafes nearby (for the expatriates to do their coffee runs and quick meal runs) that be more or less it.

It is for that reason, perhaps, that Voque Sukhumvit is quiet, cozy, restful and intimate. 

I was so surprised, I tell you, when upon entering the apartment, I found myself greeted by a lovely two-seater sofa, a nice wooden coffee table, a charming little dining table for two, a large television, cabinets, and a small kitchenette that had fridge and microwave and stove. 

Opposite the kitchenette was the bathroom- a big one, I have to add- and then further on there was the bedroom, which, I thought, was very intimate and cozy for a person of one, or persons of two. 

We settled down, then headed out.

There were a lot of places to run today, beginning with Ploenchit near the Siam Pharmacy. 

This time I waited for my friend at Central Embassy, first taking a quick walk at the supermarket in the basement, then wandering about some of the shops in the mall. 

Afterward we had lunch at OKONOMI where this afternoon I went back for my usual favorite of Salmon and Cheese Mazemen, Salmon Patty and Pumpkin Soup, and my friend had the Spicy Salmon Rice. 

One thing great about this place is that the food doesn't disappoint. 

The service is consistent, the standard is consistent, and I can always expect the pumpkin soup to have the same level of sweet, the salmon patty to have the same degree of crunch, and the Mazemen to be chewy and thick with the right texture of cheese blended in with the noodle. 

Lunch over we headed over to the Siam Square area.

What exactly we were here for this afternoon I can't recall, but it wasn't a massage (I know) and neither was it for shopping, because I don't think I walked around.

Perhaps my friend had an appointment. 

And I either waited at Eggdrop, or at Novotel. 

Our final place for this day was at Ekkamai. 

No doubt, my friend had a third appointment in the area, and whilst it was too hot for me to walk around whilst waiting- I hid in the cool of Starbucks over at the Major Cineplex mall- but glad I am to say that we had dinner here. 

I like Sizzler.

I like the salad buffet. 

It doesn't look like a lot, really, it's just vegetables and salad creams and the like- but there's a joy in being able to concoct your own plate of salad with your favorite kind of vegetable and having the stomach to finish them all. 

This evening I ordered the usual favorite of fish and chips. 

From the salad bar for the first plate I took as much Romaine lettuce as I liked, then helped myself to a ladleful of corn, followed by a couple of cherry tomatoes (for the juice!) and then a bunch of quail eggs that are also absolute favorites of mine and which went very well with the Caesar salad cream.

In between bites of the fried fish and the chips, I took another plate of lettuce- another kind of lettuce- this time from the pre-prepared salad dish- and more quail eggs, because I'm the type who likes quail eggs and since I don't have them very often, I don't bother how many I have. 

There was, of course, dessert as well. 

Sizzler might not be the kind of place that puts a lot of emphasis on dessert, but they do make it such that everyone gets to have a bit of sweet after their savory mains, so even though I chose not to take the mousse or any of the creamier stuff this time, I made sure I took a couple slices of watermelon, and a jelly, because it looked cute, and because it's something I've always wanted to have. 

It was late evening by the time we got back to Thong Lor but we needed water, so down it was to the 24-hour TOPS on Sukhumvit 41 where we got instant coffee and eggs and bottles of mineral water.