Cru Champagne Bar, Bangkok Thailand, September 2019
Details
- Location: Centara Grand, Bangkok
- Cost: $18+ per cocktail
The Arrival
My friend Kook, who I met on my last trip to Thailand, had shown interest to come with so, I invited her. She drove into the city and dropped her car at the Hotel. We took an Uber, as a generic cab can be quite scammy. It's only a mile from the JW Marriott, in the Centara Grand hotel right up Sukhumvit.Uber dropped us off at the hotel entrance, and we went into the entry area to get to the lobby. We took the elevator up to the 56th floor for Red Sky, which circles the tower of the hotel.
There is a glass elevator to the next level. While walking along the outer rim, I felt a strong sense of vertigo. The elevator goes to more seating for Red Sky and a stairway to the top which I have heard referred to interchangeably Red Sky Above and the Cru Bar. I'm not picky on the name.
The Bar
A large circle with various seating areas and massive color changing arch dominate the space. It feels a lot less like "I'm gonna fall 500 feet and sploosh" at that point, and I was very comfortable sitting and ordering a couple of drinks.I ordered my standard at first, vodka with Sprite and splash of OJ. Kook isn't much of a drinker, but she decided try one of their signature cocktails. We ordered a couple of Swallow's Nests which is made up of ELYX vodka, Cointreau, beetroot juice, pomegranate juice, passion fruit juice, lime juice, and rosemary syrup. It turned out to be a deceptively powerful drink.
Compared to Lebua Sky Bar, there are many more locals and other south east Asians that frequent this bar. The drinks are better and it seems a little more bougie by the nice dress and groups of well to do locals, but it's not really. The dress code is fairly relaxed, just no shorts and flipflops. Dress smart casual and you're fine.