Bangkok's newest weird and wonderful themed cafes
While we wait patiently for the opening of the Rilakkuma (K-Village) and Hello Kitty (Siam Square) cafes, here are five venues already proving Bangkokians’ love of a good theme.
Charlie Brown Cafe
The name says it all. This very new venue, opened two weeks ago, attracts some real Peanuts fans, as well as those just curious about the latest dessert cafe. Simply decorated with a big Charlie Brown and some paintings of his friends, it's the new place to refresh yourself after an IKEA shopping spree, offering up soda (B85-95), smoothies (B135) and coffee (starts from B65), while tucking into their signature cakes (from B135), which true to theme, mostly come with faces of Charlie Brown, Lucy or Snoopy on it.
2/F, Mega Bangna, near IKEA, 02-105-2076. www.facebook.com/CharlieBrownCafeThai. Open daily 10am-10pm
Hungry Bear
Things don't get more cute than with this tiny cafe featuring a friendly brown bear stamped on every buttermilk pancake. As soon a walk in you’ll be greeted by stuffed bears, so you'd best take a seat for a teddy bear's picnic at the wooden furniture on the faux grass. For the best Instagram shots, try the Very Strawberry (B145) that comes with pancake and corn flakes in a jar and is served with chocolate ice cream. Otherwise, their cute pancake can be enjoyed with the DIY toppings option (B145). Wash it down with some coffee (from B60) or soda (B75).
4/F, Central Ladprao, Ladprao, Paholyothin Rd., 089-134-4466. www.facebook.com/hungrybearpancake. Open daily 10am-9pm
This cafe draws in the crowds, as evidenced by the opening of their second branch at The Walk (Ratchapruek Rd.) and a third one coming soon at Siam Square. The original branch is still the pick of the bunch, though; the key to finding the place is spotting a big cut-out of Mr. Bean acting cool next to his Mini outside. Once you enter, you’ll be surrounded with British icons like a red telephone booth and bus and, of course, lots of teddy bears. Sip on coffee (from B75) and munch on egg-y dishes like the GB egg white omelet (B145).
Near Market Place Thonglor, 154 Sukhumvit Soi 55, 092-503-7315. Open Mon-Thu 7am-10pm; Fri-Sat 7am-11pm
If you want more hearty meals then head to Teddy Bar & Bistro which focuses on teddy bears and lots of them. Grab a table right next to the window looking out onto Soi Aree Samphan, order some Thai-inter fusion dishes such as spaghetti namprik ong (chili paste with pork, B180), pla moo yang (spicy salad with eggplants, B260) and khao pad sapparod (stir-fried rice with river prawn and salsa sauce, B240), as teddies stare down at you from the shelves lining the bare brick walls.
66 Soi Aree Samphan, Paholyothin Soi 5, 089-499-5498. Open Mon-Sat 5-11:30pm
Having previously sold cutesy haberdashery like scarves and tote bags on Facebook, Unicorn Cafe has shown that since its opening a short time ago that there's a real market for a piece of cake amid a bunch of pink stuffed animals. The brick-and-mortar shop does a brief menu of cakes (B120) and cupcakes (B75) in pastel rainbow colors. As you’d expect, the small cafe is decorated in pink and filled with stuffed unicorns and My Little Pony figurines.
Sathorn Soi 8, 086-397-9262. Open daily noon-8pm
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