BANGKOK — Is it going to be a speakeasy hidden behind a locker or a Chinatown joint sourcing Thai ingredients? Will Thonglor’s Rabbit Hole dominate a second year?
Celebrating the best bars and professionals in town, The Bar Awards will be open to the public for the first time since launching in 2017 at two dozen venues poured over four days to soak the city in booze.
Coming on the heels of two consecutive dry weekends due to the election, parties and events will run March 28-31 at several venues in the capital. A series of festivities kick things off at Above Eleven, a rooftop bar overlooking Soi Sukhumvit 11, with six international bartending guests.
The second day will welcome “bar talks” at Sorrento in the Sathorn area, featuring topics on food and the beverage industry, sustainable bartending and more. A tiki party will move the crowd a kilometer away to Banyan Tree’s Moon Bar on Sathorn Tai Road.
On the third day, commute to Ekkamai area where Mikkeller will offer a wide selection of beer and a guest mixologist to craft cocktails with it.
The winners in 12 categories will be announced March 31 at Beer Belly in Thonglor. An after-party will be held at Chow on the ground floor of five-star hotel Metropole Bangkok near the end of Soi Sukhumvit 55. Advance tickets are 800 baht and available via Ticketmelon.
A full calendar is available online.
The Bar of the Year candidates include the usual suspects: #FindTheLockerRoom, Asia Today, Backstage Cocktail Bar, Ku Bar, Q&A, Rabbit Hole, Salon du Japonisant, The Bamboo Bar, Tropic City and Vesper.
The Bar Awards were launched in 2014 in Singapore by Tron Young, before kicking off in Bangkok in 2017. Last year, the awards went to Rabbit Hole as bar of the year, Mikkeller as best beer bar and The Bamboo Bar with two accolades – best hotel bar and best Bangkok institution awards.
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