Let’s Check In
Do you ever wonder why playgrounds are only made for children? Do you wish there were places in which you could immerse yourself and forget that you have grown up? The idea behind this month’s Let’s Check In was designed to give us just that: a corner of adult free spirited liveliness, including all the delights of your Friday nights and all the fun that would make an eight year old jealous. Bon Bon has been the new sensation in Bangkok for a few months now, and the vibe is really picking up at this exciting new venue.
The upscale area of Thong Lo, moreover, the ritzy area of Seenspace could have potentially proven a difficult setting in which to make an upscale playground: too conservative and it would have lost its purpose. Too wild and it could have lost panache. But Bon Bon lost neither, in what has become the perfect balance between your classy tavern with overflowing elegance and your most extravagant dreams of mischievousness, all amassed below this lightly gothic styled concept bar. A large bird cage hung at plain sight in which one may play at being a captive bird in a carefree bar, is ideal for those who enjoy the spotlight. For those who enjoy other things though, the cage overlooks two glass made ping pong tables, on which one can play a variety of games depending on how imaginative one can get (not too imaginative though, this is after all, a classy bar.)
A fantastic highlight however is the Ice Room. Yes, the Ice Room. A place in which glassware is made of ice and the cocktails are expected to be consumed with a spoon – which is pretty much the kind of thing David Bowie would have found essential if he would have been commended to confection a cocktail – and which in turn, is incredibly funky.
The food is just as fantastic, and fundamental as an accompanying complement to a good cocktail. Seriously 
laden nachos can be accompanied by everybody’s favourite set of Mexican and South American tapas, from pulled pork tacos to Peruvian salmon ceviche. But we can never lose too much touch with Asia, thus dishes featuring kimchi are just as standard. Something equally as common is the ice cream found near the ping pong table in the enclosure outside, where you can accompany a game with your favourite flavour – needless to mention of course, that this goes in a cup with champagne. Because Bon Bon doesn’t do ordinary, it does what it set out to do and breaks the schemas of all bars that have come before it. The difference between them is that some just did not dare to tip over the edge of playfulness and thus became commonplace. It will be hard to forget however that Bon Bon has emerged to tell people they’re younger than they thought.
As a whole, Bon Bon is a marvellous establishment with plenty of entertainment, curious aspects in every sense of the word and a fantastic ambiance concentrated in one of Bangkok’s hottest spots. If you haven’t been to Bon Bon yet, don’t be afraid to go and play, chances are it will make your day.
Bon Bon – Restaurant, Bar, Playground
Seenspace, 25/11 Thong Lo 13
Bangkok, 02 185 2378