Bangkok

15 Ekkamai 10 Alley, Khlong Tan Nuea, Watthana, Bangkok

Vichit Mukura spent 28 years running Sala Rim Naam at the Mandarin Oriental before opening his own restaurant and eventually moving KHAO into Ekkamai. The building takes cues from a traditional rice barn; the name simply means rice. Inside, regional Thai dishes, curries, relishes, seafood and extraordinarily labor-intensive preparations are handled with exacting technique and served for the table. One seasonal khao chae alone requires rice to be washed, cooked, polished, steamed, smoked with scented candles and surrounded by an increasingly unreasonable collection of accompaniments. KHAO earned a Michelin star by taking familiar Thai food extremely seriously. Vichit Mukura knows exactly what the fuck he is doing.

313–315 Mahachai Road, Samran Rat, Phra Nakhon, Bangkok 10200

Thipsamai has become famous enough that people now queue outside while discussing whether the fact that people queue outside has made it less worthy of queuing outside. Bangkok is handling the paradox normally. The institution grew from a family pad thai operation around Pratu Phi, the Ghost Gate, and became known for sen chan noodles, shrimp oil, large prawns and the egg-wrapped preparation that has since travelled far beyond Mahachai Road. Around those noodles accumulated decades of history, mythology, branches, packaged sauces, tourism and the inevitable global debate over whether this is still “the best.” A plate of noodles should not be required to resolve this much epistemology. Go. Don't go. Decide whether you like it. Thipsamai has survived more serious problems than your ranking.

888/28–29 Mahatun Plaza, Phloen Chit Road, Lumphini, Pathum Wan, Bangkok 10330

Thai Niyom sits inside Mahatun Plaza under the towers of Phloen Chit in a straightforward room that keeps attention on the kitchen. It began with family recipes and now moves freely around Thailand. Chiang Mai can sit beside Phuket, Hat Yai beside central Thai dishes, northern appetizers beside southern curries, all on the same table. Michelin continues to give it a Bib Gourmand because the cooking is very good and the prices remain sane, an increasingly radical combination in a neighborhood containing this much expensive glass. Bangkok lets the country's regional differences meet here over lunch.

Units 3F-S01–S02, third floor, Gaysorn Amarin, 496–502 Phloen Chit Road, Lumphini, Pathum Wan, Bangkok 10330

Lawry's opened in Beverly Hills in 1938 with an idea so specific it borders on institutional stubbornness: roast an enormous piece of beef, put it inside a silver cart, wheel the cart to the table, carve the meat in front of people and continue doing this for nearly ninety years. Bangkok acquired the full ritual. The silver carving carts were specially made for the Thailand operation; the local restaurant says each is worth roughly three million baht. Prime rib arrives with mashed potatoes, Yorkshire pudding, creamed spinach and the spinning salad, another piece of tableside theatre. The company remains family-owned and Bangkok is its first Thai branch. The three-million-baht trolley carries an eighty-eight-year-old Beverly Hills beef ceremony through a city already capable of Thai street food, royal cooking, omakase, French gastronomy and late-night noodles. The excess is the point.

Unit A102, Velaa Sindhorn Village, 87 Lang Suan Road, Lumphini, Pathum Wan, Bangkok 10330

Petits Plats gives the room as much attention as the food: curved interiors, art, soft surfaces, a terrace, carefully staged light and dishes designed with enough theatre that people photograph both themselves and dinner. French-Mediterranean cooking, truffle and seafood suit a restaurant built for dressing up. The beauty is deliberate, and so is the indulgence.

Unit A103, Velaa Sindhorn Village, 87 Lang Suan Road, Lumphini, Pathum Wan, Bangkok 10330

VASO puts the kitchen in the middle of the room, so tapas arrive across the counter and the chefs remain visible throughout dinner. Blanco carries the louder music; Negro is the darker room. There is also a bell, and guests are encouraged to ring it. That physical piece of nonsense tells you more about VASO than another generic promise of a lively night. Sit at the counter, order tapas and decide for yourself whether the bell needs using.

Mandarin Oriental, Bangkok, 48 Oriental Avenue, Bang Rak, Bangkok 10500

The Oriental Hotel has been receiving travelers beside the Chao Phraya since the nineteenth century. In 1953, somebody inside it opened Bangkok's first jazz venue. The Bamboo Bar still uses dark wood, rattan, bamboo, animal-print upholstery and live jazz, but renovation has kept the room current without deleting its old visual language. The cocktail program introduces Thai ingredients and new ideas beneath décor that understands the seductive power of looking slightly like 1958. Louis Armstrong, Audrey Hepburn, Mick Jagger and enough other famous people passed through to make name-dropping pointless. The musicians remain the more important reason to come. There is a dress code, no reservations and jazz every night. Outside, contemporary Bangkok continues moving at its usual speed. Inside, the evening operates according to older rules. That contrast has kept the institution alive for more than seventy years.

412 Vanich 1 Road, Chakkrawat, Samphanthawong, Bangkok 10100

HEX uses full-moon water in its cocktails and takes the witchcraft premise all the way. Spellbooks, potion bottles, gothic rooms, an upside-down tree, hidden spaces, herbs, strange extractions and an entire drinks menu continue until there is effectively no part of the experience left outside the idea. At least one preparation has involved water bugs, Sichuan pepper and rye whiskey, which is the sort of sentence that causes restraint to file for immediate transfer. The bar works through total commitment. Nobody blinked halfway through and decided to make the concept tasteful. Bangkok received the full version.