Bangkok-based typography artist and founder of The Only Market Bangkok, Maan Sriluansoi, is on a mission to shine a spotlight on life in the Thai capital. Driven by nostalgia, Sriluansoi has upended everyday objects into mementos for locals and in-the-know tourists, such as T-shirts emblazoned with ‘Bangkok Tourist’ and old-school enamel dinner sets. Using traditional Thai topography in his work, Sriluansoi recreates and embeds the ancient script in fresh new ways.
Here, Sriluansoi describes his ideal 48 hours in Bangkok, from walks in the Old Town and flower arranging to his favorite antique shops.
Street food, bars, and restaurants
One of Sriluansoi's favorite spots for a Thai breakfast is Ega, located in an eclectically decorated Thai house from the 1950s in Sathorn Soi 12. “What I really like about it is that it looks fancy, but the prices are local.” Open from breakfast through to dinner, it specializes in traditional Thai food from various provinces, and Sriluansoi loves the rice and traditional northeast sausage for breakfast. “In Thailand, when we talk about sausage,” he says, “we aren’t talking about processed meat but proper minced meat with herbs and spices." He also loves the “heavy but delicious” rice noodles with southern-style curry, and recommends the herbal tea: “It’s a very specific tea from the south served very simply in enamel cups. I love it.”
Another favourite is Odean Crab Wonton Noodle in Chinatown. “They cook the broth overnight and they also make the noodles and prepare the meat," Sriluansoi says, "unlike a lot of other noodle shops who buy the ready-made parts and just assemble it.” There’s also a chicken rice shop, right in front of Sribumpen Apartments in Sathorn Soi 1, which he likes for casual meetings or during shoot breaks. He smiles as he says, “It becomes my guests’ favorite spot too.”
For something a bit more special, Sriluansoi will book a table at Baan Nual on Fueang Nakhon Road in the district of Phra Nakhon, which is filled with decorative birdcages in “a vibrant part of the Old Town.” You’ll need a reservation at this family-style restaurant, which specializes in home-cooked nostalgic Thai meals.
He also loves Studiyo Bar near Khao San Road. The small restaurant, which also sells vintage t-shirts, is low-key, “but the food is incredibly good,” he says. “It’s where all the underground artists hang out.”
For a sweet treat, Sriluansoi heads to French restaurant, Maison Bleue. “The chef is the heir to a legendary traditional Thai dessert eatery in Chiang Mai,” he says. She spent some time in Paris, and when she came back to Thailand, she opened a French restaurant, which has traditional French desserts but with Thai flavors, like mille-feuille with palm sugar.”
.jpg)
For after-dinner drinks with other artists and creatives, Sriluansoi heads to his favorite laidback cocktail and live jazz bar, Smalls, a rickety three-story affair. “It’s a tiny little bar with a rooftop, which we always joke could be in Paris,” he says. He also loves Lucky Duck, a decadent Shanghai-style speakeasy on Maitri Chit Road in Soi Nana Yaowarat, Chinatown. For something more high-octane, he heads to The Parlor Bar at the The Standard, Bangkok Mahanakhon, where all the “young scene-y people go when they want to have a crazy night.”
If the night stretches on, he’ll go to Thaipioka for local DJs and to meet “some cool new strangers.” For after-hours dancing, it’s off to Blaq Lyte or Never Normal, depending on where the night takes him.
Shops
Sriluansoi gravitates towards one-of-a-kind shopping and unique brands by local Thai designers like Bangkok-based brand “Dry Clean Only,” famous for their colorful '80s style using off-cut vintage fabrics and worn by the likes of Rihanna and Beyoncé. One of his favorite brands is Pyvet, which upcycles high-quality vintage silk from dead stock into stylish modern pieces. “I always buy their oversized silk Hawaiian shirts,” he says.
Pony Stone “changed the Bangkok fashion scene,” and is known for oversized, distressed clothing: “Once Lisa from Blackpink wore this brand, everyone in Bangkok was also wearing it.” For a bit of everything, Sriluansoi will go to Chatuchak, one of the largest open-air markets in the world, to get everything from wild orchids to rare vintage clothes, or to simply “get day-drunk with a local artist.” In the Old Town, stalwart store Yupadee Vanich, “which must be around 100 years old,” sells handmade baskets and wicker furniture.
Arts and culture
For a bit of zen, Sriluansoi heads to Slow Combo in central Bangkok, a concrete brutalist building and “mindfulness playground” that celebrates healthy living with flower arranging, gong baths, yoga, and pickleball. “You walk out of the building with a good mind and healthy kombucha in your hand,” he says. The World on the Corner in the Old Town is a “beautiful bookstore in an old wooden house owned by a celebrated fashion photographer. It has all kinds of rare books and objects from all over the world, from Yemen, Ethiopia, Jaipur, and beyond.”
A version of this article originally appeared on Condé Nast Traveller.
