South of Thanon Rama IV bars

The Barbican

9/4-5 Soi Thaniya east end of Thanon Silom. Stylishly modern fortress-like décor to match the name: dark woods, metal and undressed stone. With Guinness on tap and the financial pages posted above the urinals, it could almost be a smart City of London pub – until you look out of the windows onto the soi’s incongruous Japanese hostess bars. Good food, DJ sessions and happy hours Mon-Fri 5-7pm.

Hu’u

Ascot Building, 187 Thanon Sathorn Tai. Moody, elegant and dimly lit bar in Asian minimalist style, playing hot or cool sounds according to the time of night and serving excellent cocktails alongside snacks and tapas; be prepared for a stylish surprise at the toilet washbasins.

Irish Xchange

1/5 Thanon Convent, off the east end of Thanon Silom. Blarney Bangkok-style: a warm, relaxing Irish pub, tastefully done out in dark wood and familiar knick-knacks and packed with expats, especially on Fri night. Guinness and Kilkenny Bitter on tap, expensive food such as Irish stew and beef and Guinness pie, and a Rota of house bands.

Lucifer

76/1-3 Patpong 1. Popular dance club in the dark heart of Patpong, largely untouched by the sleaze around it. Done out with mosaics and stalactites alike a satanic grotto, with balconies to look down on the dance-floor action. Free entry, except Fri & Sat, B150 including one drink. Radio City, the interconnected bar downstairs, is only slightly less raucous with jumping live bands, including famous Elvis and Tom Jones impersonators, and tables out on the sweaty pavement.

Noriega’s

Soi 4 Thanon Silom. Unpretentious, good-time bar at the end of the alley, with nightly live bands playing jazz, blues and rock, salsa lessons followed by big Latin sounds on Sun evenings.

The Sky Bar & Distil

Floor 63, State Charoen Krung. Trill-seekers and view addicts shouldn’t miss forking out for an alfresco drink here, 275 meters above the city’s pavements – come around 6pm to enjoy the stunning panoramas in both the light and the dark. It’s standing only at The Sky Bar, a circular restaurant bar on the edge of the building with almost 360 views, but for the sunset itself, you’re better off on the outside terrace of Distill on the other side of the building (where bookings are accepted), which has a wider choice of drinks, charming service and huge couches to recline on.

Speed

Soi 4 Thanon Silom. Dance bar with an industrial feel in black and silver, popular at the weekend, playing hip-hop and R‘n’B. Fri & Sat B100 including one drink.

Tapas Bar

Soi 4 Thanon Silom. Vaguely Spanish-oriented, pricey bat (but no tapas) with Moorish-style décor, whose outside tables are probably the best spot for checking out the comings and goings on the soi; inside, music, ranges from house and hip-hop to Latin jazz and funk, often with an accompanying percussionist (Fri & Sat admission B100).

Tawandaeng German Brewery

462/61 Thanon Rama III. A taxi-ride south of Thanon Sathorn down Thanon Narathiwat Ratchanakharin – and best to book a table in advance – this vast all-rounder is well worth the effort. Under a huge dome, up to 1600 revelers enjoy good food and great micro-brewed beer every night, but the main attraction is the mercurial cabaret (non Sun), featuring Fong Naam, led by Bruce Gaston, who blend Thai classical and popular with Western styles of music.