7 Cool Places on Phra Athit Road

With an ornate European facade leading into a modern room with brushed concrete floors and a bar stocking premium beers like Hoegaarden and Duvel, Good Story is a chic café and restaurant, perfect for daytime lounging on their plush sofas, or in the evening, listening to some live music while sampling their tasty Thai menu. It’s a nice spot for an energising iced coffee throughout the day but gets busiest around evening time.

A bohemian hang out for night owls who want more from a live band than simple pop music covers, Jazz Happens is perhaps the most famous bar on Phra Atit Road. It was set up by a group of lecturers from the nearby Silapakorn University to provide their students somewhere to play and listen to quality jazz music.

This cheap and cheerful bar offers a more personal experience than the bigger jazz clubs scattered around Bangkok. The bar opens from around 7pm but it starts to get busy around 10pm, when the band will be in full swing. There's a simple food menu and seating outside.

One of the most enjoyable elements of Phra Atit Road is the fact that it still feels like a genuine Thai neighbourhood, and this is best experienced at the always-busy local restaurant called Khun Deng Guay Jub Yuan – roughly translated to Mrs Red’s Flat Noodles.

It’s rare to find such an eclectic mix of customers, with office ladies sitting next to tattooed backpackers, but it’s a testament to the rich pork soup and firm white noodles that the queue is out the door at peak times. The price is also a firm favourite, as you can get a bowl of noodle soup and a drink for only 50 baht. Khun Deng Guay Jub Yuan Restaurant is hot, hectic, and a great experience for anyone who wants to eat a genuine Thai lunch in Bangkok.

Whoever said first impressions count had obviously never been to Phra Atit Road because the most run-down restaurant on the whole strip is also one of the most delicious. Roti Mataba has a reputation that spans the whole of Bangkok, and yet the hand-painted sign, well-worn kitchen and absolute lack of style make it seem like a place to avoid. Thankfully, this well-established shophouse continues to prosper thanks to word-of-mouth praise from all the inquisitive souls who step inside to order delicious curries and flavoured roti bread, including the namesake mataba (fried and folded roti bread with filling inside).

There's limited seating upstairs and a few tables and stools on the pavement outside, but if you're only having a roti, take your rich, flavoured bread to the park over the road and enjoy your snack with the Chao Phraya River flowing in the background.

As the name suggests, Veggie Veggie is the place to come when you’re in the mood for something nutritious and delicious. They offer a page full of salads with meat and vegetarian options, and a range of dressings. Portions are mountainous; the chicken salad with Japanese vinaigrette (salad dressings are served in a separate bowl) is a real belly filler, and at 100 baht it helps you to keep a healthy budget, too.

There are pictures showing the rows of fresh produce grown at their farm, and each salad comes with a range of colours, tastes and flavours: pumpkin, corn, onion and many different kinds of lettuce leaves. Veggie Veggie also produces its own range of juices; lemongrass and butterfly pea juice are popular. The basic café-style interior is clean, and there’s not much in the way of ambience here, but if it’s a salad you want, this is the place to come.

The iconic fort and quaint park surrounding it form a beautiful area in which to relax, soak up the atmosphere, and enjoy the river vistas of the Chao Phraya River in the background. Many tourists like to spread out on the lawn in the shade of a tree while local children run and play and old ladies stop to chat about the weather on one of the many benches.

As if the variety of cafés, bars and restaurants wasn’t enough, Santichaiprakan Park and Phra Sumen Fort on Phra Atit Road offer another major draw to those who grow weary of the concrete jungle and want to feel some grass underfoot. Phra Sumen Fort also makes a great setting for photographers, and it's one of only 2 remaining forts that were originally built to protect the Grand Palace nearby.