Bangkok: Ce La Vi (former Ku De Ta, now The Club at KOI)

Update: Ce La Vi is now The Club at KOI (yes, the KOI that used to be in Sukhumvit )

Ce La Vi is a much-hyped, nightlife concept, which hit Bangkok a couple of years ago. Restaurants? Bars? A nightclub? Ce La Vi aims to cater to all your needs for an all-nighter. It sounded promising indeed, so AC and I took a taxi down to Silom to check out, what the buzz was all about.

Unfortunately, the nightclub, which is supposed to be the main attraction, was closed, but the bar was open, so we sat down and ordered cocktails. We were there on a weekday, but the bar was quite full, and the Japanese Izakaya restaurant, which we could see from our seats in the bar, also looked busy.

The other people in the bar that night were a funny mix of beautiful Eastern European girls with expensive handbags, hipster Thais and the occasional lonely businessman. As a matter of fact, the occasional lonely businessman was sitting right next to us in the bar, so we couldn’t help noticing, when the staff brought him a slice of cake, while singing “happy birthday”. Imagine having to celebrate your birthday in these surroundings all by yourself. The occasional lonely businessman quickly gobbled up his cake and then left the bar. It was so sad.

We ordered another round, and yet another round. I had expected Ce La Vi to be all about people watching, but turned out it was also perfect for getting vodka-tipsy, sharing old stories with a good friend.

I have also been to Cé La Vi in Hong Kong. Not sure if it is part of the same chain as the Ce La Vi in Bangkok?

My blog about Bangkok