Coffee Hangouts on Thong Lor

Coffee makes the world go round. Without it, we’d either still be in bed or half asleep at the kitchen counter or desk. But the art of drinking coffee is also an experience in itself, and best done in a place that either knows its coffee, has a nice ambiance, or a bit of both. And Thong Lor is just the most happening place to be when it comes to cool hangouts where you can spend your days drinking cups after cups of coffee while catching up on gossip or working a deadline. With these places, we guarantee you’ll end up going back for more.

Tiny Cup Cafe

With walls lined with little fancy tea cups and colourful baked scones that come in rose, chocolate, earl grey and Hokkaido flavours, you’d think this was a place to grab a nice pot of tea. And it is. As well as brunch. But the coffee is also on point too, with the usual and strong selection: Americano, Latte, Espresso, Cappuccino and an artisanal, earthy cold brew coffee.

Our favourite though had to be the Sea Salt Caramel Latte, which came on a bed of sea salt and a mint leaf on top. So delicious! The atmosphere is stellar and the WiFi connection good, so once you enter this establishment, you won’t want to leave. Interweave your coffee with healthy bites, from avocado-inspired brunch sets to green smoothie bowls and fresh juices. Downstairs is pretty tiny so we highly recommend exploring upstairs if you’ll be spending more than just one cup.

Open daily from 7am–6pm. Located between Thong Lor 21 – 23, Sukhumvit 55.

Pacamara Boutique Coffee Roasters

Nestled deep in Thong Lor Soi 25, when you get there you almost feel like you’re in a super secluded location. We genuinely felt like we were in the middle of a dessert, far away from civilisation. But with nine coffee stores nationally, this Thai coffee roaster knows its coffee like no other. The name pacamara is actually a sub-species of Arabica coffee; they get very scientific like that. Downstairs feels like a coffee lab as there are baristas and coffee sommeliers weighing up coffee and tasting freshly dripped brews. You can join them in tasting the fruits of their labour. There is also a training room where courses are taught for baristas, sommeliers and coffee enthusiasts.

Upstairs is a super luxurious coffee hangout, with clean walls adorned with beautiful artwork; scattered around the room you’ll find magazines to read from, lemon infused water and hanging plants that add a nice touch. On this visit we tried a coffee the sommelier had just sourced from Ethiopia: Wild Geisha. If you’re not looking for anything too fancy for the palate, the house blend will do. The whole experience felt like we were on some wine retreat. NB: This is also a brilliant brunching and working spot.

Open daily, 9am–Midnights. Located on Thong Lor 25, Sukhumvit 55.

The COMMONS.

In terms of hangout spots on Thong Lor, there’s nowhere more converge than at The COMMONS. And it’s good to know there are a couple of places in the four-floor establishment where you can grab a decent cup. The place is home to Roots Coffee, an advocate for “From Farm To Cup” to enable the customer to see where their coffee actually comes from in Thailand.

The team is dedicated to bringing out the magic in coffee and doing something altogether different. We tried the Orange Tonic and Cocoa Nib coffee and can say both were pleasantly surprising. Roots goes for a more coffee bar vibe with counters set around the baristas so if you’re looking for somewhere to sit down and work or grab a simultaneous bite, we recommend heading upstairs to Roast, one of the many places in Bangkok Roots supplies its coffee to.

Roast has an ongoing farmer’s project collaboration with Roots, where it features the beans from the local farmers that Roots are working with. This changes every few months. Currently, Roast is featuring the beans from a second generation-farmer called Ata from Northern Thailand. He is a coffee farmer who’s always experimenting with different techniques to try and improve the quality of his coffee quality. Ata’s coffee boasts beautiful notes of prunes with a syrupy texture and a cotton candy-like aftertaste.

Roots and Roast are open daily from 8am-9pm. Located on Thong Lor Soi 17, Sukhumvit 55.

Patom

Patom is an oasis of green and organic living and a lovely spot to spend an entire day, working, eating, drinking, chilling in the garden or buying organic and locally sourced skincare and beauty products. The coffee is gorgeous too and the signature cups change with the seasons, depending on which coffee farmers they are putting in the spotlight. Right now, we’re all about the Signature Coconut Coffee, made with hand-squeezed organic coconut cream and organic coffee from Chiang Dao. It comes with ice and you sip it up through a lemongrass straw. Delicious!

Patom is open daily from 9am–6pm. Located on Thong Lor 23, Sukhumvit 55.

The MET Café

The restaurant and coffee shop is neo-classical Italian themed and doubles up as a clothing store upstairs. The walls are lined with modern takes on renaissance art and the floors lined with geometric patterns that give the place a classic and cosy feel. Get comfortable on vivid red sofa chairs and enjoy what the extensive menu has to offer: a mix of Thai and comfort food at its greatest.

The Six Hour Onion Soup is to die for. But, we’re here for coffee and we must say the Tiramisu Affogato is the best. It comes in a martini glass and uses the restaurant’s homemade tiramisu ice-cream. And it’ll leave you with a seriously sweet buzz. We are totally digging the vibes at The MET Café and the desserts are also heavenly.

The MET Café is open Tuesday–Sunday from 11:30am–10:30pm.