| Bangkok Marriott Hotel The Surawongse | |
|---|---|
โรงแรม แบงค็อก แมริออท เดอะ สุรวงศ์ | |
 Logo | |
 Interactive map of Bangkok Marriott Hotel The Surawongse | |
| Hotel chain | Marriott Hotels & Resorts |
| General information | |
| Type | Hotel |
| Classification |  |
| Location | 262Surawong Road, Si Phraya, Bang Rak district, Bangkok, Thailand |
| Coordinates | 13°43′39″N100°31′20″E / 13.72750°N 100.52222°E /13.72750; 100.52222 |
| Opening | 3 April 2018 (2018-04-03) |
| Owner | Asset World Corporation |
| Technical details | |
| Floor count | 32 |
| Other information | |
| Number of rooms | 197 |
| Number of suites | 106 |
| Number of restaurants | 2 |
| Number of bars | 1 |
| Website | |
| Official website | |
TheBangkok Marriott Hotel The Surawongse (Thai:โรงแรม แบงค็อก แมริออท เดอะ สุรวงศ์) is a hotel inBangkok, Thailand, that is part of theMarriott Hotels & Resorts brand. Owned byAsset World Corporation, thefive-star hotel opened in 2018. The 32-floor building has 197 rooms and 106 suites. For hosting events, the hotel has two reception venues and 14 banquet spaces. The hotel has aninfinity pool, a gym, and a spa.
The Surawongse has two restaurants and a bar. The third-floor Praya Kitchen, a buffet withThai cuisine as the focal point, serves western dishes,sushi, and seafood. The 32nd-floor Yào Restaurant servesShanghai cuisine,dim sum, andCantonese delicacies. The 33rd-floor Yào Rooftop Bar serves Chinese snacks, bar food, and Chinese-inspired cocktails. The hotel has two lounges: the M Club Lounge is for customers staying in certain suites, while the Lobby Lounge servestea.
Built in 1957, the Surawongse House influenced the design of Bangkok Marriott Hotel The Surawongse, specifically in the hotel's rooms, lobby, andcommon area. The hotel showcases various types of art pieces including textiles,murals, and sculptures fromKhīan Yimsiri [Wikidata].[1] The Surawongse commenced operations on 3 April 2018.[2] The 32-story hotel is afive-star hotel.[2][3] The Surawongse in 2019 hosted "Michelin Star Revelation Thailand", an event during which theMichelin Guide announced which restaurants would be granted stars.[4] The hotel's owner isAsset World Corporation (AWC).[5] Alongside five other AWC hotels, it was temporarily shut for a period in 2020 owing to theCOVID-19 pandemic in Thailand.[6]
Located in a low-key area of downtown Bangkok onSurawong Road, the Surawongse is situated opposite theNeilson Hays Library and theBritish Club.[7] It is near thebusiness districts ofSathon andSi Lom.[3] It is midway betweenSukhumvit Road, a busy road, andChao Phraya River's historical attractions.[7][8] Cultural landmarks near the hotel are theBangkok Folk Museum, theSri Maha Mariamman Temple, and Charoen Krung Soi 32'sstreet art. Customers can ask for and receive from the hotel a small map showing key attractions in the area.[9] The Surawongse provides customers transportation via van to theSala Daeng BTS station, which is a 15-minute walk from the hotel.[2][7] The Surawongse is a 40-minute taxi ride away from both of Bangkok's international airports,Don Mueang International Airport andSuvarnabhumi Airport.[7]
There are 197 rooms and 106 suites that are designed like apartments.[9] It hasaccessible rooms modified to accommodatedisabled guests.[7] The Surawongse's rooms have windows that span from the ceiling to the floor. They are decorated with bronze sculptures and glass panels ornamented with village settings.[7] The walls of the rooms and the doors of the glass showers feature traditional Thai art. Each restroom has marble finishes and is equipped with a shower with rain shower heads and abathtub.[9] The hotel's suites are between one and three bedrooms. Each suite has a sitting space surrounding a circular table, awalk-in closet, awashing machine, and a tiny kitchen.[7] The one-bedroom suites are sufficient for one or two people, while the larger suites are suitable for families.[9] Tom Vater ofThe Daily Telegraph found the rooms to be too tight but praised the furniture, saying it was "in top condition, a little understated, minimalistic and quietly luxurious, making for an adult hotel experience".[7]Lifestyle Asia reviewer Pearl Yan praised the room design, writing, "Wooden floors and earth-toned furniture are in harmony with the white ceiling and light-coloured pieces, creating open, airy spaces that are calming, uncluttered and filled with natural light."[9]
The Surawongse has two restaurants: Praya Kitchen, a buffet that primarily servesThai cuisine, and Yào Restaurant, a venue that servesShanghai andCantonese cuisine.[7] The hotel's Yào Rooftop Bar serves cocktails featuring Chinese influences and Chinese appetizer dishes.[10]
The third-floor Praya Kitchen is abuffet that serves lunch and dinner.[11] The name alludes toChao Phraya River and evokes "senior Thai societal rank".[12] WithThai cuisine as the focal point, it offers Thaistreet food and also servessushi, westerncomfort food, and desserts.[7][9] The restaurant's founding chef, Attapol "X" Naito Thangthong, relied on his grandmother's recipes to make the Thai dishes.[13] Praya Kitchen serves dishes from the four Thai regions: northern, north-eastern, central, and southern.[14] The restaurant has "more recent-but-forgotten kitsch classics" such as "Gai Ob Phu Kao Fai", which means "Chicken Volcano".[13] Drenched inMekhong whiskey, arotisserie chicken is shown on the table in a scene thatBK Magazine critic Kankanok Wichiantanon said hearkens back to "Thaifine dining of yesteryear".[13]Khanom chin gaeng kua, another classic Thai dish, hasrice noodles, fish curry, andMaine lobsters.[15]
Praya Kitchen has areas where customers can bring seafood, vegetable, and meat dishes to be cooked in front of them in a sizzlingwok.[9] The restaurant's seafood offerings consist ofscallops fromHokkaido,mussels,oysters, crabs,rock lobsters, andtiger prawns.[9][15] Its meat options include "dry-aged Thaisirloin,Kurobuta pork, and New Zealand lamb". TheBangkok Post's Vanniya Sriangura opined that the most premium seafood selection was the river prawn, while the most premium meat selection was the Australianwagyurib eye steak. She said the high demand caused both to be rapidly depleted.[15] The restaurant's western dishes includefoie gras andlobster bisque, which Sriangura praised. Dishes from Yào Restaurant, another hotel eatery, are featured in Praya Kitchen. Sriangura lauded thexiao long bao andPeking duck dishes but criticised the barbecued pork for being excessively sweet and missing the scorched smell.[15]The Daily Telegraph's Tom Vater praised three dishes:pandanus leaf-wrapped chicken;som tam, a papaya salad dish; and mangocheesecake.[7]
The restaurant's cocktails use Thai fruits. Examples are the "Asia Pacific Cooler", avodka drink containingjasmine water blended withlycheepurée andliqueur, and the "Pa-N Da-N", an unagedcachaça drink containing a mixture ofhoney,coconut, andpineapple.[13] As to its decor, the restaurant features immense murals depicting the traditional Thai way of living in the royal court and in the country.[7] Made of wood, the works are reproductions sourced from religious stories told in temple murals.[13][16] Wichiantanon, theBK Magazine reviewer, said the murals "lend the vast open space a genuine sense of occasion" and praised the "easy-flowing music" the restaurant put on.[13] Sriangura, theBangkok Post reviewer, praised the restaurant's design of grouping the primary food stations in the venue's centre, which allowed customers to efficiently access the food.[15]
The 32nd-floor Yào Restaurant servesShanghai cuisine,dim sum, andCantonese delicacies.[7][9] InMandarin, Yào (Chinese:耀) means "glory".[17][18] The name is showcased through thebrass sculptures and intricate Chinese adornments.[17] Yào's furnishings follow "chang sip mo", a Thai concept meaning "traditional craftsmanship". Examples are elaborate pagodas and works of art that mimicHenry Moore.[10][19] The restaurant evokes Shanghai in the 1930s through its polished metalwork architecture.[7] Through furnishings in dim and alluring shades, it is influenced by present-day Shanghai.[17] Noel Maclean of theBangkok Post said there are "vivid Shanghaineseart deco influences" including the "bulbous teardrop chandeliers" and the ceramics imprinted withkoi as well as napkins styled into wave formations. Maclean concluded, "The overall ambiance is that of internet age-updated halcyon-era Shanghai chic".[19] Additional Chinese decorations arefolding screens andhand-held fans.[19] Yào has five rooms where guests can dine in private. The largest room has a 20-person occupancy.[17] Yào offersChinese fortune sticks for customers to try to select which tea to drink in a custom the restaurant named "des-tea-ny".[7][19]
Chinese chefs oversee the cooks who prepare the food in the restaurant's kitchen.[17] Yào serves a breakfast buffet with Asian food likecongee andEnglish breakfast options in conjunction with cereal, fruit, juice,lunch meat, and cheese.[7] The dim sum lunch includeshar gow andsiu mai, whichTime Out reviewer Phavitch Theeraphong called "tasty and sizeable".[17] Another dim sum dish,xiaolongbao, is served in both the usual steamed way as well as in a fried way. According to Theeraphong, the fried xiaolongbao is a Shanghainese delicacy that is uncommon and difficult to find in other places and is perfectly complemented by Yào's housemadechili sauce.[17] TheBangkok Post critic Noel Maclean lauded the dim sum dishes to be "outstanding for their size, firmness and crystal clear flavours".[19] For the afternoon tea, the restaurant serves both savory dishes and desserts. The savory dishes includeturnip cake that ispan fried and drenched in XO Sauce, xiao long bao, shrimp siu mai, cheesedumplings that aredeep fried and contain crab, fish dumplings that are pan fried and contain greenchives, andsakesoy sauce-drenched babyabalone. The desserts includebird nest,custardpuff pastry,macaron made ofjujube, andsago containingcantaloupe andcoconut milk.[20][21]
The dinner dishes include a dish with friedgreen beans andtofu; Chinese bites; and lobster drenched inXO sauce made ofprawn andoolong. Theeraphong said of the restaurant, "Yao may not wow you with eye-popping, elaborately presented dishes, but it does offer everything you would want for a decent Chinese meal."[17]Lifestyle Asia critic Pearl Yan praised three dishes:mushroom soup containingtofu in the form of a flower, "steamed porkdumpling inoolong tea soup"; andhand-pulled noodles.[9] When customers choose the hand-pulled noodles, the chef arrives in front of them to demonstrate the noodle pulling.[17]
The 33rd-floor Yào Rooftop Bar seats 160 people and occupies two floors.[22][23] It gives customers a panoramic view of their surroundings as they doal fresco dining.[7][8][24] Yào Rooftop Bar makes use of numerous glass screens so the view is unobstructed.[18] Visitors can see theChao Phraya River,tower blocks, and Old Town.[10] TheBangkok Post reviewer Noel Maclean described the bar as "two-tier, multi-level rock garden-like".[19] The bar has a nostalgic Chinese style and its design is heavily shaped by contemporary Shanghainese style.[7][22] The venue has circular tables adorned with flame-free candles andminiature orange trees, as well as chairs containing frames etched in the Chinese style.[22] Evoking aroof garden, it has numerous potted plants placed around the venue.[23] The bar largely plays contemporary Chinese music and periodically plays traditional tunes.[10]
The bar's food and drinks are prepared by Yào Restaurant.[18] It has Chinese snacks, bar food, and Chinese-inspired cocktails.[9][10] The cocktail "Shanghai, City Upon Sea", is a dark purple drink containingbutterfly pea flower, which is the source of the drink's colour.[19] The purple colour honours the Shanghai TV towerOriental Pearl Tower, which is bathed in a purple hue after dark.[22] The "Chinese Highball" is a "punchy and potent" cocktail made withmango andbourbon, while the Shanghai Swings is a cocktail with a banana taste.[10] The bar's menu has tinier food items than the Yào restaurant. It serves agravy-drenched noodle dish containing spicy minced pork. Another dish isfried chicken made in theSichuan way, which has a blend of "sweet, salty, hot and sour" flavours.[10]
The hotel has two lounges: the M Club Lounge and the Lobby Lounge. The M Club Lounge is available for only residents of four suite types: one-bedroom, Executive, Vice Presidential, and Presidential. It serves a small breakfast buffet containing cereal, fruit, hot plates, andà la carte selections. In the evening, it offerscanapé andcocktails.Lifestyle Asia critic Pearl Yan lauded the lounge's design, calling it "a gorgeously decked-out space" replete with "stylish seating and lush carpets". Theground floor Lobby Lounge offers two kinds oftea options in the afternoon: traditional Thai and Western. Yan, theLifestyle Asia reviewer, found the tea selections to be "scrumptious and visually appealing". She praised the lounge's decor for "espous[ing] refinement and timeless luxury over modern Thai-inspired design".[9]
The Surawongse has a tinyinfinity pool and a gym that is openaround the clock.The Daily Telegraph said the gym was large and gave customers an excellent view of the surroundings.[7] Named the Quan Spa, the hotel's spa uses traditional Thai techniques to attend to customers.[9][25] Designed to easemuscle tension and make people feel better, one spa option isMuay Thai-themed.[9] There are four "treatment rooms" in the spa, of which one fits two people. The hotel has a club for children, though there is no staff supervision for the area. There is a children's pool that is connected to the larger pool.[7]
The hotel allocated 1,555 square metres (16,740 sq ft) to hosting events.[26] A 1,155-square-metre (12,430 sq ft) part of the hotel has two reception venues, 14 banquet spaces, and an exterior courtyard.[27]