Best restaurants and cafes in Soi Charoenkrung 44

Fred Meyer, the restaurateur whose portfolio includes Issaya Siamese Club, and Pizza Massilia, aims to turn this small lane into a food destination, starting with his new pad Thai parlor, Baan Phadthai. Chef Sujira “Aom” Pongmorn, who takes precedence over kitchen proceedings, reinvents the national noodle by using 18 homemade ingredients following a secret recipe from the eastern part of Thailand. Instead of shrimp stock, Chef Aom insists on using crab stock as the key ingredient. Thus, the pad Thai puu (pad Thai with crabmeat) offers a double whammy of mouth-watering crustacean goodness in every bite.

Homu, which means “house” in Japanese serves owner Pemika “Ying” Thanalumlerkkul’s take on the Japanese confections. Her version features soy pudding with honey and milk, and topped with nut powder and kuromitsu (black sugar syrup, B95) and Warabimochi jelly-like mochi dipped in nutty kinako powder (B190). Another must-try is the mizu shingen mochi (rain drop cake) made from Japanese-imported mineral water and salted sakura flower (B150).

A Stimulant by Sarnies captivated Bangkok’s caffeine devotees and Instagram-addicted caféhoppers with a small roaster-slash-coffee shop on Soi Sukhumvit 39 and a brief pop-up run at Dim Dim. Now, the café has come into full bloom, opening a full-scale establishment in historic Charoenkrung. Nestled deep inside Soi Charoenkrung 44, Sarnies takes up the space of two connecting shophouses (linked by an arch door on the second floor) that were once a boat repair shop.