Dinner on the Chao Phraya, Bangkok

My brother came out to see us in Thailand with his gf recently, on their last night we stayed at the Riverside Hotel so we could take advantage of the evening dinner cruise down the Chao Phraya.

The dinner cruise offers two dinner services, buffet or a la carte. We opted for the a la carte and sat inside because we didn't trust the weather (you can always go upstairs on deck after you have eaten anyway). Both services are excellent value.

The food is good as well. Here above you can see we had a little chicken satay mix, some pork with garlic and black pepper, my signature Thai omelette which I have immediately with everything these days, some lager, and a fair bit of other stuff still on its way (Sutiya recommends all the fishy type stuff).

But the best bit about the cruise is the sight seeing upstairs on deck. You go up a rather plush looking staircase and find yourself a seat outside. Keen Thai language learners can practice their listening skills whilst somebody talks quietly over a microphone about the various landmarks that you pass by. Drunk heads like me can have a good drink, and everyone can just relax with the cool, Bangkok evening breeze......

It's a very nice, worthwhile and pleasant evening with your better halves, friends and relatives. Many of the buildings along the river are lit up really beautifully, and those familiar with Bangkok get a chance to test their Bangkok knowledge.

Which leads me on nicely to another Bangkok challenge.

Who was the reigning Thai King responsible for the construction of the well known Bangkok landmark in the picture above? The winner gets a scrummy prize, and forever celebrated on the Pirate Prizes side bar.

If you want any more details on the Riverside Cruise feel free to leave a comment or send a mail.

Comments

[Martyn]

Some great pictures with this one Ben, especially the top photo. I would unfortunately have to give this a miss as water has a habit of scaring the ass out of me. Looks a good night out though.

[Wotchit321]

Now thats a kick-arse dinner! Making me hungry.

[Ben Shingleton]

Nah just do what I do HD and have a couple of liveners beforehand. It is a tad scary when you sail under the huge bridges that run over the top of you.... I have no idea why?

Wotchit it is kick arse. Get on a plane (and then on the boat) fool.

[Wotchit321]

You paying?

[Ben Shingleton]

Cheques in the post.

[Mike]

Ben, did this one in 2007, great night out and fantastic night scenery. We sat outside (buffet) because being December it was fine.

As for your quiz-do you mean the bridge or the palace?

My guess is Rama I for the palace and the current King for the bridge.

[Ben Shingleton]

Whaahey two answers for 1 eh Mike! I was actually referring to the Palace, and you are correct! Your Prize will be awarded shortly, and your great knowledge of all things 'Thailand' immortalised forever on the Pirate Prize wall.... ;)

[ohdannyboy]

Don't get too exicted Mike. I'm still waiting for the coffee and sure Catherine is still waiting for Mario Maurer.

[Camille]

This looks like a real nice trip. What's the cost for it and do various operators offer this kind of trip? During all of my stays in BKK I never done this trip.
What is very impressing is to have dinner on top of the roof of Lebua State Tower, a lovely sight over BKK at night as well.

[Malcolm]

Ben, sorry I haven't been around to your site but my blog blurbs say you posted 2 months ago . I don't know whats the matter , guess I just need to stop over more often.
Great pictures and what a lovely meal you were having , fit for a King and I'm sure you Bro and GF were impressed. will have to do the cruise dinner sometime , but I don't know when ,as I hate BKK , just to many people , don't get me wrong ,I love people , just not all in one place ha ha .
We have seen a few snakes around our place , but think god no big liqards , the Gekos scare me enought . Thanks for all the great stories and , I find myself driving just like a Thai driver sometimes. point and go ha ha Malcolm

[Ben Shingleton]

Hey Camille it costs 150 baht to go on the boat for the a la carte, or the buffet was 800 per head. Well worth doing. Trip lasts for around 2-2.5 hours. There are a few that do the same thing but I recommend the Riverside! The Lebua State Tower sounds like a winner will defo investigate that thanks!

No probs Malcolm the food is really good next time you and CJ are forced into BKK it might help you to enjoy BKK more, and I know exactly what you mean - too many people is a real pain. If your house is like ours you probably have loads of big lizzies but they watch you, not the other way round haha! Thanks alot Malcolm PS here is my RSS cos thats probably whats wrong with the feed on ur site: http://feeds2.feedburner.com/thaipirate

[Taobao English site]

I'm loving everything in this post! Great outfits!

[Christian louboutin heels]

"I sought to show the changing balance of planes - from anti-ship torpedo and dive bombers in the early days when the main objective was destroying other ships - to fighter planes, whose main job was to defend against the kamikazes in the final months."

Max, Midway is pretty much the final act of anti-ship carrier warfare, right? If you follow Keegan and Churchill, it's the critical turning point in the Pacfic war - there's a wonderfully readable description of Midway in Keegan's The Price of Admiralty.

[True Religion Outlet]

Times and Roku is what thye ARE NOT doing by keeping old business models while inventing new ones. Sort of one hand not knowing what the other is doing. Roku rolls out new platforms but hasn't tackled the key question of selling more boxes. You need one for each TV. Why not discount multiple orders for people with more than one TV? Financial Times wants to make online access free or pay depending upon the frequency of use, but it continues to charge customers TWO fees if the customer subscribes to print AND wants an subscription online as well. Do the people in office A ever talk to the people in office B