Balzac

Honoré de Balzac (the great French novelist and playwright’s name – steady now) reportedly drank up to 50 cups of coffee a day and died partly because of it. This is not a health advisory. It is a statement of values.

In honour of Honoré, Balzac Bangkok on Charoen Krung takes both coffee and culture very seriously.

Here you’ll find three floors of books, art and a cafe. There’s also a gallery. A small cinema. A vinyl corner. The list goes on. Wednesday film nights bundle a movie, popcorn, a sandwich and a drink for B299. Owner Zac Chango Favre’s focus on Thai French literary exchange gives the place real intellectual ambition and the design holds its own. Warm, layered; the kind of interior that makes you stay for a film you did not plan to watch. Or maybe that was just us.

The coffee list runs classic: espresso, allongé, crème, cappuccino, plus an orange espresso for the citrusly curious. If you want something cold, the homemade citronnade and diabolo menthe – mint cordial with sparkling water – lean confidently French. Tea drinkers get to enjoy Mariage Frères’ Marco Polo blend.

The apple pie and croque monsieur are both B150, made in what Zac calls ‘not exactly gastronomic but like something your grandmother would make’ – which, frankly, is the correct standard for a croque monsieur. The daily tarts rotate. The mousse au chocolat does not. Order it.

43/357 Charoen Krung Rd, Si Phraya, Bang Rak. Closed Mon. Tue 2pm-6.30pm, Wed-Sun 10am-6.30pm