The Sukhothai takes afternoon tea to a new level with a three-and-a-half hour buffet every Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 14:00 to 17:30. The focus is on chocolate, but there is a great variety of sweets and savouries on offer, as well as pots and pots of tea. It would be wise to skip lunch if you are planning a trip, as after this experience you’ll have eaten enough that you won’t want dinner either.

The Sukhothai hotel is located on South Sathorn Road, around ten minutes’ walk from Lumpini MRT. Afternoon tea is served in the lobby of the hotel – a cosy green room separated from reception by a series of arches with a rolex replica watches view of Sukhothai’s calming water feature, and you are welcomed in to a soothing sound of the khim, a traditional Southeast Asian instrument. It’s always busy so be sure to book ahead, the chocoholic crowd are a keen bunch.

Getting the most out of a buffet is all about tactics and making sure you leave enough room to try everything. The savoury table is overloaded with a great mix of dishes, the usual tea sandwiches, a selection of Japanese appetisers including sushi and some Thai bites, but where the skill of the kitchen shines through is in their own creations, such as a shot glass of tomato gazpacho with goat’s cheese and almond cream with smoked eggplant. Amongst all this are bowls of fresh fruit, including the best passion fruits I have ever tried. Whilst it was easy to fill up on Parma ham filled croissants, we were sat right next to the sweet section, so we paced ourselves knowing that the best was still to come.

The dessert table is a visual delight, with multi-coloured macaroons, cocoa dusted bonbons and huge cakes. Thankfully the Sukhothai thought ahead; like all good things their desserts come in small packages with enough variety to please everyone. The sorbets and ice-cream are displayed in large silver jars surrounded by ice; with prickly pear sorbet and chamomile ice-cream being a winning combination. The amount of choice and sugar makes you feel like a big kid again, you can’t help but try and fit another slice of triple chocolate cheesecake in. The in-house creations were a bit hit and miss on the sweet side, the bitter orange almond filo cigars were light and not overly sugary, whereas the chocolate chorizo had none of the expected chilli bite and chewing your way through a mouthful was an effort. Just when we thought we’d reached the end, warm currant scones with cream and cherry jam were served directly to our table.

The highlight of this buffet is the chocolate cart, where they will mix your own hot chocolate. No powdered stuff here, this is all chips, chunks and flavours from around the world; almond, dark orange, hazelnut praline from places like Mexico, Belgium and Uganda. I nibbled a few curls before selecting a combination of chilli and Papua New Guinea with a large dollop of whipped cream. It was worth coming just for that.

The buffet comes accompanied with tea from a famous shop in Paris: ‘Marriage Freres’. I picked a green tea mix called ‘Thé des Impressionistes’ light and floral with tiny yellow and purple flowers. If this bouquet is too much for you, the selection also includes Earl Grey and English Breakfast,best replica watches or even coffee to prevent you from collapsing into a chocolate coma. If you are looking for something cooler, the salon serves lemongrass water as an extra refresher.

Getting There:

by MRT Subway station Lumpini then 5 min walk to the Sukhothai Hotel

Address: 13/3 South Sathorn Road, Bangkok 10120 Tel: +66 (0)2 344 8888

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