THE DIPLOMAT BAR – STAY COOL IN SPLENDID ISOLATION

Once in a while you get downtown for that important business meeting or to greet a friend or associate staying at the Conrad Hotel, and you need a place to hang and discuss the deal or to just wash away the day with a cold one, and get ready for the evening ahead.

For such things the Dilpomat Bar at the Conrad Hotel was designed. Splendid in its isolation, it is a beautifully lit, warmly decorated, sprawling room with suitable nooks and crannies for couples, yet cool and contemporary with comfort as the underlying theme for what is best described as a very classy cocktail bar ambience.

And it really does sit at the heart of the diplomatic world in Bangkok given that it is within walking distance of the American, Swiss, UK and Vietnam embassies to name but a few. Not that far away and left of the Wireless Road hotel on Sathorn are the Australian, German and French embassies, so the name chosen is not that surprising once you twig.

No ambassadors in evidence while we were in though, but the cute drinks and snacks menu certainly suggest Their Eminences do drop by once in a while.

A glass of Moet Chandon champers will set you back 1,350 baht a glass or 6,500 baht a bottle, while a splash of the Laurent Perrier Brut is also 1,350 a glass and 6,500 baht plus plus a bottle. The Australian version is the Jean Pierre Brut which drops to a much more affordable 320 a glass and 1500 a bottle. The maitre de assured me you get five glasses from a bottle of bubbly, so you do the math if you are undecided at your next birthday party – a glass or the whole hog?

They do beer of course, but who could pass up on a snifter of wine when they have taken so much trouble?

The lovely NSW Chardonnay is 340 a glass, 600 a double glass and 1,700 a bottle while the Oz 2003 Shiraz from the lower Hunter Valley is also 340 a glass, 600 a double and 1,700 by the bottle. The Chilean Sauvignon Blanc is 300 baht a glass and 1,500 baht a bottle and the Chilean Merlot is only 240 baht a glass, 430 a double and 1,200 baht by the bottle.

Given the occasion and budgets we plumped for the Chilean Merlot and very tasty a bottle or two turned out to be too. Before long though, as we waited for the jazz singer to arrive, we noticed a gentle churning in the ‘engine room’ suggesting we might need something to soak up all this fine wine, so got stuck in to the small but impressive snacks menu.

Take your pick Mr Ambassador! Splendid Lousiana Cajun Rolls, Calamares Frito, California Rolls with wasabe, Tiger Prawn Spring Rolls with Sichuan vegetables, all for 250 baht a serving. Kick up a diplomatic rung and you can spoil the Foreign Minister should he drop by with Oysters Thermidor with English mustard and Gruyere cheese or just three raw oysters courtesy of the cool, clean Australian seas (450 baht).

Then there is the Goose Liver terrine, ravioli and pan seared to perfection (600 baht). Or the Lobster Tmpura with wasabe mayonnaise (500 baht), and to round it off, the Italian Cold Cut selection (400 baht) which kicked off our five-star snacking session.
The wine got us a bit carried away it has to be said, and soon we had nice little spread going. And how well the food complimented the wine!

A warm glow had arrested us by the time the singer Linda Niles arrived at 9 pm with her band of accomplished players – Roddel on piano, Nilo on drums, Jun on guitar, Suzuki on saxophone and Lito on bass. Spot the odd man in! But Suzuki from Japan of course is a noted jazz musician at home and has recently switched to tenor sax. But he still gives those familiar Bebop lines the treatment every night and is a very sweet addition to this line up, resident at the Diplomat for more than two years, or since it opened, which is when I first saw them.

The layout of the room has been changed since my last visit and the ‘stage’ is set off towards the entrance now where the musicians are more visible to almost everyone in the room, and you can get a better idea from the lobby just what’s going on in there.

Ms Niles is an accomplished singer from Montreal and after 20 years in the business and a few albums later, knows how to deliver a song and pace the evening’s entertainment with classy ballads and tasty jazz standards.

Nearly a dozen very elegant young ladies provide the immaculate service and they know their stuff – even that they have Nicaraguan and Cuban cigars on offer and that the one worth really worth splashing out on is the 1993 vintage Nicaraguan Churchill! They do Cuban Robustos, Coronas and Bolivar Royals too and you might be pleased to know you can smoke away in the bar with no tut-tutting.

You might also be pleased to know that there is High Tea and Chocolate from 2:30 pm until 5 pm every Saturday and Sunday at 350 baht plus plus a head, with classic sandwiches, cakes, scones and the like to pig out on.

The bar opens from 12 noon with a Happy Hour from 4-6 pm when you can get one for one.

The music gets underway 7:45 pm Tuesday through Fridays and from 9:45 pm Mondays and Saturdays.

DIPLOMAT BAR
Conrad Hotel
All Seasons Place
87 Wireless Road.
Manager: Vithiyaporn Pawitvanich
02 690 9244