Silom Bangkok: a guide to the city's business district

Silom Bangkok is the city's old financial district, and it still fills with office workers on weekdays. That is its secret: the lunch stalls, the massage shops, the cheap and excellent restaurants all exist to serve the people who work here, and visitors get to share. After dark it turns into something else again, with Patpong's night market and the gay bars of Soi 2 and Soi 4. Silom Road runs from Rama IV at the Lumphini Park end down to the river at Charoen Krung.

Lumphini Park

Lumphini Park is at the top of Silom Road and is the city's central park: a large lake, pedal boats, shaded paths, outdoor gyms, and large monitor lizards that walk the lawns and swim the lake. Early mornings bring tai chi groups and runners; evenings bring aerobics classes at the gates. It is free. The park sits between MRT Si Lom and MRT Lumphini, and the BTS Sala Daeng exit is a short walk from the Silom gate.

Eating in Silom

Silom's food is at its best at lunchtime on a weekday. Convent Road and Soi Sala Daeng, just off the park end, have stalls and shophouses selling noodles, grilled chicken, som tam and rice dishes to office crowds. Silom Soi 10 has a cluster of food stalls under shade. Further down, the lane between Silom and Surawong called Soi Thaniya is Japanese, with ramen and izakaya for the Japanese business community.

The area around [Sri Mariamman Temple](/?q=Sri Mariamman) at the Pan Road junction (the Hindu temple locals call Wat Khaek) has South Indian vegetarian restaurants and sweet shops. Silom Soi 20 holds a small morning market. The street food neighbourhoods post covers the lunch circuit in more detail.

Patpong and the night market

Patpong is two short lanes between Silom and Surawong. By day it is nothing; by night a market fills the lane with stalls selling clothes, bags and souvenirs, and the go-go bars open on either side. Haggle hard at the stalls and ignore the touts offering shows upstairs. The Patpong Museum, a small private museum on the history of the area, is a surprisingly good hour. Walk through, buy what you want, and move on.

Silom Soi 2 and Soi 4

Two lanes on the park side of Patpong hold Bangkok's main gay nightlife. [Silom Soi 4](/?q=Silom Soi 4) is a short pedestrian lane of bars with tables outside, friendly to everyone and good for an early evening drink. Silom Soi 2 next to it is clubs that go late. The crowd is mixed, local and international, and the scene is open and easy. The LGBTQ nightlife post covers it properly.

Down the road: Chong Nonsi to the river

Below Sala Daeng, Silom becomes office towers, with Silom Complex mall at the station and the long run of banks. At Chong Nonsi, the King Power Mahanakhon tower with its skywalk marks the Sathorn border; see the Sathorn guide. The Surasak end has the Neilson Hays Library on Surawong, a colonial-era building with a cafe, and a cluster of old-style Bangkok restaurants. Silom finally meets Charoen Krung near Saphan Taksin and the river, where the Charoen Krung guide takes over.

Getting there

[Sala Daeng](/?q=Sala Daeng) on the BTS Silom line and Si Lom on the MRT Blue Line are linked by walkway and are the main stops for the park end. Chong Nonsi and Surasak BTS cover the middle; Saphan Taksin BTS and Sathorn pier (Central Pier) on the Chao Phraya Express Boat cover the river end. The BTS Silom line connects to the Sukhumvit line at Siam, two stops from Sala Daeng. Silom Road is slow in the evening peak, so walk or take the train rather than a taxi for short trips along it.