Destinations

From Hors d’oeuvres, with delicious wine and meatballs at the M Club Lounge; to BBQ free range pork ribs with ground roasted rice and spicy tamarind glaze at Siam Tea Room; or Indian cuisine and a variety of oyster at Goji Kitchen’s highly popular dinner buffet – a stay at Bangkok Marriott Marquis Queen’s Park is first and foremost a fabulous food experience. The F&B adventures will therefore guide us through this review of what is downtown Bangkok’s largest hotel.

The hotel that was taken over and refurbished by the Marriott Marquis brand in 2017, boasts two club lounges (one in each wing) and vast meeting facilities, in addition to the impressive number of keys: 1,360 (in fact at its opening Marriott Hotel’s largest property in the Asia Pacific)!

Its location is excellent – not least as it has its own convenient “back door” entrance via the adjacent park, in close vicinity of Phrom Phong BTS station and its shopping and dining destinations Emporium as well as EMQuartier. The park itself also allows relaxation, while the hotel also has a rooftop swimming pool (with bar) overlooking the greenery.

Bangkok Marriott Marquis Queen’s Park: The Lobby Lounge

Otherwise, the impressive and wide lobby with its main entrance faces the side street (“soi”) Sukhumvit 22. This lobby comes in earth tones, chromed details, glass-enclosed wooden floor-to-ceiling pillars, ample seating choices as well as multiple, large chandeliers. A grand piano serves the purpose of live piano entertaining afternoon tea guests. Afternoon tea set comes with (Baht 1,490++ for two) or without sparkling wine, including finger sandwiches, scones with
home-made jams, Devonshire clotted cream, artisan pastries, English fruit cake, macaron and éclair. This can be paired with special tea blends from Dilmah or coffee.

The Lobby Lounge menu features a mix of teas from the Dilmah Silver Jubilee Gourmet Range and Watte Series and T Series. One can also opt for a Scone platter and tea pot, or Sake set.

In this bespoke setting guests can also enjoy a wide selection of alcoholic drinks, paired with not only snacks but also meals; such as cheese platter, house smoked salmon and various Thai dishes!

Three examples of bubbly-inspired cocktails from the menu are:
Breakfast Bellini (Beefeater gin, orange marmalade, freshly squeezed lime juice, sparkling wine), Spiced mango passion smash (Absolut vodka, mango purée, passion fruit, mint leaves, chili, freshly squeezed lime juice, sparkling wine) and ROUGE 22 (Beefeater gin, Giffard elderflower syrup, raspberry, rosella juice, ginger, fresh squeezed lime juice, sparkling wine).

The lobby also hosts a wide concierge desk to help guests find their ways, manage the luggage and advise guests in general about the hotel, Bangkok and any transport needs.

Check-in and check-out takes place further inside in low-rise discreet and quiet reception lounges, which has black and white classic interiors and grey-white floor tiles.

On the guest floor it is somewhat amusing to find a sort of extra bed in the corridor – but this is of course the sort of Thai style sala daybed with cushions often found in the country. Here it can serve a purpose as a place to sit down and wait for fellow friends staying in other guest rooms.

The guest room comes with a blonde wooden door and muted tones of brown and green, including a patterned wall carpet. There is a built-in large TV screen with textile cappuccino-hued wallpaper and a Thai art inscription. A fruit basket welcomes on a round glass counter coffee table, paired with an office chair. Next to the window is a second lower table with a designer armchair. Bedside are oblong silk lampshades with a touch of classic. The bed is most comfortable, and has a green textile headboard.

Slide doors with tinted glass separates the bedroom from the bathroom, which has a light brown veined marble sink.

In-room amenities include Dilmah jasmine green tea, while for a latte or any other coffee heading to the M Club Lounge is really convenient – if one has booked club lounge access – where one can also relax or work in comfort.

There are also excellent cakes and bakery that can be brought to one’s room, sold at the excellent Siam Tea Room, situated on the ground floor. Its wide selection includes artisan bread and pastries; such as chocolate brownie, nut maple tart, Kaiser roll, cereal roll, elephant eye cookie, dark chocolate cookie… Open from 08:00 – 22:00 hours, and with happy hour from 19:00 hours!

For comfort food also the room service offers a pizza menu from noon until midnight. Choose from Margherita, Parma ham & rocket, Fruitti Di Mare, Goji’s Braised Beef or the Thai style Khao Soy, with northern curry, fresh mozzarella, pickled cabbage, shallot, coriander and lime! Yummy!

Bangkok Marriott Marquis Queen’s Park: Siam Tea Room

For lunch we are back at Siam Tea Room, which is also a Thai all-day restaurant, including its own outdoor terrace. Similar to the hotel room its interior comes in natural colours, with a wooden tile floor, brown wooden rustic tables, Thai-style woven wallpapers and antique-white framed wall panels. Along one of the long walls, there is a built-in upholstered Thai silk sofa, with blonde wood tables and dark brown armchairs with green upholstering. The restaurant is also furnished with modern open lantern-style ceiling lamps. No doubt the entire interior will look cosier at night!

For lovers of Thai cuisine this is a top-notch choice, and the various choices are conveniently shown on high quality photos inside the menu. Choose from curries, soup, family dishes etc.

As a food tasting I go for the following selection – which turns out to be more than enough to satisfy two persons! Fried rice noodle spring rolls with prawns, vegetables and spicy chilli dip is the perfect starter to warm up one’s taste buds.

Following this is the melt-in-the-mouth, absolutely delicious and superbly looking dish BBQ free range pork ribs, served with spicy tamarind glaze and ground roasted rice on the side. Then also a curry: Green chicken curry with local eggplants and basil leaves – an absolute Thai classic. I cannot get enough of its curry sauce and herbal taste. Truly delicious!

The dessert of choice is just as good-looking, and a large portion big enough for two: Toasted butter brioche with creamy pandan custard and fresh young coconut. Again, a truly good-looking dish and that really represents Thai cuisine at its best. Pandan and coconut – so sweet and tasty while at the same time refreshing! An espresso, or green tea, also goes very well together with this dessert!

M Club Lounge

Somewhat surprisingly, come evening there is quite buzz with many guests enjoying the club lounge privileges at the M Club Lounge (level 27 in the south tower) – which is a delight to see post-Covid!

This club lounge consists in several connected zones and rooms (with one section dedicated to families). The interior is dominated by its blonde wooden floor, grey silk wallpaper, and beige/brown upholstered designer armchairs. Beautiful floral decorations in vases brings colour to the rooms.

Large glass-covered tables are welcome to have place for both one’s laptop as well as drinks and plates of food when it’s time for Hors d’oeuvres at 17:30, with alcoholic drinks generously served until 20:00. Cocktails are shaken and stirred at the bar – and so are mocktails: Pineapple lime, Virgin mojito, Fruit punch or Apple schorle. The white wine served is called Holly.

Among the warm food served: Pork meat balls, Devilled egg & prawn, Wingbean with pork, Baked pumpkin, and Glazed goat cheese. There is also a selection of cheese, chorizo, caesar wrap, fresh salad buffet, and apple pie for dessert!

Popular international buffets

Another night the focus turns to the Goji Kitchen + Bar and its international buffet (on weekends also serving lunch buffet / Sunday Brunch). This buffet turns to be highly popular, as a draw also for the locals in Bangkok. Guests are queuing up both to get seats and food, cooked a la minute, at the many stations.

It is a long-slung, expansive restaurant, with windows facing the park, and the hotel’s classic interior kept intact, with wood-dominated interiors and beige floor tiles. Here and there wooden latticework partition walls with ceilings enclose wooden dining tables and armchairs.

The food stations are at the centre of attention, where for instance a quality selection of imported cheese draws my attention: Brie De Meaux, Morbier, Comté, Tomme de Savoie, Blue Stilton and Pecorina Romano. There are also cold cuts like chorizo and pancetta.

Then the Pan fried Foie Gras station, with a row of pre-prepared plates ready to be served!

Oyster lovers gets a bit of heaven here with a mouthwatering selection that includes:Chonburi Oyster (local Thai), Fine de Claire oyster and Ireland Oyster. Other seafood include Rock lobster, Blue crab, Babylon (Rayong, Thailand), White Banana Shrimp (south Thailand) and Thai mussel.

There is something for everyone’s food taste, including of course all the major Asian cuisines. The Chinese Fish maw soup is one of those Asian attractions.

The Seafood white wine garlic with chilli and Italian parsley (including mussels and squid) is just delicious!

There are also dishes like Salmon citrus butter, Baked lamb, Maple glazed pork tenderloin wrap bacon. Indian cuisine includes Chicken tikka masala, Papadum bread and Butter Naan.

The dessert selection will last but not least ensure that everyone leaves well fed… The Thai dessert station offers the classic: Mango sticky rice. Then, there are choices like Vanilla financier, Nut caramel tart, Lemon tart, Latte macchiato panna cotta, mango, choco, Cherry Clafoutis. Mango and passion chocolate mousse, Sweet shredded coconut cake, Baileys cheese cake etc.

One’s satisfaction level is very high, which is also evident from how popular this buffet is!

The same restaurant also serves the hotel breakfast, which also offers a similar array of food stations, but of course with a more breakfast-focused menu, including Eggs Benedict with house-smoked salmon and Hollandaise sauce on a sourdough muffin, Classic cured ham and aged cheddar omelette, and Asian dishes like BBQ red pork over rice, dumplings and sushi.

Abar Rooftop bar

An evening is also not complete with a pre-dinner or post-dinner drink up at the rooftop, where one can get a bird’s eye – actually in all directions – of the ever-changing surrounding Bangkok.

Its specialty is boasting one of the largest collections of gin in Bangkok. So; gin-based House Signatures include: Be Gin (Beefeater 24 gin, Luxardo Maraschino liqueur, lavender syrup, fresh lemon juice and egg white); Rejuvenate (Beefeater 24, cucumber, fresh basil leaves, fresh lime juice and honey water); and Asian wind (Beefeater gin, Sake, homemade yuzu
mango cordial and fresh lime juice).

‘Served On The Rocks’ include the following: Botanist fashioned (Aged Beefeater gin, homemade coffee vanilla syrup and dehydrated orange); Front line (Liquorice infused Beefeater gin, homemade saffron rosella flower syrup, lemon juice, egg white and creole bitters); and
Packaged with love (Rosemary infused Beefeater gin, fresh passionfruit, fresh lime juice, peach bitters and egg white).

Then the menu lists many types of London Gry Gin, Distilled Gin, Flavoured Gin, Modern Gin and Navy Strenght Gin (an over-proof version of London Dry gin originally used by the British
Royal Navy because it wouldn’t prevent gunpowder from igniting when damp with gin), Barrel Aged Gin, and Genever from around the world. Interesting one!

ABar Rooftop offers a discerning selection of drinks, including innovative cocktails, such as the
Sky garden – which is a cocktail in a beer glass, with IPA beer syrup, passion fruit, soda, pineapple foam as ingredients! This is the perfect ending as its makes one want to come back and try some more drinks and also have some bar snacks.

As end note Bangkok Marriott Marquis Queen’s Park also features additional restaurants Akira Back, Sirimahannop (a ship on Chao Praya river!), Pagoda Chinese Restaurant and Pool Bar, along with Quan Spa, that are not included in this review experience.