FOOD FOR THE SOUL
Besides the cabaret-style live music by house band “Music of the Heart”, Checkinn99 is also worth a visit for their menu, which centres around feeding the soul with Western comfort food. It offers both bar snacks and a substantial dinner selection that easily ensures you get a bang for your baht. It’s not just bland tourist-friendly food either, as popular dish the chateaubriand (1,210 baht for two) shows.
Served and cut at the table, the finely roasted, massive hunk of beef came with a starter garlic bread basket, salad tossed in vinaigrette and a side of boiled veggies and potatoes with satisfyingly crunchy bacon bits. What the red wine sauce lacked in taste, the black pepper sauce made up for by being deliciously rich and perfectly seasoned. It’s no New York Steakhouse, but it gets most things right — and at a much more affordable price. Expect to find more soups, salads and ample steak dishes on the menu. There are Thai offerings too, such as curry, stirfries and spicy glass noodles — the sort of grub that goes well with drinking.
Their bar snacks, all at 99 baht a dish, are a delight that don’t look the prettiest, but taste pretty darn good. Don’t miss their kebabs — a highlight of the evening that stood out for an unforgettably, flavourful sweet and tangy sauce. The inexpensive pricing also extends to the drinks. Cocktails range from 199-375 baht, while the real bargain is the Heineken litre jug (199 baht). Along with a wine list, rows of hard liquor and shot specials, there’s lots to choose from at Bangkok’s oldest bar.