THAWATCHAI “NOK” PERMPOL
Bar Manager, Philtration
Located near the banks of Khlong Saen Saep, at the top end of Kasem San 3 Alley (a stone’s throw from the Jim Thompson House Museum), Philtration is a low-ceilinged, speakeasy-style cocktail bar – complete with secret entrance – that also has a very interesting backstory. The bar occupies the basement level of a 110-year-old home that was the birthplace of Moh Mee U Thaitip, an herbal medicine formulated for heart and blood pressure, created by ‘Moh Mee’ (or Dr. Mee).
“He was the father of my grandfather, so I’m the
4th generation,” explains Nachapol “Na” Kasemsuwan, the founder of Philtration. “This is his house; he built it and lived here. Where Philtration is now used to be his secret office and workshop, and this is actually where the medicine was invented. Originally it was sold directly from the house, and boats would also travel down the khlongs, house by house, making sales and deliveries.”
As the medicine’s popularity grew, and the list of customers expanded to include even members of Thai royalty, production was moved to a proper factory (where it’s still produced to this day). The stately house, meanwhile, stayed within the family and up until a few years ago was home to a restaurant. The Philtration chapter began when the bar made its debut in January of 2020, boasting a collection of creative cocktails inspired by herbal medicines, with the associated health benefits of each one described at length in the menu. Of course, the timing of the bar’s launch was a tad unfortunate, but the team here is dedicated, and gallantly weathered the intervening lockdown periods.
Working alongside Na are the talented bartenders behind these potent potions, and in charge of that crew is Bar Manager Thawatchai “Nok” Permpol, whom some may remember from his time at Q Bar (2008-2013). After Q Bar he stepped away from the bar scene to work at Fico Corp, a company specialising in hospitality, luxury retail, and commercial real estate, but now he's back in action… cocktail shaker in hand.
“All of the people behind this establishment are friends,” Na goes on to say. “We all discovered we had the same passion for cocktail culture, so we decided to open a bar.”