Roast8ry: Bangkok Travel Guide

Why Roast8ry is worth the detour

You smell it before you see the sign — roasted beans cutting through Chinatown’s usual mix of incense, herbal medicine, and street-food smoke. That contrast is the point.

Roast8ry made its name in Chiang Mai as one of Thailand’s most decorated specialty coffee brands, founded by Arnon Thitiprasert, the 2017 World Latte Art Champion. Its first Bangkok branch has landed near Song Wat Road, and the coffee crowd noticed almost immediately.

Getting there

Song Wat is the riverside strip running parallel to Yaowarat, Chinatown’s main drag, threading between century-old shophouses and the Chao Phraya.

The easiest approach is by boat: take the Chao Phraya Express to Ratchawong Pier and walk in from there. Alternatively, ride the MRT to Hua Lamphong station and walk roughly 10–15 minutes through the old town toward the river.

Grab (Thailand’s ride-hailing app) is a reliable backup if you’d rather skip navigating the sois on foot, especially in the midday heat.

What makes it stand out

Song Wat has quietly become one of Bangkok’s most interesting café strips, with restored shophouses turned into roasteries and design-forward coffee bars. Roast8ry arrives with a pedigree few of its neighbors can match.

Expect the brand’s signature strengths on display:

• Competition-level espresso and filter coffee, brewed with the same rigor that won Thitiprasert his world title
• Latte art precise enough that regulars photograph the cup before the first sip
• A roastery lineage from Chiang Mai, meaning beans sourced and roasted with the same standards that built the original location’s reputation

The space itself trades on the neighborhood’s texture — exposed brick, old shutters, and narrow shophouse proportions reworked into a bright, functional bar, rather than a generic minimalist café interior.

When to go

Song Wat’s shophouse cafés tend to fill up on weekend afternoons when Chinatown itself gets crowded with visitors heading to Yaowarat for the evening food stalls. Weekday mornings are your best bet for a calmer counter and a seat.

Because this is a newly opened branch, opening hours and any reservation policy may still be settling in. Check Roast8ry’s official social channels or Google listing the same day you plan to visit, rather than relying on hours printed elsewhere.

How to visit like a local

Bangkok’s specialty coffee scene runs on a mix of walk-in casualness and quiet respect for the barista’s craft — this isn’t a grab-and-go counter, it’s a place to slow down.

• Ordering: Ask what’s currently being poured as filter coffee — specialty cafés like this rotate single-origin beans, and the counter staff usually welcome questions about origin and roast.
• Payment: Thai cafés increasingly accept PromptPay QR and cards alongside cash, but carrying some baht is still sensible insurance at a newer location.
• Timing: Come before the late-morning wave if you want counter space to actually watch the latte art poured rather than just receive it.
• Etiquette: Keep an eye on your table if it’s busy — shophouse cafés have tight seating, and turnover is expected during peak hours.
• The mistake to avoid: Treating this as a quick coffee stop before Yaowarat’s night market. Roast8ry rewards sitting with the drink, not rushing it — the whole point is tasting what a world champion’s technique actually does to a cup.

Pair the visit with a wander down Song Wat itself. The street’s mix of coffee bars, old trading houses, and river glimpses makes for one of Chinatown’s most rewarding short walks, especially in the hour before sunset when the light hits the shophouse facades directly.