Araksa: More Than Just a Tea Room

We chanced upon Araksa Tea Room after attending a Sunday Mass at Our Lady of the Assumption Cathedral in Bangrak, Bangkok, Thailand. We were just walking around to find a good place for our usual Sunday lunch and we passed by this place.

My idea of a tea room is quite different. I thought it will just serve tea (or coffee) and some light snacks. But because the architecture from the outside was stunning (it’s a refurbished colonial building), I reckoned this could have been something else. Luckily, there was a menu outside the restaurant. We checked, and it was tea room and a full restaurant at the same time.

Going inside, we were greeted by this beautiful interior design.

The place is decorated with a blend of traditional Thai aesthetics and modern inspiration – something that feels more like Chiang Mai than Bangkok (not a surprise, because the team room sources the best tea from its tea garden in Chiang Mai). The place exudes warmth and simplicity: soft wooden tones, woven accents, and muted earth hues. The lighting is just right, intimate and relaxing to the senses.

We ordered the recommendations from the attentive waiter, who explained the menu effortlessly.

We started the meal with yum sum o, a pomelo salad with toasted coconut and fried shallots topped with deep-fried seasonal fish. From there, we ordered panang curry, fried rice, stir-fried vegetables, ang gaeng hang lay. All were delicious and reasonably priced, especially with the kind of service we got. Araksa is an advocate for slow food, so you should spend the time there with people you love to speak to as preparation time needs some good conversation.

The desserts were a beauty, so you should not miss them.

We opted for an earl grey ice cream, thai tea jelly with thai ice cream, and earl grey creme brulee. All were fantastic. We ordered tea alongside these desserts.

The restaurant’s second floor is devoted to tea products and Araksa’s well-curated merchandise. We purchased one of their most expensive tea series to gift to a friend, but ended up drinking it ourselves.