View Rooftop Bangkok

Go for the risotto, not the view. At nine floors up you're well below the skyline bars that charge a fortune for altitude, and the panorama is modest by Bangkok standards. What you get instead is a rooftop that costs a good deal less, food people rave about, and staff who actually seem glad you turned up. The mushroom risotto is the dish reviewers keep coming back to, and the bartenders will steer you towards something on the cocktail list if you ask. A violinist plays in the background, which sounds like a gimmick and apparently isn't.

It sits on top of the Novotel at Platinum Pratunam, so you're in shopping territory on Thanon Phetchaburi and easy to find. That makes it a decent landing spot after a morning in the malls, or a proper dinner if you want a rooftop without the bill that usually comes with one. Walk-ins get looked after, going by the reviews. Late afternoon into early evening is when I'd aim to arrive, before the light goes.