Delectable Delights: Eight Places to Indulge your Sweet Tooth in BKK

I’m gonna be honest. Whenever we take our children out for dessert, it’s more for mom and dad. “What’s that? Did I hear you say you want a McDonald’s soft serve ice cream? Well, okay then. The Sukothai Chocolate Buffet? Sure!” Yes, that’s pretty much how it works. Using this method, we have found some super-hip dessert locales that offer up some truly decadent treats. Below I present to you our favorites.

1. For the culinary adventurer and appreciator of arts

IceDEA

This place is too cool for school. Seriously. At IceDEA, ice cream is not just served; it is designed and shaped into a variety of foods. Medium-rare U.S. steak with a side of fries? You got it. Japanese Tonkatsu? No problem. Pizza supreme? Easy. Not only is the ice cream sculpted to perfection, the flavors offered are creative and eclectic. Wasabi, roasted coconut, earl grey . . . you get the idea. This place brings the word unique to a new level. Go and try it. You will be amazed.

Looks like a real hamburger and fries, right?

The IceDEA cafe at BACC

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Royal Villa? Stunning Garden? Why Not?

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You’ve had a cup of coffee from a Doi Tung coffee shop before, right? Ever wondered why the name Doi Tung? Why the coffee is a little bit more expensive? Why do they sell key chains, t-shirts, and sustainable cloth bags? Well, if you happen to find yourself visiting Chiang Rai or the Golden Triangle, you can find out first hand. Rent a car and driver and spend a morning on Doi Tung (“flag peak”) Mountain, visiting H.R.H the Princess Mother’s Doi Tung Royal Villa and the adjacent and stunning Mae Fah Luang Garden. The Princess Mother (mother of Thailand’s current reigning King) built the Doi Tung Royal Villa as her summer palace, and it is now open to the public as a museum. She dedicated herself to the Doi Tung Development Project, which focused on reforestation and creating sustainable livelihoods for the local population (read: once prevalent opium crops have been replaced by crops such as coffee, teak, and various fruits).

Enough with the history lesson because even I’m now falling asleep. Go to Doi Tung because the villa is a cool Thai-style replica of a chalet you would see in the Swiss Alps. From the outdoor balcony, there are excellent views of Burma. And the Mae Fah Luang Garden is to-die-for beautiful. It is a great place for kids to expel some energy by running free amidst gorgeous and colorful flowers, fountains, and statues.

Some tips?

It is a windy, steep road to the top of Doi Tung, so if you get car sick . . . be prepared.
Doi Tung is about a 30 minute drive from the town of Chiang Rai.
If it’s the hot season, bring hats and sunscreen, as the gardens are in the direct sun.
There are lots of Doi Tung coffee shops and a few places to eat atop the mountain.
Dress modestly (long sleeves, long pants) to enter the Royal Villa, or you will have to don an oversized 1980s jean jacket, like the one you see me in below (even Kate knows this jacket is not fashion-forward).

My Favorite Travel Destinations

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How many favorite places on the planet do you have? I fall in love with new and exotic places easily, but whenever I’m asked for my favorite places, I instantly know what to respond with: El Calafate, Argentina and the Namib Desert, Namibia. And as of a few days ago, I added The Golden Triangle, northern Thailand to that list.

We just returned from a wonderful four days at the Anantara Golden Triangle Resort and Spa in northern Thailand. If you regularly read my blog, you know that I’ve talked this place up before, but I wholeheartedly believe it needs to be reinforced to the masses just how awesome this place is – for adults, children, and the lone wanderer. My husband always gets on my case for broadcasting our favorite spots, worried that the additional publicity will cause them to become crowded and difficult to book (he gives my blog too much credit), but I feel that I have some kind of responsibility to the world to share the awesome things in life that we, the Braunohlers, stumble upon, and the Anantara Golden Triangle is one of them.

At the risk of repeating what I’ve already said about this place, here is a short list of what made the experience super special for us this time around:

1. Mahout Training Class: Unlike the last time we visited the Golden Triangle (December 2011), I was not pregnant this time around which meant that elephant trekking was not out of the question. Meandering through the bamboo forests atop elephant back, followed by bathing them in the river. You tell me. Is there a cooler way to spend two hours?

Is this really happening?

Hitting up the river

Needless to say, my elephant had great aim

Case in point

2. The Staff: A-MAZING. Wonderful with kids. From the servers who help out at breakfast to the transportation gurus who take you to different locations on the hotel property, these folks know how to interact with children. The breakfast staff gave Logan a constant supply of fruit to feed the baby elephant at breakfast, while the jeep driver took us on our own private safari to see water buffalo and elephants in the forest.

The mahout providing Logan with food for baby ele Meena

Hotel staff member escorting Logan to the site of the water buffalo

On our own little private jeep safari

Elephant spotting

Logan has a very cool solo experience with a baby elephant and his mahout

3. The Beauty of the Hotel and Surrounds: I love this place. It is majestic in the early morning, captivating during the day, and enchanting at night.

4. The Pool: Because our visit fell during the hot season, we made daily use of the pool. It has a real jacuzzi (hard to find in Thailand) and a separate area that bubbles up, creating a kind of massage for your whole body (which, by the way, is a huge hit with kids of all ages). Servers come around with (complimentary) chilled face towels, sorbets, snacks, and juices at different times during the day. And from the pool you will almost always see an elephant hanging about in the forest below. Seeing this never gets old folks; it never gets old.