Bangkok Eats: Paper Butter and the Burger
On top of our travels, it's our experiences that are memorable too. Whether it's eating, drinking or spending the day out, we want to give great places recognition.
Sam speaking here:
A bit of background first. So, it was my birthday yesterday. "Happy birthday to me, happy birthday to me, happy birthday, happy birthday...happy birthday to me!!!" (extra bit you can sing to me: "you look like a monkey and you act like one too", I won't be offended). As I find myself in my late twenties and heading towards the big 3-0, I'm not that concerned. With any birthday, you want to celebrate it with family and friends (or one or the other). I had not prepared anything to celebrate my birthday this year as I spent the holiday break abroad and I had not really thought of doing anything special. So, when my brother and mum asked what I was doing and I said I hadn't planned anything, there was a mad rush to do so! Like in any capital city, there are so many places to celebrate your birthday and when you aren't really that bothered, it makes the task so much harder! So, I went for the easy route. Ask for recommendations from your family, who have been here longer than you have. My brother's first recommendation was this place - Paper Butter and the Burger. I was already sold: burgers, craft beer, hipster place, close to my sister's place (who has a nearly one year old) and my brother had his birthday there before. He only had great reviews about the place. So, spontaneous Sam as I am, I took a look on their Facebook page, contacted the owner for a reservation and what takes many months for people to plan their birthday, took me five minutes.
Source: Paper Butter and the Burger Facebook page
4.9 on Google Reviews and 4.5 on TripAdvisor, do you need any more convincing?
Some people live in the moment and just go with it, but some plan their holidays, travels and experiences to the T. If you are one of them, this place has a 4.9 on Google Reviews and 4.5 on TripAdvisor, do you need any more convincing?
As you can see from the picture above, Paper Butter and the Burger is constructed from one and a half empty 'containers', which has been done up to become a burger joint. It is based in the 'up and coming' Ari part of Bangkok (on the BTS line, which is the skytrain for those who don't know). The mini-cafe (as they have called themselves) is located in front of The Yard hostel. For those, who like the hostel life, give it a search, whenever you are in Bangkok. A place to stay and a place to eat.
Source: Paper Butter and the Burger Facebook page
Have I made you hungry? I bet you I have.
We did not have quite this feast, but everyone that came (8 of us) had a different burger. There was the Paper Butter burger (standard beef or pork burger with Paper Butter sauce (spicy mayo & mustard)), the Very Cheesy burger (like the Paper Butter, but double the cheese), Vegetarian burger (for Becca, it was a standard veggie patty burger) and their signature Chiang Mai Spicy, which I had (beef or pork patty stuffed with Thai herbs and topped off with pork shreds). Yum! We had a couple of side dishes: French Fries, Curly Fries and Chicken Wings.
The Chiang Mai Spicy Burger
Everything was delicious and to top it all off with a Thai craft beer: Polar Bear.
Polar Beer - Thai craft beer (brewed in Cambodia...)
Thailand has been getting into local craft beers for the past five years or so. Before you had your standard Thai lagers that dominated the market such as Singha, Chang and Leo, yet trends have changed to support the smaller breweries even though there are restrictions in Thailand to produce beer, thus keeping these beer giants as a duopoly. The smaller breweries find a way around by producing beer in the neighboring countries such as Cambodia or even as far as Australia and distribute it back in Thailand as Thai beer. I have often debated with my friends where it is truly a Thai beer, but then again if Asahi produces beer in Thailand (in the same factories as Singha and Leo), is it still a Japanese beer? Going off topic there and maybe for another post.
As the evening came to an end, a birthday dinner isn't finished until the "surprised" birthday cake arrives. Just on cue as I was taking my last bite (as everyone else had finished), the cake arrived. Thanks to my brother-in-law's parents, we all sampled the delicious velvety chocolate cake.
My 27th birthday cake
Final Review
Paper Butter and the Burger takes credit to the ratings they have received. I thoroughly enjoyed my birthday dinner with them. The service was as great as the food. The price is very reasonable for Western food in Bangkok. Big thanks to Patrick and Ice (the owners) for creating this establishment and all the best to them for the future!
- Burgers come at around 150-200 baht
- Side dishes from 50-80 baht
- Beers from 70-180 baht
Roughly, 32 baht to 1 USD, 38 baht to 1 EURO and 43 baht to 1 GBP (Jan 10th, 2018)