This is, hands down, one of my all-time favorite bars in the whole of Bangkok. I have been coming here since I moved here almost seven years ago. From the second you lay eyes on it you know it’s different. Covered with slap up stickers from top to bottom and inside and out, Jam throws out a vibe that is all its own. It’s a tiny little place with enough character to fill the city. The inside is filled with doll heads and marker laden figures that make you feel like you’re in another world. They feature shows from every walk of life. I’ve seen Punk bands play there, DJ Sets of house and techno, Hip Hop shows, and even Traditional Thai music fused with turntables and guitars. They have 8 Bit Street Fight night, Short Film Shows, Art Exhibitions in the upstairs gallery, Comedy Acts from time to time. A little bit of everything if you will. The crowd is always cool. A good mix of people from all over the world. I think there is a hostel near by and they get a lot of travelers coming in along with the locals from around town. Always nice, always friendly folk hanging there, and it is always a good time. I seriously do not think I have ever left the place without having to carry my wife out.
It has been around for years and is owned and run by Dhyan Ho and his wife Butter. Dhyan hails from Australia having grown up there since he was a little boy around the Sydney area and Butter is from Thailand. You honestly couldn’t meet two nicer people, so I was happy to oblige when they invited me over to check out what they got going on these days with their menu. What menu? Was the first thing that came to my mind. I have never had anything besides beer there. No, I take that back. I have had a hamburger there once, and if I remember correctly, it was pretty damn good. Anyway, I was excited to see what was up over at my old stompin grounds. They had been closed for a bit due to the covid situation. Seems everyone is feeling the heat from that, but I am happy to say they are back up and running and serving up some pretty tasty grub, too.
I started out with the Chicken Teriyaki Salad. It is a huge salad of lettuce, cabbage, carrots, onions, and tomatoes with a Japanese sesame dressing. I don’t know if the dressing is Japanese but I know it’s the salad dressing all Japanese use is why I say that. It is Served with a big tender boneless chicken thigh on top. The Teriyaki glaze coating it was very good, sweet and smooth, not too tangy or overpowering. The chicken was tender and juicy. I thought it was really good, and big. It is almost a meal in itself just to give you a heads up if you order it. 120 baht
Japanese Katsu Curry and Chicken Stew
Then he recommended we try his Japanese Katsu Curry and Chicken Stew. My wife is Japanese so I have experience in this area. I can be a bit critical about curry rice. He said he has tried out several different recipes from ones with coffee to others that call for chocolate in it trying to find the one he felt suits his taste buds best. Surprisingly, his is pretty good. The pork cutlet was big and well cooked with a crispy outside breading and moist hot meat in. It mixed well with the curry. I had no complaints about it. I think he should serve it with Japanese rice instead of Thai (he he he), but it was still pretty tasty,100 +80 for the pork cutlet.
The Chicken Stew is a recipe from Butter’s mother and it was also well received. It is a thick red stew, tender chicken, potatoes and carrots in it. It has a smooth rich flavor to it that allows the chicken to come out and shine. The chicken tasted good, almost had a little smokey flavor to it. It is served with a bed of Jasmine rice, 120 baht.
Jam : Burgers
Next up, we had to try some of his burgers. I knew this dude makes a pretty good burger so I wanted to make sure and get them in. He said his crispy chicken sandwich is one of his big sellers along with the Teriyaki Chicken Sandwich, so give those a shot if you are chicken sandwich person.
I went for the beef bacon cheeseburger, myself. And I must say, It is a tasty burger. Butter bakes all their own buns and breads used in the shop and she does a good job, too. The bun was a nice soft sesame seed bun that I quite enjoyed. The burger was a pretty thick patty, cooked medium and juicy. It had a couple of slices of Sloan’s bacon on it, so you know that’s good. He said Sloan’s seems to taste the best, and I would have to agree. Recently, I have become a fan of Sloan’s myself. It was a good burger accompanied with lettuce and tomato, and side of French Fries.
Jam : Veggie burger
After that, I decided to try something different and gave the veggie burger a shot. I normally don’t try veggie burgers, but have been getting into them lately. Hey, try something different, right? Plus, I thought some of our readers are probably vegetarian so wanted to give them a heads up, if they can trust my novice taste buds. I really think it is more mental than anything.
Telling myself I am not going to like it just because I am not a vegetarian. That is my reasoning at least because when I bit into It, I was pretty surprised. It was a big hearty burger that tasted good and was filling. It had a nice crispy fried onion flavor to it and like I said, it was filling. I guess I thought it couldn’t be very filling if it didn’t have meat. Wrong! I have to admit, I really enjoyed it and was glad I gave it a shot. It was really delicious. I highly recommend giving it a go. All the chicken sandwiches and veggie burger are only 120 baht. The beef cheeseburger is 150 +50 for bacon.
Jam : Ice Cream
Ok, I saved the best for last. Dhyan tells me that for the last year or so, he has been obsessed with making Ice Cream. I laughed thinking he was joking, but he wasn’t. He said he has just been completely consumed with all the different techniques and ways to make it. He loves reading about it and has put his time in perfecting it. I didn’t know how to react, somebody tells you they are making ice cream, how good can it be, right? We all eat ice cream at the shops, Baskin Robins, Swensen’s or at the store, that really cheap shit, or Hag N Daz and Ben and Jerry’s if you are really rich or something. I can’t afford it to be honest, lol. Twelve bucks for a pint of ice cream, that’s insane! And it’s not really twelve bucks good, in my opinion. Anyway, he tells me I gotta try it, and I like ice cream so no worries there. He named off some pretty intriguing flavors, Caramel White Miso, Black Sesame Doenjang (Korean Miso), Salted Caramel Cashew, Watermelon and Sour Mango Sorbet, Strawberry Sorbet, and Rum Raisin. He had a couple others but you get the picture. I had a little taste of the Watermelon and Sour Mango and it was off the chain!! Seriously, seriously, good! Then he gave me a scoop of Salted Caramel Cashew and I couldn’t believe it! This stuff was like Ben and Jerry’s on steroids or something. It was GREAT! I also gave the Strawberry Sorbet a go and just couldn’t believe how flavorful it was. Tasted so fresh and real, not that artificial strawberry flavor you are used to. This stuff was unbelievable. You have to try this stuff. I can guarantee you are gonna like it. A couple key points about it. 1. The scoops he is dishing out are giant. It looked like at least twice as much as you would get in restaurant. 2. It is only 60 baht a scoop! Or 220 a pint and only 120 for half a pint!!! I can’t believe how cheap it is!!!! I know I am using a lot of exclamation points here, but that is just how excited I am to tell you. I bought a pint to take home before I left. It was gone in two days, and then I got with my friend (she is pregnant, hehehehe), gave her a taste, and it was over.
We bought a pint of Salty Caramel, a pint of White Miso, a pint of Black Sesame, a pint of Watermelon Sour Mango, a pint of Strawberry Mango made with mangos from his neighbor, half pint of Rum Raisin, half pint of Chocolate and a half pint of Salty Caramel!!!!!! I shit you not, lol. If I’m lyin’ I’m dying, baby! Hahahaha. You dig it the most, baby!
Now, here is the real kicker. Get this. Dhyan is like, “Hey Dave, have you ever tried Vegan Ice Cream?” I’m like, “Hell No! I wouldn’t ever eat that. I don’t want no healthy ice cream, that’s just crazy talk!” He laughed, “Oh yeah, I forgot to tell you that this ice cream,,,, you know, that you like soooo much? I uh,, forgot to tell you that this ice cream is 100% VEGAN, hahahaha!”
WTF???!!!!????!!!???
Mind Blown! Jaw dropped in utter disbelief. I couldn’t believe it. Thinking in my head, IMPOSSIBLE. I again, had in my head that vegan ice cream would be bland or taste bad. I don’t know why, but that is honestly what I had programmed in my head. What can I say, I’m and IDIOT! Lol.
Get in on this while you can, you can thank me later. They deliver on Lineman and Gojek. I don’t know if the ice cream is on there yet, but it should be soon. You can also just message him through the Jam Facebook page.
Cheers Mateys
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