SIA to Bangkok: Airbus A359, Boeing 787-10 in Economy & Ojo@The Standard Mahanakhon

[yflyer]

The hotel buffet breakfast spread was very impressive, with a huge selection of Thai and Western dishes.



Lovers of tropical fruit would be happy.



Live egg station...



The omelettes here were superb...



These were made to order with your choice of toppings. I ordered mine with green chilli, onion, coriander and cheese, with a soft runny center, and it came out just perfect.



There was a live noodle station...



...with a rotating daily noodle selection...



Delicious!



The hotel cafe also had very tasty lunch set meals, including a very satisfying Khao Soi...



...which came with 2 different kinds of noodles...



...and mango and sticky rice for dessert.

[yflyer]

On one of the evenings, the hotel hosted a Marriott Bonvoy member appreciation cocktail party, and I was invited as a Gold member.



The cocktail and beverage selection at the event was pretty good.



I enjoyed several drinks there.



The hotel staff and management were also in attendance, mingling with the guests. What excellent customer service at this hotel!

This is a hotel in Bangkok that I would definitely stay at again!

[yflyer]

This was a busy business trip, and I had only one evening free. That evening, I decided to head to Ojo @ The Standard, which was located at the top of the King Power Mahanakhon skyscraper.



Ojo was one of the establishments at The Standard Bangkok, an upscale hotel located within the skyscaper itself. There was the possibility of a bar crawl ticket, where one could visit all 4 bars in the Hotel, but I didn't have time for that, so opted to have dinner and drinks just at Ojo, situated on the top floor of the skyscraper. In fact, this was billed as the highest rooftop bar and restaurant in Bangkok.



Note that there is a viewing gallery on top of the King Power Mahanakhon, and that tickets are required to access the viewing gallery, but the ticket is not required if you have a dinner reservation at Ojo (Minimum dining spend required).

I made the dinner reservation online, and was led to a separate queue for the elevators that went straight up to the restaurant.

The scene before you when the elevator doors opened was simply stunning.



There as an open rooftop bar with panoramic views of Bangkok...



...I arrived after sunset, but if I had planned my schedule better, I would have wanted come earlier to view the scene at dusk as well.



The restaurant had full length glass windows for diners to enjoy the view.



There was a very pleasant buzz about the place.



Even the view from the washrooms was spectacular.

[yflyer]

As a single diner, I opted for a seat at the bar...



The cocktail menu was intriguing...



Classic Mexican favourites like the Michelada were also available...



The dinner menu looked really appetizing as well...



The cocktails here were meticulously prepared...



To eat, I had the Taquito de Cerdo, a dish of crispy chickpea tacos with pork head terrine, arbol chili mayo, caldillo.



I also sampled their Bone Marrow, served with tortillas, machaca, chiles toreados...



Sinfully delicious...



What an amazing venue, with cuisine and drinks to match!

[yflyer]

The next day, I headed to Suvarnabhumi Airport for my flight home.

At the airport, there was still a long line of parked TG aircraft of all makes and models. All apparently out of service at the moment, including several A380's a type which TG sadly no longer operates.



At 12pm, the departure area was completely packed...



I was quite early for my flight, SQ711, departing at 6.30pm. I had arrived at the airport at 1pm in the hope of changing to an earlier flight, but my ticket was apparently a very restricted one, so no change was possible.

I would have to wait several hours for my flight in the SilverKris Lounge, which was no great hardship.



The immigration and security queues were crowded, but that day was not the busiest I had ever experienced in BKK. I was through to the airside area within about 20 minutes of checking in.

[yflyer]

I headed to the SilverKris Lounge.



I think this is one of SQ's nicest outstation lounges.



The decor was stylish...



...with many unique design touches.



There were spaces to relax and to work.



There was a full service bar as well as dedicated dining area with a sumptuous buffet spread.



At least when I was there, there was ample seating available for lounge guests. The lounge never felt too crowded.



There was a restroom in the lounge, but no showers.

[yflyer]

The made-to-order cocktails were a highlight...



...all made to order from an extensive menu.



Champagne and a selection of red and white wines were available.



I could not resist sampling their SilverKris Sling BKK, made with Champagne and Blue Curacao...



On the non-alcoholic front, drinks included Thai Mlik Tea, Ginger Tea and Chrysanthamum & Pandan....

[yflyer]

There was a huge buffet spread comprising hot and cold selections.

Cheese platter...



Salad rolls...



Cold cuts...



Seafood Tom Yum soup...



Pad Thai...



...with a full selection of condiments...



The Singapore-style Hainanese Chicken Rice was available. The chicken didn't look that appealing in the tray, but tasted fine, and the rice was good as well.



A full set of condiments and sauces for the chicken rice. Thumbs up!



BBQ pork ribs...



Vegetables and mushrooms...

[yflyer]

Pasta with Bolognaise sauce...



Western style sweet potato cream soup...



Snacks included pastries...



..and dim sum, as well as that local Singapore favourite chwee kway.



A beautiful selection of Thai desserts...



Ice cream...



...and fresh coconuts.



This was a wonderful buffet spread.

[yflyer]

The several hours in the lounge passed quickly. It was soon time to board SQ711 BKK-SIN...



This was operated by a regional Boeing 787-10. The aircraft had a 2-class configuration, with the new regional business class up front...



...and economy class in 3-3-3...



This was a similar cabin product as my outbound A359 flight.



The A359 cabin is slightly wider than the 787, but the difference wasn't really that noticeable. In any case, I thought that the 3-3-3 layout was fine on a short 2.5 hour sector like this one.

Seat pitch was decent.



The Y seats on the 787-10 were very similar to those on the A359, but the IFE screens were slightly different. More on the differences later in the TR.



Bathrooms were clean and well stocked with amenities such as toothbrushes...



There was a massive thunderstorm nearby earlier in the afternoon, but the skies had cleared by the time we boarded.



Hot towels were handed out by the warm and cheerful cabin crew, who were exceptional on this flight.

[yflyer]

Just under 2 hours flight time to Bangkok today.



The IFE on this aircraft was the Panasonic Ex3 system. The screen had no icons or functions on the bottom of the screen, unlike the Thales AVANT system on SQ's regional A359's. But otherwise the programme selection and functionality on both systems were quite similar.



Live TV was available on this flight.



After take-off, dinner was served. Again, a pleasant surprise on the wine front: another business class wine selection was served to Y pax!



The meal format was similar to my outbound flight, with SQ's sustainable cardboard meal boxes.



There were 2 choices: An Asian selection and a Western chicken dish. I picked the chicken.



It tasted pretty good -- moist and not dried out, and still very warm. Those boxes were quite good at keeping food warm.



Dessert was cake.

[yflyer]

The rest of the flight passed quickly, and we were soon on our final approach into Singapore.



We had departed 45 minutes late on account of late arrival of the incoming aircraft, and our arrival was also delayed by almost an hour.



Apart from the delayed arrival, the flight was good, with a nice cabin product for this sector, and really warm and friendly cabin crew who delivered the gracious efficient cabin service that regulars on SQ have come to expect.

[yflyer]

Final reflections...

SQ remains a great way to get to and from Bangkok. Both flights were very good.

On the positive side, i thought that SQ had a very good cabin product on this sector, and on both my flights, the cabin crew were wonderful. I am also a huge fan of the BKK SilverKris Lounge. Getting J wines in Y was also a treat!

On the negatives, I am not a huge fan of the cardboard meal boxes, and hope that SQ will go back to the regular meal trays even for these short sectors. I don't think real glassware will ever make a return to the Y cabin, but is it also too much to ask for plastic cups rather than cardboard?

There's always a lot to see and do in Bangkok. I thought the Courtyard by Marriott was a great business hotel that treated Bonvoy members especially well. I would also want to return to The Standard Mahanakhon on a future trip, to visit Ojo again, and maybe do the full bar crawl.

Thanks for reading!

[SQfanatic]

Great TR, yflyer. Loved your TR & pics of Bangkok. In fact it’s on my list in October but its not finalized.

I can see the only difference between the Regional A350 and Boeing 787-10 is the entertainment system. Thales for the A350 but Panasonic Voyager 3D maps for all other aircraft (350LH, 350ULR, A380, 777).

I’ll be flying in a few weeks on SQ31/402/403/32 to MAA via DEL because the price was more expensive compared to Emirates and I was able to snag for $750 for May.

SQ402 will be on a 787-10, and SQ403 on an A380. It’ll be nice to experience a 7.5 hour layover to visit the Jewel, especially after 8pm. At least all will have Voyager 3D but while the seats are the same I wonder if the A380 seats are going to be any more comfortable. A350 I know what I’m in for…cramped aisles, narrow seats but Wifi will keep me less occupied on the crampedness of the seats.

[yflyer]

Thanks SQfanatic!

Enjoy your upcoming SQ flights. Definitely worth heading landside to see Jewel in the evening. It's quite a magical place at night, with the fountain all lit up.

Also enjoy your A380 experience on SQ403. I've always liked travelling on SQ's A380, whatever the cabin I am in.