Kindred Spirits: Southeast Asian Brands We Love
21 September 2023
A few weeks back Dan, our cofounder, shared his thoughts on our industry’s return after the dark days of covid, and how it all feels like being in startup mode again. One of the most exciting things about re-building is the brainstorming that goes into defining what the brand is all about.
One of the questions we asked ourselves was, what brands do we like, and what brands do we see as fellow travellers and kindred spirits? Which other brands in the region are the Smiling Albino of their sector? We came up with so many different answers that we decided to pay tribute to some of our favourites. If you’re outside Southeast Asia, some names may not be familiar below, but these are some soulmate brands who are shaking up their industry the way we try to shake up ours.
The venerable old Thai silk brand with the fascinating backstory has bold new fashion lines and a dynamic home decor division, and is being quietly referred to as ‘the Ralph Lauren of Asia’. Jim Thompson house and museum has had a bit of a glow-up of late, adding a fine dining Thai restaurant run by Spanish Michelin-starred chef Pepe Dasí Jiménez, and the new spy-themed OSS Bar where you can live out your WW2 espionage fantasies. A perfect example of how to shake things up whilst remaining true to your roots.
SMILING ALBINO INSIDER TIP: lunch or snacks at ‘Jim’s Table’ on the terrace overlooking the koi pond is an affirming, situationally perfect way to soak up the vibes at the stylish old home.
A 1930’s Shanghai bordello meets Blade Runner? Count us in. One of the most unique upscale nightclubs ever conceived, with fabulous cocktails, performers swinging from the rafters (really), and of course a state of the art sound system. We love it for its exotic flair and sensually wicked – and wickedly fun – mood. Watch your step, as it gets tricky in the dark.
SMILING ALBINO INSIDER TIP: our favourite table overlooks the DJ from the 2nd floor. Also close to the bathrooms and enables a little private space for dancing and entertaining.
There’s something irresistible about the lovable outlaw, the charming rebel, that strikes at the heart of Smiling Albino. We love Khun Chit and his mission to take on big beer (and if you want to know why he’s a Thailand craft beer hero, here’s some background), but in a way that celebrates the common love for good beer and weekend balcony drinking. Cheers to the refined rebel in all of us, and we’ll see you on Khun Chit’s balcony this weekend.
SMILING ALBINO INSIDER TIP: buy Chit a beer and ask him to share his visions for a better world. You won’t be disappointed.
There was something almost Fitzcarraldo-esque about Aqua Mekong’s launch. A luxury river cruiser with sumptuous interior designs, local craft spirits & cocktails, and David Thompson-curated fine dining…in Vietnam’s Mekong Delta and Cambodia? It was the kind of bold, visionary thinking we love, and Aqua Mekong is now an essential component of any luxury Southeast Asia trip.
SMILING ALBINO INSIDER TIP: for the ultimate Aqua Mekong experience, book one of the stylish Design Suites with a balcony and watch riverside life go by.
As the bottle says, if you have balls, you have options. This Bangkok-born potent botanical pays homage to the brash trailblazer in all of us. Like them, we set out with a crazy name and a big idea, and embrace the provocative fun in every drop of our spiritual gin partner.
SMILING ALBINO INSIDER TIP: get an early table at Iron Balls Gin Parlour before popping next door to Sing Sing. You’ll have an effervescent kick in your step.
Vietnam’s craft beer scene has really boomed over the last decade and is unarguably the best in Southeast Asia – maybe even Asia as a whole. But if one brand can be credited with taking craft ales to the locals, it’s Biacraft, with their irreverently named Vietnamese-language beers such as Xau Ba Co (F**kin’ Liar) Summer Ale and Biet Chet Lien (F**ked if I Know) Double IPA proving a big hit with the Vietnamese, who make up the vast majority of their customers on any given night.
SMILING ALBINO INSIDER TIP: we love the Truong Sa branch for its pleasant laid back canalside location. And don’t miss the chicken skin nachos!
Art can sometimes be mildly offensive, and if everyone is offended equally but can’t explain why, then we’d say it is a dinner-theatre experiment gone right. Born in the depths of Covid as a creative use of space and expression, and based on stories from the Asian expat experience, we salute Junkyard and look forward to blazing new trails with them in the years to come.
SMILING ALBINO INSIDER TIP: contact us for a private group or family experience and do a night at Junkyard sitting with the family who set it all up for the inside scoop and backstage insight.
Whimsical escapism bringing you some of the best night’s sleeps in Thailand, Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia. Wildly creative, ornate, innovative and fabulously fun, BENSLEY believes that a hotel should be more than a room, a lobby and a bar, and creates properties that are fantastic worlds in themselves.
SMILING ALBINO INSIDER TIP: take the zipline to check in at Shinta Mani Wild.
For almost 40 years, Lotus has been creating exquisite jewellery, handbags, home decor and objets d’art based on disappearing Thai traditions, and using naturally occurring materials such as coconut shells, scarab wings and bamboo. Gorgeous, collectible works of art that honour Thai heritage whilst remaining inescapably timeless. Also run by one of Southeast Asia’s best dressed families.
SMILING ALBINO INSIDER TIP: get in touch with the family and arrange a factory tour of their amazing facility in south Bangkok.
“Ordering bespoke should be a thrill, not a nightmare” say P Tendercool, and their tailormade furniture workshop, housed in a splendid 1940s art deco building in Bangkok’s creative district, offers thrills galore. Their artisans create stylish, modern chairs, tables, sofas, desks and more, and their work can be seen at several of the city’s high end hotels and restaurants.
SMILING ALBINO INSIDER TIP: check out the PT Lab for an inside look at the timeless craftsmanship that goes into each item they produce.
Since 2014, Samai have combined Latin American rum traditions with high quality Cambodian cane sugar to create a range of award-winning rums, including a none-more-Khmer Kampot pepper variety. Their distillery, slap bang in the middle of Phnom Penh, welcomes visitors to experience the distilling process and – of course – sample the results.
SMILING ALBINO INSIDER TIP: head to the distillery on Thursday evenings, when they open a bar serving rum shots and cocktails.
