Every British pub in Bangkok claims to feel “just like back home.” Ekkamai’s new Shakespeare Pub is built around an owner who “actually gives a damn” whether it does.
That is a fairly cheeky thing to say in a city already packed with British and Irish pubs, many of them claiming to be “proper” while feeling little different from an ordinary Bangkok sports bar.
Bangkok already has at least 25 well-known British and Irish pubs competing for expats, football crowds and homesick drinkers, from Sukhumvit fixtures like The Old English, The Royal Oak and O’Shea’s to Silom’s Shenanigans to Phatthanakan’s The Londoner.
The challenge for The Shakespeare Pub is convincing punters it’s more than just another English-style bar with football on TV and Guinness on tap.
Brit Owner Is The Shakespeare Pub’s Stage Manager
Much of that falls on Harry Williams, long-time manager of two Sukhumvit pubs and sports bars. He is one of four partners behind The Shakespeare Pub, but very much the author of the pub’s story.
Even before leaving his old job, Williams had a hand in On Nut’s short-lived The Elephant and Castle and later opened The Shamrock Irish Pub in Bang Chak, both very much local boozers built around regulars rather than passing trade. All the while, however, he was hunting for something larger and more polished between Thonglor and Ekkamai: a proper British pub he believed Bangkok still lacked.
Shakespeare is that something, only far more ambitious.
Its entrance directly on the street on Soi 63, Shakespeare seats roughly 100 customers and immediately stands out for its high ceilings and floor-to-ceiling glass walls wrapping three sides of the pub.
It offers a bit of everything: a quieter interior cove with five tables and a TV for families or groups, a large patio split between smoking and non-smoking sections and an open central bar area complete with a full-sized pool table and ledge seating along the windows. On June 3, Williams completed the lease of an adjacent open area, currently covered in turf, for even more outside seating.
When Shakespeare opened its doors for the first time May 30 – Williams’ 40th birthday – the pub had 20 waitresses, bartenders and staff on hand. A few of them will look familiar to patrons of another British pub, as they followed Williams out the door shortly after he left.
Williams says the staff is a major reason why Shakespeare Pub will succeed.
“This isn’t just a job to them, they love this,” Williams said of the British pub concept. “They really care about giving the customer the best, most authentic experience possible.”
Authenticity Is Key
Authenticity is something Williams returns to repeatedly in conversation. He speaks about it with the sort of passion usually reserved for religion or football.
“I want the experience to be just like it would at a pub back home,” he said. “From the pints to the food to the atmosphere, it all has to be proper.”
Williams believes too many Bangkok “British pubs” stop at surface-level authenticity, using the concept as a marketing hook rather than creating something genuine. Ownership is often absent, the food starts frozen and ends up tasteless and the staff is poorly trained.
Shakespeare is different, he said “because I actually give a damn”.
Food, Drink & Happy Hour
Williams chose the food selection himself and obsesses over the details and presentation of each dish, even if, at opening, the menu is relatively modest with about 12 sandwiches and mains. You’ll find the mainstays such as pies and bangers, both with mash; beef stew and cottge pie, plus an Indian butter chicken and, in a nod to the colonies, a fantastic smash burger.
The boss also selected the beers and ciders, Guinness (฿299 a pint), Stella Artois (฿275) and Old Speckled Hen (฿299) among the six draught options. There’s also draught Rattler Cornish Cider (฿299).
Happy Hour runs from the 11 a.m. opening until 7 p.m. with Leo pints at ฿99, Asahi ฿119, Rattler at ฿199 and house spirits at ฿99. Until 3 p.m. you can grab a smash burger and chips for ฿199.
Williams designed the menus and said changes already have been made, with new items to debut soon. They’ll be announced on the pub’s social media, which Williams manages himself in his signature dry, droll humor only a Brit could get away with.
Busy From Day One
Although he drinks far less these days, Williams plans to be in the pub most days, reinforcing staff training, ensuring the kitchen does things properly and playing the genial landlord for the many mates, regulars and longtime customers he has collected over years in Bangkok’s pub trade.
What appears to have caught the Briton off guard has been how busy Shakespeare has been during its first few days. From his experience, building a reliable crowd usually took months rather than nights.
The location certainly helps. Shakespeare sits literal steps from Ekkamai BTS Station, directly across from the tourist-heavy Eastern Bus Terminal and only a stone’s throw from Gateway Ekkamai mall. The pub already appears to be drawing not only Williams’ fan club, but also ordinary Thais passing by, looking inside and deciding to wander in.
Then there’s Joe.
Under the Influencer
Shakespeare Pub’s other partner is influencer “Joe in Thailand” who Williams met and struck up a friendship with at his other pubs. Joe has just 9,700 subscribers on his YouTube channel, but 97,000 on Facebook, 69,000 on Instagram and another 52,000 on TikTok.
Judging by the number of Western faces — and British accents — streaming through the doors on June 3, the videos are having a massive impact.
It’s still only Act 1 in this Shakespearean pub story, but the opening reviews are strong. The Grand Opening party will be in a few weeks.
Act 2 promises a wider food and beverage menu as well as the hiring of a foreign manager, so Williams can spend more time with his wife and five-month-old son.
If the early crowds are any indication, however, Shakespeare may end up looking more like A Midsummer Night’s Dream than much ado about nothing.
