The first time I was here, I felt amazed by the giant waterfall in the middle of the shopping mall and the decoration around, using real plants, gives the vibe of a “jungle in the city”. There are many seats, coffee shops and restaurants facing this great feature where you can sit around and enjoy the moment. This shopping mall is EmQuartier, a perfect example of how the urban luxury shopping mall blends nature into an everyday life. Here are highlights.
The Quartier Fall: Giant Waterfall Inside Shopping Mall
In the middle of EmQuartier, there is a huge waterfall feature starting from almost the top of the building cascading down towards the ground. The complex was designed similar to a small canyon with this great waterfall feature in the middle between the 3 surrounding buildings. This mesmerising feature and the attempt to blend the greenery into the urban shopping mall in every corner is the core aesthetic of EmQuartier.
To get the full view of this waterfall up close, I personally recommend you to take a cup of coffee at %Arabica shop on the M floor where you can access directly from the BTS sky train station. They do have the semi-outdoor balcony space where you can sip a cup of coffee while facing the waterfall. Other cafes such as TrueCoffee and D’ARK also have huge windows where you can enjoy the view of this iconic feature as well.You can also take a photo at any walkway or corridor which connects between each building.
Unique Dining Experience at Helix Quartier
Dining is a form of art. I found that EmQuatier took this concept seriously. The main dining hall at EmQuartier is located at the Helix Quartier which is the left building when you access from the BTS skytrain. Here you will feel as if you are walking in a museum where you can enjoy art pieces along the slightly inclined walkway. But instead of an art piece, there are numerous restaurants along the walkway. This unique design of a “vertical dining hall” offers access to window spaces for every restaurant in this dining hall, which means you can enjoy the view of the city from any restaurant and create a more pleasant dining experience. Moreover, the dining hall is decorated using the real plants along the walkway, which truly enhances the theme of city jungle and perfectly blends the vibe of urban museum and nature together.
At the entrance to this main dining hall on the 5th floor, the Helix Garden welcomes you. This is a semi-outdoor garden with real plants and small water features. Here you can sit around, enjoy the view of the Prompong area and Benchasiri Park. You can find a small Starbucks which is quite rare to find a Starbucks located at the high floor. I tried the Starbucks here once, it feels like you are sitting in a green house surrounded with trees which is another unique feeling you will find in a Starbucks.
Going up from the garden to the 6th floor, here is the starting point of this vertical dining hall until the 9th floor. The price of food here is not expensive and there are several choices of cuisine you can choose such as Thai, Japanese, Korean, Chinese, Vietnamese and Western. For example, Luk kaithong, a Thai restaurant which got a Michelin guide for Pang Cha menu, an ice flake and bread on top with Thai tea. Four Seasons Chinese restaurants. Maisen, a Japanese tonkatsu specialized. Scoozi, an urban pizza restaurant.
If you prefer a more easy going dining or even a fast food, you can also visit the B floor (basement) of the Waterfall Quartier, the building in the middle where the waterfall is located. There you will find a food court and more easy going restaurants.
Seamless Luxury Shopping Experience
During the renovation of Emporium since covid time, many luxury shops were relocated to EmQuartier, and after the renovation there were also more luxury brands in Emporium. This creates a continuation of luxury shopping experiences from the Emporium to EmQuartier.
Luxury shops are located at both Helix Quartier and Glass Quartier, which is the right building when you access from the BTS skytrain.
At Helix Quartier, most of the shops here are the luxury brands which are located on G floor (ground level), M floor (1 level above the ground) until the 1st floor. Brands here are Channel, Saint Laurent, Massimo Dutti, etc. On the 2nd floor, there will be fashion brands such as Fred Perry, Jim Thompson, Lyn Around, etc. The 3rd floor are electronics shops and the 4th floor is a Spa and services such as hair salon.
At Glass Quartier, for me the brands here vary from luxury to premium and the retailing space at some floors are shared and able to walk towards the Waterfall Quartier building. It can be a bit confusing to find the way out. On G floor is the Beauty Gallery where you can file multiple cosmetic brands. On the M floor which is directly accessible from BTS skytrain, this is the place for luxury brands such as Alexander Wang, Maison Kitsuné, Gentle Monster, etc.
The 1st floor of the Glass Quartier onwards, these are the starting point of the premium brands. Here you will find a huge Zara shop, offering both men and women, facing directly to the H&M. On the 2nd floor, there is Uniqlo, a Japanese everyday apparels, facing directly to the Muji, a Japanese minimalistic brand. The 3rd floor is Kinokuniya, a bookstore offering both English, and Thai books. On this floor, there is also another area for electronics shops as well.
Opening hours
The EmQuartier opens everyday from 10:00 until 22:00.
Entrance fee
No entrance fee.
How to get there?
- BTS
This is the most convenient way to come to the EmQuartier. Get off the BTS skytrain at Prompong station. Here you walk towards the exit no. 1 or 2 using the skywalk and you will see the entrance of the EmQuartier right there.
- MRT
If you stay in another location where MRT is more convenient for you, you can take MRT to Sukhumvit station. From here you can take the BTS skytrain from Asok to Prompong station, which is only 1 station and the cost should be 17 THB (~0.5 USD) per single ride per person.
