By now you may have realised that I am more than a little obsessed with themed restaurants.
There was the hospital and Hello Kitty themed restaurants in Taipei, the dog cafe and cat cafe in Seoul, the hedgehog cafe in Japan, and the Obama and hobbit themed restaurants in the Philippines.
It’s safe to say that themed restaurants have now become my “thing” and upon arriving at a new destination the first thing I do is scout out a list of crazy and unique things to do.
Bangkok was no exception.

After checking into my hostel, I grabbed my bag and headed out to what was about to be my craziest themed restaurant experience by far.
Cabbages and Condoms.
Yes, a condom themed restaurant.
So, why the bizarre name? Simply put, the founder believes that “birth control should be as accessible and as easy to buy as vegetables in the market!” The restaurant uses jokes and fun visuals to overcome reluctance to discuss issues such as sex, family planning, and HIV/AIDS.
It was amazing.
The restaurant is set in a beautiful courtyard filled with trees and low-hanging vines that were adorned with hundreds of fairy lights. Everywhere I looked I spotted more and more condoms – the lights hanging from the trees, the lamp on our table, the flowers in the bathroom – they were all covered in condoms!

With an extensive menu of over fifty pages of Thai food, my friend and I opted to try the green curry, papaya salad and chicken wings (my safety option).
According to my friend the food was much less spicier than the versions you would normally find elsewhere in Thailand. However, as I find anything that contains even the slightest bit of flavour too much to handle, I hyperventilated silently at the table and stuck to the chicken wings.
After paying for the meal, we were given a free condom in place of an after dinner mint.

I didn’t want to leave so I grabbed my camera and spent the next half an hour strolling around the restaurant taking photos of the ingenious statues and decorations.
I even found my future wedding dress.
The level of detail used to create the statues was astounding – the small studs that can be seen on the costumes were actually birth control pills!
As well as the restaurant, there was a bar called The Captain Condom, which featured condom lamps, condom flowers, a condom ship and amazing condom flower decorations on the walls.

I visited close to Christmas and the restaurant was decorated accordingly with lots of Santa statues and even a condom Christmas tree!
My favourite statue had to be the one of Tiger Woods. It came complete with a condom golf club and sign saying “Did you use them Tiger?” Genius.
Every single statue was incredible and I can’t even begin to imagine how long it would take to plan and create one of them.
As I ran out of statues to take photos of it was sadly time for me to leave, but not without taking a free condom from the box by the exit, available in Republican and Democrat size.

Cabbages and Condoms was without a doubt the best themed restaurant I’ve ever visited.
Whilst not the cheapest food option in Bangkok by far, Cabbages and Condoms is a fun and unique way of getting people talking about development, birth control and safe sex – something that not many restaurants can claim to do!
I’ve found most themed restaurants to be gimmicky with terrible food, but Cabbages and Condoms didn’t fit this stereotype. I’d definitely return whenever I next find myself in Bangkok.
Cabbages and Condoms is located at 10 Sukhumvit Soi 12, Bangkok and is open daily from 11am to 10pm.
This place looks awesome!!! Those statues really are amazing. I would totally go here!
It was SO amazing, I kinda want to go back in a few weeks :)
Ha ha, oh my gosh. Such a creative and considerate idea :-) Erm… what was for dessert?
Hahahaha, isn’t it brilliant?! :)
Looks pretty awesome, I wish I could eat there…
Yeah, it was pretty badass!
What a brilliant idea to get people talking about otherwise taboo topics. Defusing the conversation with a bit of humour certainly helps!
Definitely! I was surprised to see the restaurant was full of families too.
Must have visited the restaurant to late.
Ha! :-)
I was planning to go there but unfortunately never made it there. Next time then. Sounds very interesting :D
Definitely go next time, it was one of the highlights of my time in Bangkok!
brilliant :D and out of the themed restaurants i read about on your blog, definitely the best and most creative!
It will definitely be hard to top this one!
I LOVE that you went there!
That sounds and looks awesome! I wish I had known about it when I was in bangkok. I especially like how their food is guaranteed not to cause pregnancy, always good to know!
LMAO how do you find these place – those statue things are AMAZING xxx
Omigod, that’s amazing Lauren! How the hell do you find these places?! Haha
This places looks AMAZING. Seriously amazing. Must. Go. Soon! =)
Haha! This is hilarious and brilliant at the same time. Love it!
Ahh, this place sounds so awesome! I cannot wait to check it out when I’m in Bangkok soon.
Not sure if it would rank better than The Hobbit House in Boracay Island though… ;-)
Was super weirded out by the name, but what a cool concept! All for more talk of safe sex and family planning–and yes, condoms SHOULD be as easy to buy as cabbages!–but the statues are actually incredibly cool. Thanks for highlighting!
I was here a few years back and loved it!
This is one of the most hilarious things ever!
HAHAHA ohmygod Lauren, this is AMAZING.
Now, I don’t mean to sound naive but…Republican and Democrat size? Which is the bigger one? I’m not too tuned in to that aspect of US politics.
If you ever make it back to Taipei, they have a toilet themed restaurant there. You eat ice cream out of things shaped like toilets!!
If only they had these in the UK, maybe we wouldn’t have the highest teen pregnancy rate in Europe lol!
I had the same thought about the Republican vs. Democrat condoms… what was the difference? I have my own guess but, well… I don’t want to give away my political leanings on here. ;)
Freakin’ awesome! I’ve heard of all sorts of odd restaurants in parts of Asia like eating out of toilets. But this is wild! Love the photos! You are right, the Tiger Woods one is hilarious!
I’m totally going there next month!
I love this restaurant! Tried to take my family there when they visited, but for some reason it was vetoed for a family meal.
I’m with you on the flavor thing. It took me a looong time to find my staple dishes here in Thailand. Try chicken cashew nut and massaman curry- much more mild!
Oh, I love this! So quirky, and those condom art pieces around and amazing! AND with a message within the theme! Brilliant! Ha!
I am SO going to try and visit this place when I get to Thailand in a few months time! Lovely, funny article Lauren!
Did the Republican and Democrat condoms come in different sizes?
Ha! I didn’t check :-)
Oh wow, I really want to go here! I’m obsessed with themed restaurants too, have been to at least 20 in Europe and Asia. The condoms look so pretty!
Nice! I love visiting themed restaurants when I travel.
Really interesting! I am going to try and visit this restaurant next time I am in Bangkok! Thanks for the insight and pics.
Glad you enjoyed the post! :-)
Hi Lauren – fantastic blog, really enjoying it and have just ordered your book!
I actually went to this restaurant in May last year! Fantastic isn’t it!
I’m just planning my first solo trip, to Budapest! You’ve really inspired me to just get on and do it, I’ve really held myself back from exploring due to being single, but no more! Eek! Any tips gratefully appreciated :-)
xx
Thank you SO much, Laura! You’ve made my day :-)
That’s fantastic to hear you’ve decided to take your first solo trip — it’ll change your life! I recommend not planning much beyond where you’re going to stay, to pack far less than you think you need, to walk more than you take public transport, to try weird foods, and push yourself out of your comfort zone as much as possible :-). And to try not to panic. I know how hard it can be, but you’ll likely spend weeks/months worrying about it to get on the plane and realise you had nothing to be afraid of after all!
This is quite interesting and creative an idea! I think I would be brave enough to try this out, sounds fun! I wonder what dining here feels like. Lol!
It’s so much fun, especially if you go with a friend! :-)
These pictures are very interesting. What a place to be! Bangkok!
Ha!
Love this post! I have just moved to Bangkok and the school I am working for took us all to Cabbage and Condoms on the first week! We are even going to take the in-laws here when they arrive. I love that it isn’t just a themed restaurant, there is a purpose behind it but also the food is genuinely really good and at great prices.
Looks like so much fun! And for a great cause? An added bonus.