Our daughter (8) would like to see a Thai dance show as well as eat dinner at a riverside restaurant (same night, different night?). Thinking we could make the best of our time, we are thinking either Sala Rim Nam (Oriental's) or Supatra River House. It will be either a Friday or Saturday night. Can anyone recommend one over the other?

kim---we found the food at the oriental show to be only so so....you sit on low tables with your legs handing down into a pit, which might appeal to an 8 year old

I've heard good things about Supatra. You also get a free nice boat ride there - I think they'll pick you up from the Oriental pier. Supatra is right next door to Ibrik on the River. You could have a look inside for a future trip to Bangkok. It a fantasic little gem with an amazing location. I'd suggest going to their open cafe overlooking the river. either before or after dinner. I'll bet your daughter would love that. There's also a cheaper, more casual Thai restaurant right by Supatra where I ate several times. It's good. I have a feeling the best Thai dancing won't be found in the tourist restaurants. You may want to check out the dance schools and arrange a visit there. There's also a theater of performing arts right by Ibrik. I'll try to remember the name.

I know that we won't find the best dancing at a dinner place, but I don't think she's going to notice The riverside is for us, the dancing for her, and hopefully food isn't too bad. The nearby theater the Patravadi, isn't it? They have shows, but their schedule for January isn't out yet.

KimJapan – maybe another option to consider might be a dinner cruise. I don’t know if they are all the same, but the one that my daughter and I took (www.loynava.com) included music and dancing. Again, not the best of Thai food or dancing, but combined with the cruise might be a really nice activity for your daughter.

Note: I just checked Loy Nava’s website and they don’t mention dancing. Maybe they’ve eliminated the dancing since we were there in summer 2004.

KimJapan, yes that's the place I was thinking of. Never saw a performance there, but it looks very interesting and I hope to go one of these days. I just saw the information below on their website. Maybe your daughter would enjoy the Thai dance class for children.

Foreigners can join our Thai classical classes Fridays and Saturdays. Foreigners are welcome to join our Thai classical dance classes every Friday and Saturday and Sunday in the garden of Patravadi theatre. 150 Baht per class.

Friday
Thai classical mask (khon) dance at 5.00-6.00 pm

Saturday
2.00-3.00 pm Northern Drum
2.30 -3.30 pm Thai classical dance class for children
4.30 - 6.00 pm for adult

Sounds very interesting to me!