Vertigo & Moon Bar Rooftop — Restaurant in Thung Maha Mek Subdistrict

TL;DR: We waited 4 HOURS to finish a sub-par $300+ four course meal on our honeymoon.

We had a reservation for 6pm when they opened. We arrived a bit early and they only made us wait a few minutes while they were still getting tables ready. This gave us a chance to enjoy the view and take pictures on the skywalk. Our table had lovely 360 views of the city which we thoroughly enjoyed. Our waitress was very friendly and got our drink orders in pretty quickly. However, this is where the reasonable response time stopped.

After waiting about 20 minutes, we finally got our drinks which were watered down at best (especially for the price). We then got our food orders in when we received our drinks. I got the 4 course set menu with a wine pairing while my wife got one without a pairing. The first course arrived around 7pm. I got the “famous” duck salad which was basically a bunch of greens thrown on top of four small pieces of overcooked duck drowned in hoisin sauce. My wife’s ceviche was actually quite good and a reasonable portion for the price.

We then waited 1 hour for the soup course (which is typically pre-made and sitting in a warmer) to be served. Though it had a piece of lobster in it, the soup was underwhelming in taste and watery in texture. It took us about two minutes to finish, only to wait another twenty minutes to receive our palette cleanser, a small scoop of raspberry sorbet.

The ridiculous wait times continued as we went on to wonder where our main course was for another 45 minutes. To our server’s credit, she finally approached us to apologize for the delay and let us know that the kitchen was backed up. Around 8:45pm, we received our salmon and steak dishes with a gimmicky countdown reveal when taking off the food covers simultaneously. Though the food tasted good, it was nowhere near worth the price. We were also ravenous and stone cold sober at this point, so we scarfed the food down as soon as it hit the table.

We decided that we’d ask for the bill as soon as dessert came which was around 9:15pm. The waitress acknowledged that we asked for the bill, but continued on to do other things and serve other parties. She took the time to force us to put on our best fake smiles for a picture that she made us retake because my “wife’s eyes were closed” when they clearly weren’t. The hilarious cherry on top of all this is they brought out a “birthday” cake for my wife (whose birthday is in May) which we are assuming was meant for our honeymoon. The gesture was thoughtful, but kept us there much longer than necessary.

Though the server forgot the third wine pairing, a busser brought us two glasses of Yellowtail Moscato (which costs less than $6 a bottle) well after we finished dessert and let us know it was compliments of the chef. When you’re paying this much money for a wine pairing, you would expect to get higher quality wine as well as served with the course it was meant to be served with. After asking a second time for the bill, and waiting another 20 minutes, we finally received it around 9:40 and were asked to continue waiting for the complimentary picture that they took of us (that we didn’t ask for).

We checked the bill and saw that we were still charged for all of the wine that came with the pairing after being told the last one would be free since it came very late. At this point, our bodies hurt from sitting so much, so we decided to let it go so that we could leave quickly. After waiting another ten minutes and the waitress once again doing other things, I got up and walked over to her to ask for the photo so that we can leave. Only then did she actually go to retrieve the photo and give it to us close to 10pm. We were about to leave without filling the feedback survey, but the waitress saw that it was blank and forced us to leave feedback before we left. My wife scribbled down some words and we were finally released from this ridiculous experience.

If you want to come here for the good views and a drink, go for it. Otherwise, really think about what you’re getting...

The view was stunning. We’ve been up here twice, once for the bar and another for dinner.

The review on service is split into two- before and after the incident with children.

Before the children, the service was great. The staff was attentive and engaged in light banter, explaining the appetisers as they were presented.

Then the children happened - when we were about done with the appetisers, another group of diners arrived, sitting behind us with their children. Given the ambience of the fine dining establishment, proper decorum should be observed. Yes, even and especially so for children! Keeping quiet and remaining seated are reasonable expectations.

However, their children were all over, spilling into our personal space. By this, i mean they squeezed themselves between our seats and the edge (and we had the table on the side!). They were right up against the back of our chairs and when my friend told them to return to their seats, they did nothing. Their parents did nothing as well.

Though the children are not the fault of the management, they could have stepped in and intervened, reminding the parents that there are other customers as well. But they did nothing.

So we stood up and went to the bar, requesting for another table away from them.

They did give us a table far away, but it was after a rather long wait (30mins) without any updates in between. In fact, i had to walk up and ask if they had one available (as we were ready to go elsewhere) before they escorted us to our new seating.

The service after the incident with the children is just lacking.

As for the food, it is good (fresh, especially the fish and the prawns). We had the Miyazaki steak as well. Temperature was right and it was outright delicious. There’s just a slight disconnect between the pricepoint and taste.

So in a nutshell, Vertigo gets marked down for weak service recovery (otherwise, 5 stars). I would give it 4 stars for the food, and 5 for view/ambience, and...

I had high expectations for Vertigo & Moon Rooftop Restaurant, particularly given its reputation and prestigious location at the Banyan Tree. Sadly, this experience was marred by an appalling level of disorganisation, unprofessionalism, and downright discourtesy from the staff and management, which turned what should have been an exceptional evening into a regrettable ordeal.

Our booking was made three months in advance, with a substantial advance payment required. One would expect, at the very least, a smooth experience considering this arrangement. However, as soon as it started raining, the evening descended into absolute chaos. There was no clear plan in place for inclement weather, and the staff’s response was not only poorly managed but also shockingly unhelpful. Guests were left to fend for themselves amid the downpour, with no guidance, shelter, or apology from the team.

The bar and restaurant attendants exhibited a level of rudeness I would never anticipate from a supposedly fine establishment. Any attempt to seek assistance or even basic information was met with dismissive responses. The manager, rather than providing any leadership or reassurance, was similarly unhelpful and showed little concern for the discomfort and frustration of guests. It was astonishing to witness such indifference, particularly given the venue’s reputation and pricing.

What was meant to be a refined dining experience at a renowned rooftop venue turned into a frustrating waste of time, energy, and expense. For an establishment positioned as a high-end dining destination, Vertigo & Moon fell alarmingly short in terms of both service quality and guest experience. Sadly, I cannot in good conscience recommend it, especially considering the lack of basic hospitality and preparedness displayed...