After about a year of construction, our superstar, Davika “Mai” Hoorne finally has launched her very own cafe.
Mai didn’t just put her name on the place. The lakorn darling and Pee Mak star was said to be involved from designing the logo herself to helping develop the bakery recipes. Of course, with great celebrity comes great promotional power.
And that’s really the problem with Misstar Cafe by Davika. Unless you’re a superfan, there’s not much reason to travel to its remote location beyond a taste of celeb fantasy and heavy product placement by Davika Inc.
Case in point: The centerpiece of the cafe is a large table piled with Misstar-branded products for sale. Star Sticks (milk, pink, dark and white chocolate, THB80), air freshener (in 21 aromas, THB120), hats, bags and solid perfume. On our recent visit, this was taking up space that could have been used for diners forced to sit outside in the garden, which might be lovely in the British countryside, but not under a scorching Bangkok summer sun.
Taking a cue from Starbucks, Mai also sells her own plastic glasses that can be used for a THB10 discount on subsequent refills. Except THB800 per cup means one would need to drink 80 cups of the coffee to recoup the investment.
Of course this is exactly what will appeal to her base and most of those making the journey to indulge their fandom. Proximity to Mai (her home is nearby) and the fairy tale ambience achieved by the decor and grounds are the main reasons to come here. With a British-style garden and angel statues, this is the new la-la-land for Bangkokians and Mai’s fans to explore and snap lots of new profile pictures. Who knows, if you’re lucky enough, you just might rub elbows with Mai and her showbiz pals who drop in.
The menu covers general dishes you’d expect to find at any cafe in Bangkok, from single-item dishes to Western sweets such as Red Velvet cupcake (THB80), Misstar Macaroon (THB45) and fancy drinks. Food also ranges from Western to Thai: Cheesy spinach bake (THB120), Meat lasagna (THB120) and Khua Kling on rice (Southern-style, dry pork curry, THB120).
Davika “Mai” Hoorne at the grand opening of her Misstar Cafe this past Saturday. Photo: Misstar Cafe on Instagram
Of course Thai celebrityhood means having a secondary – in some cases primary – source of revenue pimping stuff over social media. Misstar Cafe by Davika is all over Instagram with lovely images of what the place looks like and the food and drinks it serves.
Much like a magazine cover model, seeing the real deal brought some disappointments. Instead of the folksy Mason jar-drinking glasses as pictured, drinks come in plastic cups with plastic lids. The fruity Italian sodas (THB90) contain not a slice of kiwi nor cherry, and the Lemon Pie Cup (THB120) fails to deliver the promised whip cream and sliced strawberry. I’d complain about the lack of a star-shaped drizzle of cocoa powder on the Hot Chocolate (THB70), but it would belabor the point: While the baked items are quite enjoyable, this is not a place people are going to come for the heights of gastronomy.
But at these prices, we deserve to get what’s shown on the menu. Being a soft-opening, the staff was still figuring out the service thing when we visited. A bunch of guests stood around in front of the counter, looking for some hint as to what to do. After awhile we figured out that we needed to write down our orders on a provided paper. These things will likely get sorted out after a while.
The biggest barrier to a casual visit is the distance. It’s located far, faraway from downtown in the Sai Mai district of Pathum Thani. If you take a taxi from MRT Lat Phrao, it will cost around THB140, aka the cost of lunch somewhere closer to home.
Once you manage to find the cafe signpost, there’s no way to miss it, because it’s surrounded by nothing. Seriously. Nothing.
FIND IT:
Misstar Cafe by Davika
Opposite Big C
Sukhapiban 5
