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Charley Brown’s Mexicana (Restaurant) Charley Brown’s Mexicana is Thailand’s oldest Mexican restaurant. It originated in Wichita Kansas and has been in Bangkok since 1992. Its clientele consists mainly of expats and local Thais with tourists making up the numbers.

History Its roots began in Wichita, Kansas with the singer songwriter Dan Loveland. In 1974 his band released Billy Don’t be a Hero https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billy_Don%27t_Be_a_Hero This song was featured in movies such as Quentin Tarantino’s Reservoir Dogs, Priscilla Queen of the Desert and also in Stephen King’s novel The Stand. After success with the band, Dan Loveland bought the franchise to a local restaurant named Charley Brown’s. In 1992 he relocated to Bangkok Thailand. Unable to find any Mexican food, he built a factory and a restaurant in Town in Town, Ramkamhaeng, Bangkok. The original restaurant was almost a museum of Americana. The walls were decorated with thousands of beer cans, road signs, hub caps and neon advertising lights. Some of the highlights included a 1950’s gas pump from Balley Center in Kansas, an original 1958 Blodgett pizza oven as used by Pizza Hut’s Dan Carney and two car fronts from a 1971 Ford Torino https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_Torino and a 1970 Cadillac Monte Carlo https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chevrolet_Monte_Carlo. After 12 years, Dan decided to close the restaurant to concentrate on the factory that produces corn chips and tortillas. A regular guest seized the opportunity and offered to buy the restaurant. Gordon Ellard, an Englishman born in Thailand, moved the location to Soi 11 Sukhumvit Road https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sukhumvit_Road Soi 11 in 1992 consisted of Cheap Charlies’ Bar – a popular hangout for expats and tourists. And a new nightclub called QBar which originated in Saigon, Vietnam. Over the next 13 years, Soi 11 grew into Bangkok’s most popular nightlife street. In 2016, plans for redevelopment of the area were announced and the land was sold. Charley Brown’s Mexicana relocated to its current location in Sukkhumvit Soi 19, close to the Terminal 21 shopping mall in March 2017. During the time it has been open, it has weathered massive floods, political upheaval, several coups and the death of King Bhumibol Adulyadej https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bhumibol_Adulyadej

Food Since its inception, its focus has been mainly on homemade Tex-Mex food and margaritas. In 2017, Mexican Chef Primo Rivera joined the team. After working at prestigious restaurants in Cabo San Lucas, he began adding innovative, new dishes to the menu such as Berenjena Maria (crispy eggplant with goats cheese) and Ceviche Tropical (seabass marinated with lime, coconut milk, chili and mango.

Events Charley Brown’s hosts regular events. The most popular of which is its Cinco de Mayo https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cinco_de_Mayo party. Every Monday it is home to the largest Bachata https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bachata_(dance)