If you’re one of the swarms of Marc Jacobs–toting girls who flood into Sapa like a Vietnamese monsoon after a long day of arranging “desk-sides,” you already know this, but the place has a great happy hour from 5 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.: $5 specialty cocktails and martinis (and generous ones at that) mean you’ll be sloshed by nightfall. So be careful not to topple over in those Jimmy Choos when you descend the steps, flanked by gauze-covered lightbulbs, into the restrooms.
Concept: An underground lair with a burbling concrete pool and a row of six chinoiserie doors — we’ve found Genghis Khan’s tomb!
Privacy: Plenty in the WCs until some confused soul tries to push open your door.
Amenities: Bamboo-paneled walls; a tropical frond poking out of the sink; a basin wide enough to bathe a toddler in.
Drawbacks: No urinals for those who prefer standing up. Oh, wait: There is that pool.
Strategy: Since service here can be atrocious, feel free to hide out in the bathroom reciting your mantra/drink order: pomegranate Cosmo … pomegranate Cosmo …
Rating: