Ruby’s Reveals Its Next Chapter Through a New Cocktail Menu of Thirteen Precious Stones
Ruby’s, the intimate cocktail bar at Kimpton Maa-Lai Bangkok, launches Volume 2 of its narrative cocktail menu on 1 October 2026, with 13 new drinks, each based on a precious stone and each revealing new facets of the story the bar has been telling since 2024. Volume 2 arrives to coincide with the sixth anniversary of Kimpton Maa-Lai Bangkok.
Ruby’s cocktail menu volume 2, Transformation, continues the story of the bar’s fictional character and muse, Ruby, as she moves into a new chapter, experiences new emotions, creates new memories and slowly discovers who she is again. The journey is told across a cocktail menu of precious stones. Every element carries meaning: the ingredients chosen, the way the drink is made, how it tastes and the experience of how it arrives in front of the guest. Together they express both the symbolic significance of the stone and where Ruby stands in her story. Volume 1 left its central character in heartbreak. Volume 2 concerns what follows and takes the themes of recovery, self-discovery and transformation as its subject. The idea of transformation runs through the making as much as the storytelling. Ingredients arrive as one thing and are infused, fat-washed, clarified and fermented into another.
“With Ruby’s launched in late 2024 with such a strong story, it’s only natural for us to enter the next chapter with our Volume 2,” says Patrick Both, General Manager of Kimpton Maa-Lai Bangkok. “Featuring new, fascinating gems for guests to discover, we wanted to offer more dimension and more options, also for our regulars. We’re excited to have the friends of Ruby’s experiencing these new drinks, created by Bar & Beverage Manager Andreas ‘Andi’ Kaltenmark and executed by the talented Ruby’s bartending team.”
A Peek at Five Stones from Volume 2
Diamond — Pale gold, perfectly clear, with a hand-cut ice pyramid rising from the coupe like a rough stone waiting to be worked. Tequila and mezcal are joined by sake, vermouth, rooibos and pear, then clarified with milk into something floral and light, with a trace of smoke from the mezcal. The Cullinan, the largest rough diamond ever found, had to be broken into nine before it became what it is remembered as.
Jadeite — One of the most arresting drinks on the menu, a luminous green lit from beneath, with a spoonful of gold-flecked ikura resting across the rim. Japanese whisky and matcha liqueur with yuzu, lychee and a house-made wasabi cordial. The wasabi arrives as a jolt; the salinity settles it; what follows is balance, and the particular calm of standing somewhere very old.
Fire Opal — Set alight as it is served with a live flame streaking across the surface. Tequila infused with tortilla, chilli liqueur steeped in Thai tea, white cacao and green bell pepper, habanero syrup and agave: spiced, earthy, with chocolate running underneath. Named for the Mexican stone that ancient Mesoamerican cultures knew as the bird of paradise and built around the embers that never quite went out.
Sunstone — A savoury cocktail built on Rémy Martin 1738 cognac and Cocchi Americano Bianco with bacon, blue cheese, tomato shrub and Thai coriander, developed through infusion and fermentation over several weeks. The flavours of an American diner, rebuilt as something considerably more refined. It shouldn’t work, and then it does.
Amethyst — Deep ruby, milk-punch clarified, with a dusting of seasoning around the rim that’s designed to be licked off after the last sip. Islay gin and Lanna vodka with açai, vanilla, butterfly pea and citrus: berry-sweet and refreshing, elegant in the glass right up to the moment the rim gets licked. The Greeks and Romans carved drinking cups from amethyst believing it would keep them sober. This one won’t.
Low ABV & Zero-Proof Cocktails
Reflecting growing demand for no- and low-alcohol drinking, the Ruby’s Volume 2 menu includes several low ABV and zero-proof options which are developed with the same techniques and given the same emotional weight as the rest of the menu.
Recognition
Ruby’s has been named a Finalist for Best Hotel Bar at the BK B.A.D. Awards 2025 and listed among Thailand’s 10 Best Bars by Travel + Leisure Southeast Asia: Tastemakers 2024.
Ruby’s seats 16 guests on the L Floor of Kimpton Maa-Lai Bangkok and is open daily from 5:30 p.m. until late. Dress code is evening chic, and booking is advised.
Call: +66 (0)2 056 9999
Email: Rubys.KimptonMaalai@ihg.com