Firefly’s Golden Hour
In the low amber light of Firefly Bangkok, time seems to move gently — as if every moment knows it might be the last. Jazz hums through the room like a held breath. Behind the bar, Dicky Hartono, Beverage Manager of Firefly Bar at Sindhorn Kempinski Hotel Bangkok, moves with meditative focus. His movements are measured, his gaze calm, his energy still. The scent of citrus oil and polished oak lingers — graceful and grounded, like the bartender himself.
For Dicky, Firefly isn’t about spectacle. It’s about creating a space where people can simply be. “Once they step inside Firefly, guests can freely express and be themselves,” he says. “There’s no pretension in our service style — if you want quiet, we’ll give you quiet. If you want to talk, we’re there.”
That belief breathes through every detail: the hush of the lighting, the rhythm of its service, the jazz that wraps around the room like silk. Firefly is the kind of bar that doesn’t shout for attention — it earns it by giving you space to exhale.
A Journey Across Borders
Dicky’s path winds across continents — from Dubai and Oman to Shanghai, Beijing, and Manila, before finding rhythm in Bangkok.
“Each city shaped me,” he reflects. “They taught me to value different cultures — and to always try to understand things from another person’s point of view.”
At the heart of his worldview lies an Indonesian proverb he carries wherever he goes: Di mana bumi dipijak, di situ langit dijunjung — where the land is stepped, there the sky is upheld. That saying has guided me everywhere,” he says. “It reminds me to respect local culture — to learn before I act, to arrive with an empty glass ready to be filled.
That humility, the art of unlearning and relearning, pulses quietly through Firefly’s DNA. Beneath the glow and polish is a bar that listens first and performs second.
Between Control and Instinct
For Dicky, bartending is a dance between control and intuition. “You learn to read people — their body language, their eyes, their tone. You know when to speak, and when to stay silent.”
He smiles when asked about hospitality trends. “The most important thing,” he says, “is not to fake your hospitality — it should come from your heart.”
He draws inspiration from the Japanese philosophy Ichi-Go Ichi-E — One chance, one encounter. “Every second with a guest count – you never know when you’ll meet that guest again.”
Even as Bangkok’s cocktail scene grows louder and flashier, Firefly feels timeless — a place where craftsmanship and emotion intertwine.
The Firefly Experience
When guests leave Firefly, Dicky doesn’t want them to remember the drink first — he wants them to remember how they felt. “If they feel good, they’ll remember everything else.”
There’s something cinematic about Firefly — half dream, half memory: a saxophone murmuring in the corner, whisky gleaming in a crystal glass, a bartender who makes you feel seen without ever intruding.
Firefly’s hospitality doesn’t perform; it simply welcomes. Its beauty lies in restraint — the stillness between notes, the patience between pours. “Hospitality is empathy in motion. We serve people, not cocktails.”
Guiding the Team
Beyond the bar counter, Dicky’s calm extends to how he leads his team. He speaks of mentorship with quiet pride — not as authority, but as collaboration. “I tell my team, don’t just learn recipes, learn people.”
He believes every bartender should build emotional intelligence as much as technical skill. “Anyone can learn technique,” he says. “But what separates great bartenders from good ones is awareness — how you make people feel seen, how you listen, how you move around energy.”
That mindset has shaped Firefly’s close-knit bar team — polished yet human, elegant yet warm. “Less ego, less problem. We take our work seriously — but not ourselves.”
Within Bangkok’s Bright Scene
Firefly sits in the heart of one of the world’s great cocktail capitals. In 2025, it was named among Thailand’s 20 Best Bars, landing at #9 — alongside peers like Dry Wave Cocktail Studio, Bar Us, G.O.D., and Vesper.
Special recognitions this year also went to Dry Wave Cocktail Studio (Best Bar Team & Menu Design), BKK Social Club (Best Hotel Bar & Art of Hospitality), Wasteland (Best New Bar), and The Fool Speakeasy (Best Bar in Phuket/Samui) — proof of how vibrant and supportive Bangkok’s bar scene has become. “The beauty of this city,” Dicky says, “is that every bar stays true to its DNA.”
He sees the recognition not as competition, but as a shared victory. “We support each other — it’s not rivalry, it’s an ecosystem. Firefly will always be Firefly. We don’t need to be someone else to be accepted.”
The Final Light
As the night slows, the last guests drift away. The music softens. The light clings to the bottles like memory. Dicky wipes down the counter, moving with the same patience he began the night with — still calm, still present. “We’re here to make moments feel human,” he says quietly. “That’s the heart of it.”
At Firefly, that heart flickers everywhere — in the amber glow, the cadence of jazz, and the feeling that for one night, you were exactly where you needed to be.
