gaijin

You're such a hypocrite. So it's ok for you to complain about the wifi, complain about how hard it is to meet girls, complain they should have pool tables. But when others say they were served raw chicken in a chicken dish you accuse them of lying or something? What you think bolding your words your food was perfect should discredit what others have said? Let me tell you, I was with the OP that night he was served the raw chicken so I saw it with my own two eyes and I know it ain't no lie. There is no intention of smearing, I have said what I've had to say about the place, and you know what? I'll still be going back to eat at PBG. In fact, I eat there more than any other restaurant. So when you eat at a place so much you'd like to see them improve, or at least not go backwards in quality, and i think this is what the thread is really about. But you just LOVE taking all the credit don't you, Dontcha?

Thanks for the tip, I'll keep that in mind.

I've had no experience with seafood prices in Thailand, that's why I'm asking. I said I eat a lot of seafood in the USA, and IMO the Thai food is better in the USA as well, at least where I'm from where we have a Thai community.

No I won't be on my deathbed thinking about that, I eat lobster and crab and all kinds of high end seafood all the time in the US. Truth be told the food and seafood in Thailand is pretty weak when compared to what I eat at home. Even the Thai food is better here. I live in the SF Bay Area and we have some of the best cuisine in the world, so it's not like I feel left out not ordering the lobster/shrimp. I'm just wondering if they were trying to rip me off, and I'm sure as hell not a Cheap Charlie if that's what's you're implying.

So on my recent trip I ate at some seafood place on Walking St. on Valentines Day. I think it was called Kiss, but not sure. They have a lot of outdoor seating right by the water and there's a circular water fountain inside with lots of lobsters in it. So I inquired about a plate of large prawns, about 5-6 on the plate from what the picture showed on the menu. Waitress tells me it's 1800 baht. I'm thinking that's $60 USD! Wow! That's pretty expensive I thought and also thought maybe I was being quoted the rich farang price. Then I inquired about the lobster and it's 3000 baht. That's $100 USD. Now, lobster does not cost that much even in the US, unless it's at a Chinese seafood restaurant where the lobsters are humongous and not your typical lobster you get in Red Lobster or even a fancy steak house. The price range for these super lobsters in higher end Chinese Restaurants can be $200-400 USD, but they are huge and special. I wasn't sure what kind of lobster the ones in this Walking St. restaurant was, but from what I saw they were mostly a lighter color than what I normally see back in the US, and not that big. I seriously thought I was being quoted a higher price than what Thais would get quoted. But if I was certain that wasn't the case, and that's really the going price for seafood in Pattaya, I would have ordered either the prawns or the lobster. Hell it was Valentine's Day and I've got a fistful of baht. It was the thought of getting ripped off that I didn't like. Some things I can live with getting ripped off on, small things. However, somehow this felt different as I am very particular about my food. I would literally be eating and swallowing rip off prices if I was wrong, and that would be unacceptable. So let me ask those of you who are familiar with this restaurant or the prices of seafood in Pattaya, was I being ripped off or was that really the going rate?

I don't really see what's the big deal about Pattaya as a vacation spot for families. There are much nicer places in the world, better beaches elsewhere. Pattaya is for sex, and should stay that way.

I don't understand this part. Bath? Who the hell takes a bath? Why did you care if there was a bathtub or not? Massage? You were there for a massage? Why would you suggest the girl go back to your hotel with you and your friend when you were already there at her place? So were your clothes out of your sight at any time? This is one thing I always have on the back of my head when I go to a ST place like Soi 6 where sometimes the shower is down the hallway and I have to leave my clothes, haven't had anything happen yet though, but I feel uneasy about leaving my clothes out of sight. That is some serious bad luck what happened to you. Remember to always use your safe, and don't stay in room without one. Those girls not wanting to go back to your hotel would have been a serious red flag for me. I would not have gone to their room with them insisting like that, would have thought about getting jumped by multiple Thai guys or something.

Motobike taxis are generally pretty safe IMO. You have to remember it's not just your life they have in their hands its their own as well. I doubt they enjoy risking their own lives. Just watch out at night time for those that might be drunk, shouldn't happen much but did happen to me once and I'm glad I got to my destination in one piece. I always rent my own bikes and don't use them much unless I have to.

Not sure if the whole thing was about saving face, more like she just wanted more baht out of you. If you know the going price on things then you're ahead. I don't like getting ripped off either, and I will bargain any chance I get. Some Thais feel like we're obligated to pay them a handsome price for anything they're selling. That's what gets on my nerves.

What I don't get is why these guys always like to take one 'lady' amongst them. What do they high five while getting their cocks sucked or what?

Those selling flowers on Walking Street. Every single night they were out there one every 2 feet and I just so happen to always be walking with my TG so of course they're always sticking the flowers in my face. Everywhere I turn, it's flowers in my face. I went from being nice and smiling and saying No Thanks to ignoring them, and then to fucking with them pretending I don't understand what they were selling. Then just went back to ignoring. They hate that. The Thais that are always trying to take your picture on Walking St. Same as the flower sellers, they are everywhere. God Fucking Dammit. Between these fuckers and the flower selling fuckers, I dreaded walking down Walking St. It got to a point where I just walked behind my TG so they didn't think I was with her and it kinda worked. Those little girls that sell the glow rings on Walking St. Hate how they just pop out in front you wrapping the ring on your neck, pulling you down to give you a kiss and wrapping themselves around you tightly, and then want you to buy the rings. Feels so fucking dirty. Only allowed that to happen to me once, and never again. Never did buy any from them. I wish no one else would either. These kids don't belong on Walking St.

Yes I've had the money exchangers try to cheat me several times. And no, they won't even apologize when you catch them. They know they got caught stealing. I think they will usually try to pull this stunt when you're changing a lot of money and expect back a fistful of 1000baht notes. Shortchanging you one of those notes happens often. I always, always always always count the money right there in front of them, and I'll do it slowly too to make sure I get it right. I could give a flying fuck if anyone is behind me, haven't had anyone tell me to hurry up before, but if they did I'd tell them to fuck off. I imagine they get more than a few farangs who act all cool and shit and take the money, fold it in half and walk off. They're the real idiots and do everyone a disservice, because it makes these money exchangers think it's ok to steal. My last trip I exclusively went to the exchange shop across from Champagne gogo in LK Metro, they had the best rates in town that I found, and they knew if I exchanged with them I was going to count the money every time, so never had them short change me.

I must say I had some really good fired chicken at one of the foodstands while waiting for my teelack to get her face done in salon. It was so good that the next night I went back for more but it was too late they had gone home.

Most wifi routers can have their passwords easily cracked. So if a hacker really wants to steal your banking info while you're on a hotel wifi then he will. There are ways to lock down and secure your computer, but even those can be cracked by your serious hacker. But I really wouldn't worry about it too much, just don't do banking in a Internet Cafe.

Makes me feel like a chump. That's why I ride a motobike. I'd rather take motobike taxi than have to transfer 2 or 3 baht buses to get to where you're going.

It's probably because of the baht buses existence that the motobike taxi guys can't gouge too much on the price of a ride. Personally I prefer to just rent a bike myself and take myself wherever I wish to go. No need to get off anywhere to transfer. As for passing the baht buses on a motobike, it's a give and go relationship. sometimes they're able to pin you in with another car's bumper and you just have to wait, and sometimes you have plenty of room to squeeze through.

For Internet Banking, you're safer using your own laptop over a wifi connection than a Internet Cafe. At least you can verify that your computer doesn't have a keylogger (records your keystrokes) installed. Most banks have very secure sites to do banking on.

To be fair, shitty service staff is not just at Pattaya Beer Garden. It's all over Thailand. Some of the stupid things they do really amaze me. I'm not talking about shakes anymore. We seem to be divided on that. I ate at Gooses with a TG and ordered a chicken cream soup with my meal. Instead of bringing me chicken cream soup, they bring me french onion soup. And they tell me they wrote it down wrong and would I just like the french onion soup instead. I suppose they didn't think that maybe I wouldn't like french onion soup and would actually say no? That is exactly what I tell them. I don't like being lied to like I'm some kind of fucking idiot. I don't know whether they felt it was just easier to make the french onion soup or what or if they had accidentally started on it and decided to go with it all out and then see what happens? But it's not a good feeling being lied to by service staff. Went to Camel Toe in Ban Chang with a few BM's. Me and Frosty order the same thing off their Menu Special #2, and they bring us something completely different. It looked nasty. Told us that what we had ordered wasn't on the daily special that day, and instead of them coming back to us to tell us so before they made something different for us they just decide for us what we should eat and that was the #2 special for that day that was written on a blackboard across the room that they failed to let us know about. I don't know why they don't just correct the mistake before its too late, they always feel like they have to see the mistake as far as it can go and hope for the best. This must be ingrained into Thai culture I believe. That thing about saving face maybe, and you are expected to help them out. When we told them we didn't want the food they went back and scribbled on the menu we had ordered off of originally and wrote a different date on it and brought back to show it to us as if we were the idiots to have not noticed the menu was for a different day. I don't know if the cost of their mistake is taken off their salary, but maybe taking the job a bit more seriously would help.

If you're worried about all the travel between RG and your ST's, then consider renting a motobike. Don't have to worry about baht bus taxis. I personally found RG to be a little out there, although it is close to Walking ST. It's a nice hotel, and good value for the money. But it does depend on what you like to do and where you like to go. I stayed at View Talay 6 recently and loved the location. Beach Rd, 2nd Road, Pattaya Klang all right there to get me anywhere fast on a motobike.

That's because you gotta order the strawberry! :lol

No I'm not kidding. Actually I've had the excess of a shake given to me many times in bars around the world. While I do not expect it or even think about it, I found it a little insulting that the Thai staff at PBG gave it to another staff right in front of me, they tried to do it without me seeing but I did see it, and they sat a table near me. It's not a big deal to me, just that the gesture was not a positive one. When wait staff does things to irritate customers, the customer has all sorts of thoughts run through their minds. Like, 1.) Do they think I'm stupid and should put up with it? 2.) I feel like I'm getting ripped off. 3.) I'm not leaving a tip. We're bringing up small issues about a place so many of us would like to see improve and continue to go back to.

Hey all, I actually didn't use the lounges when I got to the airport. But ended up having a TG who I spent about 8-9 nights with go with me to the airport to send me off. After I checked in we went to a little Thai food place to sit and have some drinks. But good to hear some of the suggestions, I will try them if I need to my next trip.

Some of them were really acting up in Ibar about 5 nights ago. They may or may not have been drunk but sure were loud, and that's pretty hard to do with the loud music in Ibar. Two of them tried to steal my girl away unsuccessfully, my girl was smart enough to stay with me than risk getting gang banged by the horny bastards who probably weren't going to pay anyways.

Just one more thing out of me about Beer Garden. One night last week I went to eat with a TG, and I ordered one of those strawberry shakes. Now I'm not sure what the custom is in Thailand with the extra shake they usually put into the shaker or another glass, but I would think they would give it to the customer. Now on this night, several wait staff were sitting around perhaps on their break at a table not far from mine and diagonally across. One of the wait staff brings a glass of strawberry shake that was perhaps halfway full to the wait staff table and gives it to her buddies. Then she goes back back to the bar and gets my glass, which appears to be a smaller glass than what she had served to them. I wasn't too impressed with this idea of giving my strawberry shake to her buddies when I paid for it, especially I could have shared it with my lady friend. Yea I know they are less fortunate than I, but doing this in front of me and then trying to cover it up just rubbed me the wrong way. I didn't say anything, but this thread would probably be the right place to voice it.

Yea its getting really hit or miss at the Beer Garden lately. Sometimes the food comes fairly quick and sometimes you wait an hour. They really need to shape that kitchen up.