Evil Penevil

This isn't the breakast I had this morning, but I wish it had been. Ham and eggs with pancakes and maple syrup on the side. I had that meal at a classic diner in Edison, NJ, in 2012, but I didn't rediscover the SD with them until a few days ago. A thick slice of Virginia ham is hiding under the eggs. A delicious chicken wrap for brunch the day before: The diner: Evil

That's what I would say, too. This to me is bubble and squeak: But of course there are many variations inside and outside the U.K.. My dad didn't like boiled cabbage and I can't remember ever having it as a side dish as a child. My mom used to make what she called "cowboy bubble and squeak" that used the vegetables likely to appear on our Sunday table, such as corn, peas and carrots. Evil

I never eat beans, canned tomatoes or black pudding for breakfast, so those items would be untouched on my plate. Fried mushrooms are OK if made with fresh mushrooms and not from a can. My favorite breakfast would be eggs and a thick slice of smoked, bone-in ham, with biscuits on the side, but that's hard to find in the U.S., let alone Pattaya. I like hashbrowns and fried potatoes, but not for breakfast. As said, I don't eat a fried breakfast often enough to be good source of Pattaya breakfast info. Evil

I very seldom eat fried food in the morning, so I'm a poor source of information on traditional Western breakfasts in Pattaya. But a few times a year I will feel like bacon and eggs for breakfast and this was one of those mornings. The posts about bubble and squeak had also picqued my appetitite, since it has been years since I last had that old favorite. I ate at Nicky's on Soi Bukhao and had the two eggs, two rashers variation that was served on three pieces of toast. I also asked for a small order of bubble and squeak.* I got two extra large, very fresh eggs that were perfectly cooked. The back bacon slices were generous and tasty, clearly good-quality stuff. The three slices of toast had begun the morning as thick slices of fresh white bread, better than most of what you get in Pattaya. The backbone of the meal, the eggs, bacon and toast, was excellent. It was made from quality ingredients that were cooked as they should be. My order came quickly, within 10 minutes, and reached the table warm. However, the bubble and squeak was a disappointment. The mashed-potato base was fine, but had only a miniscule amount of cabbage and a few bits of diced carrot mixed with it. No onions or other flavorings. Basically, was mashed potatoes that had been reheated in a frying pan. That isn't real bubble and squeak in my book. My "customized breakfast" cost 260 baht (175 for the bacon and eggs, 85 for the bubble and squeak). That's pricey for Pattaya, but the quality of the eggs, bacon and toast justified a premium price for that part of the meal. As said, the bubble and squeak was a letdown, although I had no problem eating it to the last bite. I'm in no way saying Nicky's is one of the best breakfasts in town. I don't eat breakfast enough to make such comparisons. I chose Nicky's because it is only a five-minute walk from where I live and it offers bubble and squeak. Nicky's does have bigger and more economical options for breakfast which include cold cereal, beans, tomatoes, mushrooms and coffee or tea. Bottom line: I was satisfied with my meal, even though the bubble and squeak was misnamed. Evil *For non-Brits reading this, bubble and squeak is a traditional UK fried dish that makes use of leftover vegetables (roast or mash potatoes and cabbage and/or Brussel sprouts) from a Sunday or holiday roast dinner. The leftover veggies are simply fried together with bacon bits and onion. It's not bad at all. The name comes from the sound the ingredients make in the frying pan. The dish is very popular with the older generation in the UK, but has fallen a bit out of favor with younger people. My grandfather loved it and Grandma used to say that bubble and squeak with eggs and sausage on Monday morning was the best part of the Sunday roast dinner for him.

I did five separate Google searches to access Pattaya Talk and no redirects, even when using bad-mojo words as my search term. But the URL4SHORT redirects have never been a problem for me. Whether that depends on luck or my anti-virus protection, I don't know. Evil

Quite a few restaurants that offer a Sunday dinner will have roast potatoes on the menu. I've had roasties at Punch & Judy; Pig & Whistle; Nicky's; Queen Vic; and a few others. However, I've found them to be disappointing for the most part. The explanations I've heard have ranged from the correct sort of potato for roasting not being available in Thailand to the oven not being hot enough. Also, roast potatoes don't do well on a chafing dish, they should be served straight from the oven. Evil

Properly given, advice is about new or missed opportunities, not lambasting people for choices they made in the past. Give advice politely and it will be taken politely. Criticize and condemn people for the choices they make and they will respond with hostility. It's not more complicated than that. The "don't-pay-the-girls-too-much" posts are often condemnation, not advice. It's one thing to write, "You don't have to have to give a girl money to help a sick buffalo, just tell the girl to feed the buffalo a bowl of instant ramen soup," and another to write, "It's mental cripple lame dupe losers like you who are spoiling the girls, driving up prices and ruining the scene for everyone." The first is advice, the second is condemnation and dictating. Of course, the first is not necessarily GOOD advice and the giver probably knows very little about Thai girls or buffalos, but that is beside the point. I would advise anyone who visits Pattaya during the rainy season to carry an umbrella when they go out at night because storms can come up quickly. But if some people disregard that advice, I wouldn't regard them as stupid or egoistic or anything else negative. I'd just figure they don't mind getting wet. In any case, their decision on carrying an umbrella in no way affects me. I'll deal with rainy weather according to my preference and they'll deal with it according to theirs. Same-same when it comes to paying the girls- or for the welfare of buffalos. Evil

I had the same problem with the sudden disappearance of red-green buttons Monday evening and now they are back. Thanks! Evil

It goes back to the year 2000. You can read its history on Snopes. Evil

Evil

I tried searching for "Pattaya Talk" a half-dozen times using Chrome, then clicking on the link and wasn't re-directed once. Never have been, but I usually connect with Talk via a bookmark. Evil

Fine with me. Evil

I'm having my usual sinus problems, but I feel better today, so I'll probably be up for a crawl tonight. Evil

Capon with chestnuts or chestnut stuffing: The recipes: http://dadcooksdinner.com/2012/12/rotisserie-capon-with-chestnut-stuffing.html/ http://www.chowhound.com/recipes/roasted-capon-with-citrus-sherry-jus-27912 Evil

One more test. Recent posts have gone straight through. Let's see if this test will confirm it. EDIT IN: It went straight through. Looks like the problem has been solved. Evil

Other countries, such as Australia and Brazil, export turkeys, so I can't imagine it would be impossible to find a replacement for the banned US birds. However, it may have to do with economies of scale and price. Perhaps it would be too expensive to import birds from any country but the US. I'm a huge fan of turkey and love it for both Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners. But if turkey isn't available, I'm happy to eat roast beef or chicken or lamb or pork or ham. It wouldn't be the same as a turkey dinner with all the trimmings, but other meats would do in a pinch if I were celebrating with friends. Evil

The above test took about 10 seconds to go through and the screen refreshed itself. But it was a very brief post. Let's see what happens when the post is longer and includes a few photos. Evil EDIT IN: The post showed up on the board almost immediately, within seconds, but continued to hang on "saving Post" until I refreshed the screen two minutes later. EDIT IN FOR SECOND TIME: Edits go through immediately and the screen refreshes itself.

Test again. Evil

The post in which I voted in the poll went straight through. Evil

Still hanging for me, too. Purging the Chrome Web cache, cookies, etc, then signing out and restarting my computer didn't help, either. Evil

That's not a nice thing to say about Moulie! Evil

I'm not sure which restaurants deliver Christmas dinner, but last year Big C on Pattaya Klang took orders for whole roast turkeys and all the sides, which is convenient if you are a group of eight people or more. It's no problem to order starters and salads from them, but I don't think they had Christmas pudding. You can get Christmas pudding at Marks & Spencer at Central Festival, though. I'll see if I can dig up a few photos from last year. Evil

Back to hanging with post #25. Evil

Yes, but the EDIT IN did not hang. Was using a Tunnel Bear VPN in Hong Kong at the time. Evil

Test to see if this post "hangs." EDIT: It did, same effect as described in earlier posts. It doesn't seem to matter if I connect directly to the Internet or use a VPN. I will purge the browser's cache and restart my computer to see if that makes a difference. Evil