Evil Penevil

Andy, Flo and I were the only farang in the restaurant that night, and it was pretty full. As we were leaving, a large group of Asians filled most of the "robot ringside" seats. But it would be a huge hit with a TG. Evil

In non-linear, non-dialectical fashion, I'm going to start this review with the bottom line: Hajime is a great place to take a Thai girl for dinner, mostly because of its Wow! factor. The food is standard teppanyaki fare. It's not cheap (500-600 baht per person, including beer), but it's worth every baht. Hajime Robot Restaurant is a teppanyaki-style restaurant on the 5th floor of Central Festival Mall. As you walk towards the Beach Road side of the mall, it's on the last restaurant on the left before the elevators. Teppanyaki is a Japanese method of cooking in which raw ingredients are grilled on a propane-heated, fat-surface metal griddle, usually in front of the dinners. It's a modern development, as the first teppanyaki restaurant didn't open in Japan until after WWII. The most popular feature of teppanyaki became watching the chef prepare and cook in a showy fashion, such as juggling knives, slicing vegetables with speed and precision or flipping an egg into his chef's cap. The Benihana chain that opened in the U.S. in the 1960s epitomizes this style of teppanyaki. At Hajime, the gimmick is an impressive robot in samurai gear who serves the diners their trays of raw ingredients, which are cooked at the table by the diners themselves. The robot also takes away the empty trays and performs to music, including a very credible version of Oppa Gangnam Style. Because the robot is behind windows that are sectioned by thick wooden beams, it's hard to take good pics. Here's an illustrative shot from the Central Festival Website: The reality of Hajime isn't quite as poetic as this pic from the company's Web site, but it's still a good indication of what to expect. The pics I took: The entrance: Part of the a la carte section. The robot in his "alley." The robot dancing: And delivering orders: It's fun to take pictures of Asians taking pictures. Hajime is divided into two sections. One is an all-you-can-eat buffet where the dishes move past the dinner conveyor-belt style There is also a very mechanical-looking one-armed robot that dispenses drinks. More fascinating is the a la carte section, consists of 18 four-person tables, nine on each side of the samurai robot's glass-enclosed alley. The tables are "sunken" into the floor and tradition dictates that you remove your shoes before sitting down. It could be a bit tricky for anyone with a disability or who's stiff from age. You then order via a touch-screen monitor screen at the table. You can choose from 14 "pages" of ingredients (beef, pork, fish, shrimp, scallops, squid, mussels, veggies, etc) and cooked dishes (tempura, katsudon and other donburi dishes) as well as sushi and sashimi. There are also sets of ingredients for multiple diners. It's very easy to check the running total of your bill on the screen. Hajime has a limited choice of alcoholic beverages, just two kinds of sake and San Miguel and Heineken beer. No wine or other beers are available. The robot brings the raw ingredients that are cooked at the table, while waiters bring the cooked dishes and alcoholic beverages. I lost some of the pics from Hajime due to file corruption on my memory card , but here comes what I could salvage before re-formatting the card. I lost some pics of the interior, raw ingredients such as squid, prawns and fish as well as the touch-screen and the griddle and table setting. I ate that night with BM capdagde and his wife. We had wanted to go the previous night, but no tables were available when we walked in at 6.00 p.m. We reserved a table for 6.30 p.m. the following evening. If you want to visit Hajime between 5.00 p.m. and 8 p.m., it's best to phone a day ahead to reserve a table. We ordered shrimp, squid, scallops, salmon, kurobuta pork, duck breast and sliced beef chuck to cook on the griddle. We also had a mixed prawn and vegetable tempura dish that was delivered by a waiter.It was plenty for the three of us. Andy and I had two beers each and the total cost was 1,600 baht, not bad at all for the amount we ate. The tempura dish: Duck breast and kurobuta pork: Flo cooking the beef: There's soy sauce, Japanese mayonnaise and wasabe for dipping, with containers of soy sauce and rice vinegar that can be poured on the food that's cooking. It's strictly Japanese style, with none of the typical Thai dipping sauces or flavoring. Teppanyaki cooking is about as simple as it gets. It's the freshness and quality of the ingredients that makes the meal. But entertainment has always been part of the teppanyaki experience and the Hajime robot sure doesn't fail in that respect. Evil A YouTube video from Hajime:

I've noticed that some BMs just don't understand the American sense of humor. Evil

It is equal to the volume of LDOPs needed to drive up prices and ruin the scene for everyone. Evil

I didn't see this thread until now. I also use daily wear contact lenses and the type I use are very much cheaper when ordered online in the U.S. Evil

NongJai 1 is located on 2nd Road in the Tipp Plaza between Sois 10 and 11. It's basically across the street from the Apex Hotel and close to Mike's Mall. It serves good Thai good and some European dishes, but I've only had the Thai dishes there. Friends who have eaten the European dishes say they're good, too, but it's the Thai food that's best. It's basically an outdoor restaurant, but covered seating is available right next to the kitchen area. And if it starts to rain, the huge umbrellas are put up PDQ. I've not sure how effective they be in a real downpour, but they work well in a light rain. The menu is fairly extensive, although there are plenty of restaurants that offer more items. The service staff always asks whether you want the food spicy or not. Fish is probably the signature dish at NongJai. The white snapper in lime sauce was delicious, very fresh with a "just caught" taste. It was big enough to feed two hungry males and cost 380 baht. A friend from New York and I ate with BM capdagde and his wife. Andy had a fish dish: And his wive had pad Thai and a vegetable stir fry: Another night I had the pork spare ribs in soup: My friend had a Thai noodle soup, followed by fish 'n chips: Another night a waiter came out and blew a whistle to get everyone's attention. I didn't have time to adjust my camera and the flames were so bright they "whited out" the crucial part of the picture, but you can get an idea of how high they were. At first I thought the guy had set himself on fire, but the flames quickly died down. Bottom line: A consistently good restaurant for Thai food, but you have to be comfortable with al fresco dining. Large portions at a reasonable cost. Evil

Pecan pie would be a reason in and of itself for me to take a trip to Bangkok. I haven't seen pecan pie anywhere in Pattaya. Evil

I was referring to certain types who travel on false passports, hence their national backgrounds are dubious. I believe most BMs will have understood what I meant. Evil

"America" has been used as an abbreviation for the United States of America for many years, both in English and other languages. In terms of nationality, American has been used to refer to U.S. citizens since the earliest days of the republic. It's not uncommon to use short forms for countries with long formal names. How many British subjects would answer "the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland" when asked from which country they come? The United Mexican States (Estados Unidos Mexicanos) is the official name of Mexico, but it's virtually never used. There are other such examples. In context, there's no doubt or confusion about the use of "America" or "American." Sometimes America is used as a short form for the United States of America, other times America refers to a geographical area. The context makes it clear. When someone says potatoes and chiles originated in the Americas, it obviously not a reference to the U.S.A. Evil

Louisiana creole cooking, which is an adaptation of classical French cooking to New World ingredients, has always been highly regarded in the U.S. Cajun cuisine, a rustic adaptation of French provincial cooking, wasn't widely known outside of Louisiana until the 1970's because of the relative isolation of the Cajun people. Any initial resistance among plain vanilla Americans to Cajun cooking was based more on its spiciness and "weird ingredients" than class bias. Both the creole and cajun cuisines were made popular in the 1980s and 1990s by celebrity chefs like Paul Prudhomme and Emeril Lagasse. Yup, potatoes were first cultivated in Peru at least 10,000 years ago. Evil

It's a bad area these days. Many drugged up gays and lady boys alongside dodgy types of dubious national background. Dark streets that don't look any fun to navigate in the wee hours. Horribly run-down condos in which I wouldn't kennel a dog. Don't give it 10 seconds' thought. Evil

One more: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EGP4L0J4e74

And if you have any illusions about Russian tourist girls: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kiTlGsJ9Anc

This is certainly becoming an involved discussion about a 20-year-old traffic violation by my ex-wife. I named the incident to illustrate to MM why it's a good idea to have an international license in the U.S., not to defend my ex-wife or decry the inflexibility in the enforcement of Pennsylvania's traffic laws. That part is not accurate. It's true that you're not allowed to drive in the U.S. on an international drivers license (actually, it's called an International Driving Permit) without having a valid national license. However, there is no requirement under Pennsylvania law to produce an IDP. The term IDP doesn't appear in the Pennsylvania Vehicle Code. The relevant chapter and paragraph states that non-resident drivers must have a valid drivers license from their home states or countries to operate a motor vehicle and must be able to produce such when requested by authorities. The tricky part is proving to the police, magistrate, judge or other official that the foreign license is valid. It's standard practice to use an IDP as a convenient method of proving authenticity and a translation of the national license, but it isn't mandated by law. In any case, police and magistrates in the U.S. have broad discretion regarding traffic laws. Many times the police will let an offender off with a warning and magistrates will dismiss a case before them. That's true, but I hope the magistrate would exercise common sense in dispensing justice. Her name wouldn't have appeared on the rental contract if she hadn't been able to show a valid license to the clerk at the Hertz counter at Newark Airport. And it also begs the question of how you prove the authenticity of the IDP, which is a much easier document to forge than a national drivers license. That's not at all what I said and it's a deliberate stretch on your part. I'm not sure what you hope to accomplish. Are you trying to claim Joe Kicker's mantle? I was explaining how speed traps function in rural areas of the U.S. That has nothing to do with the conditions that dictate speed limits on specific roads but how those limits are enforced. No doubt, though, that she certainly did belong to a minority in Pennsylvania as both an out-of-state driver and a citizen of her country. I definitely believe rural cops discriminate against out-of-state drivers on some types of traffic stops and especially when issuing tickets. Again, not really. Pennsylvania law classes some traffic violations as serious offenses. Everything that's not a serious offense is regarded as a minor offense. In terms of speeding, you have go 15 mph or more above the speed limit for it to be considered a serious offense. Evil

...take a look at these videos. You can find dozens more if you do a search on YouTube for "I love Russia." With all its warts, Pattaya is still a paradise compared with where they come from. Evil A photo of a Russian beach. You won't see that in Pattaya! And the vids: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WD2Dhnu3tP0 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F_kTdaiv5AQ

She simply forgot to take her IDL with her that day. She had her national driver's license and passport in her purse and just didn't think about the IDL. She had never been stopped by the cops and I don't think she necessarily expected the national license to fly. Her name, license number, passport number and I believe a notation about her IDL were all on the rental car contract that serves as proof of registration and insurance when the cops ask for it in the U.S. I would have thought the magistrate would have accepted that as proof she had a genuine national license, fined her and let her get on her way. He was just being an assh*le to cause so much inconvenience over so minor an issue. What was wrong was she'd been caught in a speed trap - a section of road on the outskirts of the town where it's natural to resume normal speed (55 mph on that state highway) because there aren't any structures on either side of the road. But the speed limit remains 45 mph and a cop is waiting to nab out-of-state drivers. I doubt very much he stopped local people for going 8 mph over the limit as they would get a ticket and later contest the case in court. They'd also b*tch like crazy to the town council. But by detailing a cop to stop out-of-state drivers, the town could raise a lot of money, probably more than $1,000 a day. I'm not sure what you mean when you write, "was she on the right?" She was definitely on the right side of the road, but she wasn't in the right to speed. As the state trooper explained to my driver's ed class in my junior year of high school, you can be fined for driving one mph over the limit. Nevertheless, it's normal practice to cut drivers some slack over minor transgressions of the speed limit. But according to the letter of the law, he had her. Evil

My ex-wife (not Thai, but not from the U.S., either) had no problem renting cars from any rental company with her foreign license. Some wanted an IDL, some didn't care. She had one, so never a concern in practice. But an IDL is very good idea, a necessity even, if you are stopped by a cop while driving on a foreign license. There's no cop in the U.S. that knows what a Thai or Swedish driver's license looks like and they consider an IDL to be "proof" the national license is genuine. I imagine they'd be very suspicious of a U.S. citizen who flashed them a foreign license, so an IDL might be a particularly good idea in your case, MM. Back in the 1990's, my ex (was my wife at the time) was stopped by a traffic cop while driving by herself in a very small town in rural Pennsylvania. She had forgotten to take her IDL with her and the local cops were totally stumped by her license. They took her before a local magistrate for speeding and he wouldn't let her plead guilty and pay the fine until she produced the IDL to "verify" the national license. She used her one phone call to call me in tears. Luckily, we had been staying with my parents and I was able to borrow my dad's car to take her IDL to show the magistrate. She'd gone off on her own for the day to do some sightseeing and shopping while I visited with my parents. She'd been caught in a speed trap about an hour's drive from my parents' house. The pompous assh*le of a magistrate lectured her sternly about following U.S. laws and regulations before fining her $75 for driving 53 mph in 45 mph zone. I asked what would have happened if she hadn't been able to get a hold of me immediately. He said she'd have been held in jail until the IDL could be produced or the foreign license could be verified by other means. Evil

Excellent photos, really enjoyed them. It's been over 30 years since I've visited Wat Arun and your photos brought back memories of my very first trip to Bangkok. Evil

The Woraburi has been around for a long time and has a very checkered past. Sometimes it's been OK (never really good), other times a dump, depending on the manager at the time. But as patna and firth say, the Dawin is a much better choice. The Royal Ivory, Majestic Suites and even the granddaddy of them all, the Nana Hotel, are better than the Woraburi. Evil

Some more pics: An open-faced prawn sandwich. About as simple as it gets, but good! And a bowl of Thai soup, really good. Clear broth, minced pork and vegetables. The cook who made that one really knew what he or she was doing. If you approach Olala from Soi 8 on the subsoi that connects Sois 8 and 7, then the P & W is next door. But on Soi 7 itself, Rosie's is between Olala and P & W. The streetside tables are usually occupied, so I sit "inside" most of the time and the wall-mounted fans keep things reasonably cool. I haven't noticed a problem with dust, exhaust or cigarette smoke. And for the chea-, I mean conscious consumers, on the board, the World Wide Beer Bar diagonally across the street from Olala has New Plaza prices (Leo, Chang, Singha and Tiger at 40 baht a bottle). Evil

It's been in operation since 1997 and that's longer than most restaurants last. From the conversations I heard in Olala, most of the guests were Scandinavian or Russian. It's been about half-full each time I've gone there, which is pretty good for low season. Evil

She's back in the village for a few weeks. And it's right next door to the Pig and Whistle. Evil

Olala offers European and Thai food, with an emphasis on Norwegian dishes. While the name sounds French in a cartoon-character sort of way, Ola is also a common given name for Norwegian males. As you walk down Soi 7 from 2nd Road, Olala is about a third of the way to Beach Road, on the left at the corner of the subsoi that leads to Soi 8. It seats about 30 guests. Some of the Norwegian dishes (fishballs in white sauce; meatcakes topped with thick pea soup; pureed rutabagas) aren't likely to appeal to anyone but Norwegians, but the smoked salmon is great! I had a light breakfast of smoked salmon and scrambled eggs on toast for 150 baht. The menu features the usual European dishes, including schnitzel. I had the hunter's schnitzel, which means it comes with a mushroom sauce. The schnitzel was breaded and cooked properly, with the pork remaining moist. The sauce was tasty and the fried potatoes were also good, season with onion, garlic and small bits of ham. Cost was 195 baht. It wasn't a particularly large portion, but enough for me. I'll be back again. The food I've had so far has been well prepared from quality ingredients and that's more than can be said for a lot of the restaurants in central Pattaya. Evil

You got a bargain, great value for money. Your daughter looks lovely. When she's a few years older, you might want to think about the Centara Grand Mirage Beach Resort in Naklua. It has a waterpark and many acitivies for kids. The five-year-old daughter of a former TGF cried when we checked out, she never wanted to leave. Evil

That's what I was told. Believe most (all?) of the others are in Big C stores. Evil