DaMan

I dropped by Royal India the other night and thoroughly enjoyed the meal. The veggie thali was very fresh and tasty. The portion was more than ample for a very reasonable 99 baht. 3 dishes, raita, rice and a nice naan.

I ate at Le spice 10 days ago or so and have to say round 1 of the Veggie Thali Smackdown goes convincingly to Royal india. Reserve full judgement until eating a wide range of dishes and visiting each restaurant at least 3 times............

Ate at the vegetarian restaurant "Pun Pun", behind Wat Suan Dok today for lunch. It is right behind the monk chat building.

I really enjoyed the food, would recomend to all types of eaters for the salads alone. The atmosphere has a pretty positive vibe. Prices generally in the 35-50 range. They were kinda busy, waitress noted that they were shorthanded on staff. Will definitely be back............D

THE PUB will have the super bowl on its big screen. Doors open at 6am. Breakfast will be available

Wondering if anyone has heard of any bars or restaurants showing the game live at 6 AM? I looked around briefly but did not see anything. Watched it a few years ago at True (bye bye) Blue in the back. Gotta see my Patriots do their thing, any info much appreciated..............D

Many bars are open for the game, I will not go into the Salon(tired of listening to Ron bitch about anything and everything)

^ "Many bars" ? Cool, you could name some bars showing the game and add something or you just dis someone and add nothing.

Never met Ron, maybe he does complain, I do not know. Do your thing, I participate in these boards to add something or at least provide an argument with some backing..........D

Thanks UG, I stopped by Saloon 2 today and talked to the girl at the bar. Totally missed the huge super bowl sign they have out front. 5:45 AM, its on at the break of dawn..........D

Wondering if anyone has heard of any bars or restaurants showing the game live at 6 AM? I looked around briefly but did not see anything. Watched it a few years ago at True (bye bye) Blue in the back. Gotta see my Patriots do their thing, any info much appreciated..............D

Tieng Sieng at the end of pra pokklao. I have been a few times and enjoyed there veggie dishes. They have some good, tasty, fake meat and I liked their veggie khao soi as well. Extremely cheap at 20-25 baht a meal. Recommended.......D

Hey Bunta,

Planning on taking a bit of a motorcycle ride. Just wondering how much were each of your road "taxes'? Were they handled quickly or the time consuming variety? Appreciate the info........Peace.......D

^ I was not slagging their food, I said it was not so great. This my opinion and if critical analysis is bad thing thing so be it. I would give the pizza a C, but I would back there. They are nice people and they serve beer lao. I thought the price for the case seemed reasonable and offered some info........

On one hand i apologize for slagging your slagging.. Because i thought you meant Tuskers, sorry i was wrong..They don't have pizza (yet ??),you were refering to elsewhere no?? On the other hand i don't apologize as this was not posted to slag off ANYONE.. Have a nice day..

^ Well I can not accept that apology. By your own admission you have some sort of readng comprehension problem, so you might not want to comment on other peoples posts. I post on this forum because other people have helped me with their info and I'd like to give back. I was going to post about the beer lao cases and by cosmic synergy you posted your query, the same day. This info is for all.

In regards to food commentary: I say what I want, kapeesh. You can look at another thread and i said nice things about tuskers. I have not eaten the food (just a few beers), but If I do not like it, I'll say so. Just because you started this thread does not mean you can moderate it. And if you do not like what i have to say, become a moderator and delete my posts, alright? Not interested in getting into a internet argument but I answer your question and you get all pissy.............

At Same Same the cases are all bottles, meadish. In fact I did not see any cans and I think bottles are all they sell. One beer lao 59b, 2 is like 110 or something, a case 900b as stated before.......

^ I was not slagging their food, I said it was not so great. This my opinion and if critical analysis is bad thing thing so be it. I would give the pizza a C, but I would back there. They are nice people and they serve beer lao. I thought the price for the case seemed reasonable and offered some info........

Amazing that you posted this because I had beer lao/pizza combo at same same restaurant on rachapakinai road the other night. The pizza was not that great (not enough sauce but then again this is common problem even back home) but according to their sign they are the sole distibutor of beer lao to chiang mai and pai. Can't answer that claim but they do have stacks of cases of beer lao in the back. Upon inquiry they said 900 baht a case and I did see that quote written on a white board in thai. Not sure if this can be bargained down, but it can't hurt to ask. If you do let me know...........

Back in town after a spell and perusing some eating establishments:

Salsa Kitchen - It is really hard to live up to the hype, many have fallen when they had to face up (The only other place to live up has been the Dukes). I am happy to say this was the real deal. I had the chicken burrito and leave it to a thai to order mexican lasagna but she seemed to enjoy it. Laid back, delicous and overall an enjoyable experience. No margaritas as I was afraid of the crappy tequila they might use, I only drink the quality stuff.

Veg Indian food Moon muang soi 9 - Well this place is closed and it always has been a bit up and down but I always seemed to like the family. I love my thai food but get a hankering for something different from time to time. I wanted to eat indian and noticed the place next door was now serving veg indian food. They had pictures on the menu and everything and I figured why not? I think they are relatives to the blue diamond folks. Also nice people but sad to say the food was horrible. For some reason everything was really watery and tasted terrible.

This easily ranks with one my worst meals ever in thailand.

Gai Yang nimm road soi ? next to grace dental - Really great and fresh off the grill chicken. Hot off the grill and onto your plate half chicken with sticky rice 50b. I think i mentioned this place way back and it deserves a second mention. No english menu, if you can't habla espanol, point and click. Its pretty much gai yang and somtum anyway.

Tuskers - I have not eaten here but had few beer lao there after walking by and noticing the pleasant ambience. The owner Chas seems to be really nice guy, check it out and see what you think.

Am looking forward to returning pilgrimage to the Dukes.........

I had seen the secret garden sign on my way to ban tawai but always zipped by on my motorbike. After reading the dicussing restuarant thread (which for some reason the moderators are bending over backwards to explain what does not need to be explained, if the forum stops discussing restaurants then I am out the door), I decided to drop by the place and check it out. It was late in the day so i was the only customer there. I do have to say the that it has a very pleasant environment. I sat outside in the "garden" which was nice (the wife must have designed the place). The menu was very reasonably priced. After a few beers, which the waitress poured for me in frosted glass, i had the spicy noodle, which i enjoyed. Overall, i would give it a thumbs up and go back. It is a bit out of the way so unless you live in hang dong or go to ban tawai regularly, it might be stretch. I can not see the self described "tapae road scum" getting off their asses and going there. For the area, which does not have whole lot of choices that i am aware of, it might be one of the better options. I personally am so sick of that second floor place in ban tawai, but thats another story......

I just returned from Pai after a 4 day stay. I stayed at Baan tawan also (I just happened upon it on my motorbike and read this thread afterwards), which I really enjoyed. Nice people, and right by the lake. There is nothing the matter with living well, but 2700 a night seems unnecessary to me when there are excellent options in much lower ranges. Just my opinion. The name of the restaurant before the bridge is Cristina. It seems italian run with an isaan wife. I got a slice from take out window which was really good. The slices are deep dish style with a good sauce, 40 baht. If you buy a whole pie (95 thb) it is thin crust style, which i did not like as much but still was pretty good. I did not sit down in the restaurant so I do not know if it is possible to buy a whole pie, deep dish style or what the rest of the food is like..........

^ Hey, I was just kidding around. No offense taken, no need for apology. I hope you feel the same. Peace in the middle east............

^ Agreed I broke the rules, and I was reprimanded and paid up in this strictly fictional account (hehe). I was merely being respectful of local custom by ignoring a majority of traffic laws unless it suits me to obey them. I would not want offend anyone.

Moralizing on the internet really does crack me me up. A click away is 9 types of rabbit porn and people are railing against the scourge that is traffic stop corruption.

Gulliver kind sir (is it gulliver's khaosan or gulliver's sukhumvit? both extremely classy venues), that you would possibly infer that I would resort to what you call "bribery" by my character in this story is absolutely ridiculous. My behavior is beyond reproach as I am a guest in this fine country. For this baseless assumption I fine you the amount of, ummm, 200 baht. How convienent. Please remit payment to my thaivisa paypal account promptly.......

^ I was very aware of the right turn only sign. I was only oblivious in the de facto sense. My brain was aware it was an illegal turn, but the habit of going straight (after checking carefully) is just too strong. Did I get what I deserved? Well, maybe. I was trying to play the nieve farang, i.e. I can speak no thai, I can barely speak english. However in this instance, the police were playing a strong hand. I am not sure you could have gone down to 50 baht. I played my 100 baht strong, but they were not feeling me. A bit like poker really, you have to play each hand differently and with the same hand you will have a different result each time.........

This was my first time being pulled over in thailand so forgive my youthful exuberance. I was driving on loi kroh (my bad) going to the iron bridge. Ahead about 50 meters I spied groups of thais and farangs pulled over. I quickly put on my helmet and drove through, it was all good or so I thought. As I proceeded to the iron bridge, I instinctively went straight, oblivious to right turn only sign (right turn only? I think not). This time I did not see the mass of officers on the other side signaling me to join the group pulled over. I smiled and considered riding right through, which I really think i could have pulled off, but years of classical conditioning forced me too veer to right. I smiled and pretended that I could not understand the officers english, hoping that his patience would tire and I would be on my way. License? ummm. Passport? At my place. I had a rental agreement which coincidenatlly I was traveling to pay. The second officer, who spoke good english, said I would have to go to the office and pay 500 baht! Ok, now i am really not feeling this. He tellsme he will give my rental agreement back when I pay the 500. I have visions in my mind of long lines and hours and hours of bureaucracy. I actually have things to do today. It could be days before I get my rental agreement back, if at all. Wait, I could "pay" right now, I think to myself. I have never done that before. I get this idea as the officer is drawing arcane maps as to where I will spend the rest of my day paying 500 baht. "Can I pay right now" as I take 100 baht out of my pocket. No can not. More map drawing ensues. At this point, i am ready to give the guy 500 right now just so I do not have to go to the office. After explaining I do not where he is talking about (which really was true), finally he says "200 baht". I gladly pay happy to extricate myself from the situation. Umm, lesson learned. Dot your i's and cross your t's and do not do the crime if you can not do the time.........

P.S. - If the thai cia is reading the above post, it is fictional account posted by some bored farang. Everyone is aware things like this do not happen........

I have to join the hordes in recommending the dukes. Thumbs up, way up. I do not eat pork or beef so i may missed out on the specialties, I could hear people raving about the ribs, but enjoyed it immensely just the same. I had the medium pizza (did they mistakenly give me large? it was huge) and it was good (then again I am pizza snob). I found the atmosphere and service to be excellent. I left feeling as if I transferred dimensions for a short time, where the staff was knowledgable, courteous and helpful. Great place, truly a rarity............

Is it Longhorns with your heart or with your wallet? I have no allegiance on either side but have a hard time seeing the USC offense stopped. Prediction: statement game, USC blows 'em out...........

Thanks for all the replies. Air india 5,900 round trip? That does sound reasonable. 16,000 on thai airways sounds quite high. About the visa, was it obtained in straight forward manner with minimal hassle? I am not sure about my travel dates but would hope to get a visa a week before i go, with out jumping thru hoops. Also appreciate the good advice on the maglev train.......

Hi, has anybody flown bkk to shanghai recently? Can this flight be booked rather easily at the airport? What type of fare did you get? I am looking for something cheap, so some sample fares would be great. Also, has anyone applied for chinese visa in bkk or chiang mai? How much for the visa and was this reasonably easy to do? Sorry for all the questions (I did do a search but am looking for recent info), all answers much appreciated.........

^ Actually, you get at least 4 games a week. There is double header on monday (whatever 2 games are picked up for the hong kong-bkk feed) and then the sunday night game and monday night are always broadcast so you will always know those matchups. I am a HUGE pats fan, live in usa but have work in thailand. Suffered thru many years in the abyss when were the laughingstock of the league. Now is my time. The sweet, sweet moments of watching the pats score 41 points (at pittsburgh!) in afc championship game against the impenetrable(?) steelers defense at 6AM in chiang mai. I could go on and on but will leave it at that.

I would have to say that I firmly disagree with TokyoT's assessment of the Pats. I agree that the pats have an excellent system and that the sum is more than the parts. However it is the players playing the game. The credit must go to them. The patriots have come up with so many big plays on offense and defense during this championship run. Good coaches can only put a player ina postion to succeed, they can not make a play. I do not disagree that there are players on the Pats that would not be as good on other teams but same could be said of the san antonio spurs. Parts were assembled to fit a system based on skill level, learning ability, attitude and salary cap. Not giving the players credit smacks of of all trash talking all last season about the unstoppable Colts offense (3 points) and aforementioned Steeler defense. People disrespected the defending champion last season and it was all talk. Will the Pats win again? I hope so, however there are so many things that have to happen in your favor that it will be another very difficult achievement.............

I am surprised that many of you have been living in thailand a long time and married to thai women and still do not understand basic underpinnings of "up to you". Generally, when a thai person says "up to you' he/she is mad or upset with you. Have you ever said "up to you " to a thai person? Take a look at their face afterwards. They really do not like it. Some have said to me "Are you mad?" back to me. Initially I was surprised, but now I understand what is really going on. Just like the poster above (claiming to be a thai girl) intimated about disagreeing, but she phrased it in a polite way. I am not saying that that this applies in every case, just many of them.......

P.S. If you still do not know: "Up to you", usually means not up to you.........

^ Bizarrely enough, I do know the one legged farang guy zooming around on a rollerblade (assuming we are talking about the same person?). I have had a few conversations with him, we were staying in the same area once. Nice enough guy, do not know too much about him, except he will regularly take trips to places like Ban taawaii or other distant places on his "wheels"........