Regular haunts that survived

[BigStar]

On 10/25/2020 at 7:28 PM, Leaver said:

Until tomorrow.  Then dead.  

Wrong again. Talked to the brewmeister yesterday and during the week isn't necessarily dead. Some nights are, others aren't. Business meetings in town, for example, are particularly helpful. But groups of holiday makers can come in anytime.

 

In general the domestic and international weddings/company holidays/business meetings/conventions market is always ignored here for the myth that Pattaya is only about farang mongers.

[BigStar]

On 10/25/2020 at 8:46 PM, NanLaew said:

I heard a rumor last month that the TQ on Beach was in dire straits and close to shuttering. Any news on that?

Tough market now, obviously, but TQ's surviving. Needed to cut back on opening hours, staff, and salaries. Won a break on the rent from the landlord.  The quality of the lineup and the music improved. Talked to one of the honchos and received no sense of foreboding. I wouldn't pay much attention to rumors.

 

Will and Supertom are having a b'day party on Nov. 21, so good at least until then.???? Tip generously.

[nomad2019]

Just wait and see the state of Pattaya six months from now ????????????????

[BigStar]

2 hours ago, nomad2019 said:

Just wait and see the state of Pattaya six months from now ????????????????

Been sleeping under a rock, eh? Pattaya was determined DEAD about two decades ago. Since then our ace TVF Pattaya Coroners yearly exhume the Pattaya corpse (usually twice, low season and high) to perform fresh autopsies, confirming all the same reasons for the Death that supposedly occurred decades ago, and issue their own new Final Death Certificates.

 

For n00bs with low post counts, it's a rite of passage towards achieving coveted forum cred.

 

 

 

You see, the absolute final FINAL DEATH BY VIRUS of Pattaya was announced 7 months ago by @swissie. Then three weeks later a n00b seized the opportunity and we had a whole dancing-on-the-grave w.a.nkfest in RIP Pattaya. Since then, it's a standard forum trope repeated daily in any of multiple DOOM threads. We have an active Chief Coroner making sure it doesn't . . . er, die. 

 

Pattaya's got nowhere but up to go since the total lockdown. Me, I'll still be enjoying myself 6 months from now, glad to be in Pattaya as always. You? Sour grapes go away by then? Maybe Thailand will let you back in, if you can afford it.

[Leaver]

On 10/28/2020 at 12:11 PM, BigStar said:

Wrong again. Talked to the brewmeister yesterday and during the week isn't necessarily dead. Some nights are, others aren't. Business meetings in town, for example, are particularly helpful. But groups of holiday makers can come in anytime.

 

In general the domestic and international weddings/company holidays/business meetings/conventions market is always ignored here for the myth that Pattaya is only about farang mongers.

Compare this weekend to last weekend - dead.  

[BigStar]

10 hours ago, Leaver said:

Compare this weekend to last weekend - dead.  

Wrong again. Have you ever been to Pattaya? This weekend's been great. What a massive traffic jam tonight, too.

[Rimmer]

A general Flame has been removed

[Leaver]

12 hours ago, BigStar said:

Wrong again. Have you ever been to Pattaya? This weekend's been great. What a massive traffic jam tonight, too.

No traffic jams in the restaurants and bars, where it counts.  

[polpott]

Just now, Leaver said:

No traffic jams in the restaurants and bars, where it counts.  

The Stones House was rocking last night. Mainly Thais.

[BigStar]

3 minutes ago, Leaver said:

No traffic jams in the restaurants and bars, where it counts.  

But you wouldn't know. Thought you were going to waddle over and check some of those named earlier. Still waiting for the report.????

 

Wrong as usual, though. In fact, quite a few restos and bars did pretty well. Get ready to soil your knickers, pal, devastating news: Thais, including Thai families, were eating in Beefeater! WOT??? Farang, on the other hand, were around the corner in Kiss.????

[Leaver]

4 minutes ago, BigStar said:

But you wouldn't know. Thought you were going to waddle over and check some of those named earlier. Still waiting for the report.????

 

Wrong as usual, though. In fact, quite a few restos and bars did pretty well. Get ready to soil your knickers, pal, devastating news: Thais, including Thai families, were eating in Beefeater! WOT??? Farang, on the other hand, were around the corner in Kiss.????

One Thai family does not fill a restaurant.  ????

 

I didn't go to the places in your post.  I know what I see around LK Metro and Beach Road, and the Soi's in between.  No Thai customers.  

 

Edited November 1, 2020 by Leaver

[Leaver]

13 minutes ago, polpott said:

The Stones House was rocking last night. Mainly Thais.

What music was on?  

[polpott]

13 minutes ago, Leaver said:

What music was on?  

Thai bands.

[TaaSaparot]

1 hour ago, polpott said:

The Stones House was rocking last night. Mainly Thais.

 

Always busy at the weekends.

[TaaSaparot]

51 minutes ago, polpott said:

Thai bands.

 

House band.

[polpott]

2 hours ago, TaaSaparot said:

 

House band.

There was more than one band. I hadn't been for years. Last time I was in there it was that dick Lam Morrison playing Western covers. No Western music last night. All Thai songs.

 

 

Edited November 1, 2020 by polpott

[redwood1]

28 minutes ago, polpott said:

There was more than one band. I hadn't been for years. Last time I was in there it was that dick Lam Morrison playing Western covers. No Western music last night. All Thai songs.

 

 

I dont think Lam Morrison would have been the house musician at The Blues Factory on Walking Street if he was not a top notch guitar player...

[polpott]

1 hour ago, redwood1 said:

I dont think Lam Morrison would have been the house musician at The Blues Factory on Walking Street if he was not a top notch guitar player...

Well he was and he wasn't. He wouldn't have got a gig in the back room of my local pub on a Wednesday night, in the UK.

[VBF]

22 minutes ago, polpott said:

Well he was and he wasn't. He wouldn't have got a gig in the back room of my local pub on a Wednesday night, in the UK.

LM could be a good player on his day. Unfortunately his ego seemed to be greater than his skills and he (allegedly) partook of various substances that, shall we say, might have affected his perception ???? He also had a habit of embracing "Thai time"...if he was supposed to appear at 11, you'd be lucky if he turned up by midnight.....of course he's far from the only musician to do that! 

 

By the time he turned up, most of the audience's perception was also minimal! 

 

But....on his day, in a town bereft of good music, it was worth it.

[BigStar]

22 hours ago, Leaver said:

One Thai family does not fill a restaurant.  ????

But you've carefully ignored my use of the plural families. Trying very hard to avoid the knickers soiling, eh. Agreed! There were several Thai families and couples as well.???? Final nail in the coffin for the bigotry of "Thais only eat som tum."

 

22 hours ago, Leaver said:

I didn't go to the places in your post.  I know what I see around LK Metro and Beach Road, and the Soi's in between.  No Thai customers.  

No, you didn't of course, so, per your practice, we'll take that as your agreement that central Pattaya does in fact have businesses that attract domestic tourists. Still waiting to hear what businesses you saw pre-COVID on Soi 13/4 that do the same.

 

And present tense "see" means you didn't actually hit LK Metro, Beach Road, and Treetown on Sat night--the time under discussion, try to keep up--where you would have seen a good many patrons in the bars and restos there owing to the special holiday. Far more farang than usual came out, many with their Thai wifes & gfs, to experience the holiday where Thais are especially joyful and the girls are looking their best, often in quasi-traditional dress.

 

 

But, with usual sophistic reasoning, now you've moved the goalpost again. Moving The Goalposts.

 

Initially it was just "restaurants and bars." Anywhere. That was addressed and refuted. So it changed to "LK Metro and Beach Road, and the Soi's in between," the only places you "see." I'm not sure what Soi's [sic] you "see" in between LK Metro and Beach Rd., however.  Soi 11 has never been known for bars or restos.

 

And then a new restriction: "Thais." Anytime, but Thai domestic tourists mostly visit on weekends and holidays, so on most days you don't "see" them much around. Some, to be sure.

 

Yet LK Metro is of course a farang tourist area where you never saw many Thai tourists pre-COVID. So you'd hardly expect many now, but when I went by there Sat night I did see an unusually large number of farang there, for the reason noted above.

 

And normally your Doom depends exclusively on farang, not Thais.

 

But Thai restos did well Saturday, as you'd know if you'd checked any as previously suggested, around town, not just on Beach Road or central Pattaya (where you've recently learned of Central Festival).

 

"Well" is relative to current conditions of course, and is at least helpful in a local economy that needs all the help it can get.

 

TVF Economics usually invokes the AT ALL TIMES rule to demand that Thai businesses must be seen crowded at all times, and customers always seen lined up at the cashier, as measured by the highly reliable Economist's Eyeballs At Any Random Interval. Hence fill a restaurant. Now why must that rule must be followed only here as opposed to elsewhere, notably in one's own country?????

Edited November 2, 2020 by BigStar

[BigStar]

16 hours ago, VBF said:

LM could be a good player on his day. Unfortunately his ego seemed to be greater than his skills and he (allegedly) partook of various substances that, shall we say, might have affected his perception ????

Agreed. I don't know that I've ever heard him actually complete a song. Usually started off then noodled around for the rest. Good noodling, though.

 

16 hours ago, VBF said:

But....on his day, in a town bereft of good music, it was worth it.

Yes. I'm glad I saw LM a few times.:)

[polpott]

3 minutes ago, BigStar said:

Agreed. I don't know that I've ever heard him actually complete a song. Usually started off then noodled around for the rest. Good noodling, though.

 

Yes. I'm glad I saw LM a few times.:)

A 3 chord wonder. Once saw him completely murder a Hendrix number. Should have been arrested on the spot.

[VBF]

10 hours ago, polpott said:

A 3 chord wonder. Once saw him completely murder a Hendrix number. Should have been arrested on the spot.

So were Status Quo.......but they were the right 3 chords! ????????

[champers]

12 hours ago, BigStar said:

Agreed. I don't know that I've ever heard him actually complete a song. Usually started off then noodled around for the rest. Good noodling, though.

 

Yes. I'm glad I saw LM a few times.:)

He was actually doing regular gigs on weekends at the Loma Night Market  on Naklua Road before that nasty Covid 19 came along.

[champers]

I have always found Grottinos to be popular with Thais and not necessarily tourists or as a falang's other half. Thais quite fancy Italian food for a change. Prior to Covid there were well-heeled visitors from China and Korea too. They enjoy the food and have a liking for a nice bottle of vino.

[BigStar]

10 hours ago, champers said:

He was actually doing regular gigs on weekends at the Loma Night Market  on Naklua Road before that nasty Covid 19 came along.

Since we've mentioned Blues Factory and Naklua, I might mention a more recent "haunt" getting a bit of attention on Soi 18, diagonally just across from the old Leo's Blues Bar location, Leo's anemic successor, so to speak: HappyX2 Sports & Happy Bar. The Sports evidently refers to a pool table in the back. Has a live Thai band nightly playing at reasonable volumes and they're not too bad, all considered. I think they used to play at either Leo's or the bar, now defunct, next to Leo's. HappyX2 seems to be taking customers from the Blue Marlin, older expats mainly.

 

One of our lads, a member of the Commonwealth, regular patron, invited me over for the Monday night open mike jam session. Surprise! None other than the legendary Snowman walked in w/ his Strat and little amp.

 

After the demise of Blues Factory I'd occasionally run into Snowman around town but it's been years. Moving into Leslie West size, physically. Still great and, believe it or not, played quietly. The rest of the old expats were pretty good, too. Saxophone player showed up and greatly added to the mix. Listenable selection of tunes, bit heavy on 60s garage band hits, but after all you'd think you were in a retirement home anyway. Guess nearly 20 in attendance.

 

Service OK, no food but there's a gentrified Thai resto across the street in place of Leo's. And next to the Blue Marlin is a massage parlor w/ friendly ladies. (Conventional massages) I'll go back sometime. Check it out, in Naklua.

[TaaSaparot]

Hilton re-opening on the 14th of November.

[Yellowtail]

On 11/4/2020 at 3:52 PM, TaaSaparot said:

Hilton re-opening on the 14th of November.

 

AQS?

[Leaver]

On 11/2/2020 at 12:25 PM, BigStar said:

now you've moved the goalpost again

Goal posts haven't moved.

 

I have always categorized "Central Pattaya" as between Klang and Tai, and Beach Road and 3rd Road.  The Beefeater restaurant is in this area.  So they had  Thai family or two, what about all the other restaurants in this area?

 

On 11/2/2020 at 12:25 PM, BigStar said:

Yet LK Metro is of course a farang tourist area where you never saw many Thai tourists pre-COVID. So you'd hardly expect many now,

The whole of Central Pattaya is a farang tourist area, that's why the whole of Central Pattaya is going broke, for the very reason you posted, it's a farang tourist area.

 

On 11/2/2020 at 12:25 PM, BigStar said:

TVF Economics usually invokes the AT ALL TIMES rule to demand that Thai businesses must be seen crowded at all times, and customers always seen lined up at the cashier,

Some business owners here are paying so much rent, and other overheads, that there must be "bums on seats" or they are running at a loss. 

 

Indeed, many have not done their due diligence and worked out that they have to sell X amount of beers for every hour open, or they run at  loss.  Then, they see how much floor space their bar has, with the bar being unable to fit in enough customers to buy X amount of beer an hour, thus, they go broke, the Thai landlord keeps the key money and can turn over the lease again, before the expiry of the previous lease, rinse and repeat.  ????

[BigStar]

1 hour ago, Leaver said:

I have always categorized "Central Pattaya" as between Klang and Tai, and Beach Road and 3rd Road.  The Beefeater restaurant is in this area.  So they had  Thai family or two, what about all the other restaurants in this area?

Already answered, and we're still waiting for you to waddle over check out the restos to which you were previously directed, as you haven't bothered to do.

 

As to the area, I responded to your very limited specification of "LK Metro and Beach Road, and the Soi's in between," the only places you "see"--not the whole of central Pattaya. As I noted, which you left unanswered, I'm not sure what Soi's [sic] you "see" in between LK Metro and Beach Rd., however.  Soi 11 has never been known for bars or restos for either Thais or farang. You may see this area clearly on a map if you simply draw straight lines due west between the start and end points of LK Metro to Beach Road. 

 

So, after the irrelevance of that, you've merely moved the goalpost by expanding the area back to that you mentioned in a previous post.????

 

Anyway, the center of Pattaya's economic gravity has been shifting northwards the past few years.

 

1 hour ago, Leaver said:

The whole of Central Pattaya is a farang tourist area, that's why the whole of Central Pattaya is going broke, for the very reason you posted, it's a farang tourist area.

You're still about a decade out of date. Was a farang tourist area, now includes Central Festival mall, a major attraction for domestic tourists, and some business popular w/ domestic tourists of which you've previously been informed.

 

1 hour ago, Leaver said:

Indeed, many have not done their due diligence and worked out that they have to sell X amount of beers for every hour open, or they run at  loss. 

Pattaya's always been known for clueless farang business owners, so many as to become the b.u.tts of some classic jokes. Nothing new there; they've come and gone.

 

As market conditions have changed suddenly for the worse, one would expect them perform worse than ever. Similarly, local Thai businesses are notoriously under-capitalized. Obviously, those who can't adapt will go out of business. Some will adapt and are doing so; some won't or can't for any number of reasons. Given the current extraordinary conditions, that's a very high number. And it's not just Pattaya of course.

 

Currently those having the easiest time of surviving are those catering to the domestic market perhaps in addition to the now-miniscule international. Indeed it's rather surprising to note the number of new little businesses springing up that are obviously targeted at Thai tourists, and of course locals. We may wish them well. 

 

How many times does the obvious need repeating as if it hasn't been said countless times since last April?

Edited November 7, 2020 by BigStar