Woman shocked by 500THB pad kapow at Koh Chang resort, fearful of defamation laws

[webfact]

Woman shocked by 500THB pad kapow at Koh Chang resort, fearful of defamation laws

 

Picture: Daily News

 

A Facebook poster who asked if 500 baht was too expensive for two basic Thai dishes at a Koh Chang resort didn't answer the phone after journalists started calling. 

 

She was perhaps mindful after an American man who complained about having to pay corkage on the holiday island was threatened with jail until he apologized. 

 

The lady posted pictures of her breakfast and a bill - her "kapow moo" (pork with basil) and pork fried with garlic plus egg were 250 baht each.

 

She said she couldn't eat it - the price made her cry. 

 

She said she asked the server if it was a mistake - no, they said, it's the same with rice or over rice.

 

Hearing this explanation she said she just smiled and paid up.

 

Daily News reported that most people who commented said this was very expensive, others said resorts were like that and outside it'd be cheaper. Still more said that you should expect that a place like Koh Chang was expensive - after all they have to bring stuff over from the mainland. 

 

Following her post the lady said sorry, she was not answering the phone to all the media outlets who were calling. 

 

She didn't want to be defamatory....she was just saying. 

 

Last year a major international stink happened when an American man in Bangkok got into hot water after a post about his experiences in Koh Chang. 

 

He spent a few days in jail before he apologized. 

 

Thailand has some severe defamation laws, notes Thaivisa - even if you're in the right you can be in the wrong. 

 

Be warned!

 

Source: Daily News

 

 

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[Bangyai]

Looks like the  ' Row py teeo gan ' ( We travel together ) promotion  did not pass that resorts gates.

 

Always be suspicious if the prices are not quoted on the menu.  Ask first if not sure.

 

Thailands defamation laws are tailored to benefit the wealthy from legal action by the people they con and rip off. It allows them to continue their crooked and corrupt practices knowing full well they cannot be touched by any legal action.

[Mister Fixit]

What on earth is the difference here?

 

'it's the same with rice or over rice'.

[ben2talk]

Wow, we expect to pay over the odds, but this is a real kick in the nuts... maybe 100 per dish is okay for an over-priced resort.

 

I never order without prices up front - especially in holiday areas - never be scared to lose face or look cheap. It's worse if you ate the food before you saw the bill...

 

Once in the city I was served food so bad it wasn't edible, and my companion at the time (back in about 2002) said 'You can't do that, you ordered the food!' as I walked out without paying or eating.

[Bangyai]

15 hours ago, Mister Fixit said:

What on earth is the difference here?

 

'it's the same with rice or over rice'.

 

No. Over rice is usually cheaper because there is less meat involved. Separate on a plate should have enough portions to feed more than one person. Example, if not eating alone ,  you order 2 plates of rice and a few different dishes to go with the rice.

[camble]

I guess we know the resort 

[Always Lit]

Expensive yes. But don't you see a menu with prices listed before ordering? (if it's a fancy resort)

[lemonjelly]

Sounds like the defamation laws are going to be a good ride for the rip-off resorts out there. Just what Thai tourism doesn’t need right now. 

[tomazbodner]

15 minutes ago, Always Lit said:

Expensive yes. But don't you see a menu with prices listed before ordering? (if it's a fancy resort)

Does that plastic dish and hand written receipt screan "fancy resort" to you? The food looks like dog food you'd get at a lousy street stall, for which it surely has one 0 too many in the price.

[BlackJack]

its easy - use reverse psychology , say how wonderful the place was and show the picture of the food and the price = all positive and then let others decide if they want to spend this on food. I did it in Koh Chang as they advertised free mini bar and sea views and fruit platter on arrival - i simply took pictures and in the review said wonderful free mini bar with pic (free water), sea view and a pic of the back of the gym I was looking at and fruit platter with pic of an orange on a plate = people can make their mind up

 

[Dagfinnur Traustason]

Woman shocked!? I would have told them to stick that bill where the sun don´t shine.

[welovesundaysatspace]

1 hour ago, webfact said:

Woman shocked by 500THB pad kapow

The restaurant charged Baht 250 for pad kapow, not Baht 500. 

 

I don’t know what Resort that was; while the dish on the photo doesn’t look exactly like a 5-star resort and Baht 250 is relatively expensive for Pad Krapao, it’s not too uncommon for tourist places and she could have checked before ordering. 

[brewsterbudgen]

Looks like it was room service too.  Is it really such a shock that swanky places charge a lot?

[Dogmatix]

250 for the moo pad krapow and 250 for the moo thord kratiam khai tao but still very expensive.  I don't know if even hotels like the Oriental charge that much.

[owl sees all]

Bill is in English.

[TooBigToFit]

Could it be Happy PadGraPow?

 

 

[edwinchester]

20bht for a delicious phad kapow in our village, 25bht if you want the fried egg on top.

Tourist traps don't come cheap especially when the tourists are thin on the ground.

[Mister Fixit]

2 hours ago, Bangyai said:

 

No. Over rice is usually cheaper because there is less meat involved. Separate on a plate should have enough portions to feed more than one person. Example, if not eating alone ,  you order 2 plates of rice and a few different dishes to go with the rice.

I thought it was the same thing but not very conversant with what seems to be US terminology.

 

'With' and 'over' seem synonymous to me.  Live and learn eh?

[Mister Fixit]

That bill for very ordinary food is exorbitant.

 

I was on Koh Lanta for the last week of January and was lucky enough to find a great French-Thai restaurant open - here's their menu and worth every baht.

 

Excellent quality food and served promptly.  We went four times, it was that good.  The Penang barracuda and duck breast curries were excellent and the tarte au citron and the part-cooked tarte au chocolat were out of this world.  

 

We also had the Thai beef salad and the squid as well as the whole fish.  Everything spot on.

 

PM me for the name if ever you want to go.

[santikuo728]

3 hours ago, ben2talk said:

Wow, we expect to pay over the odds, but this is a real kick in the nuts... maybe 100 per dish is okay for an over-priced resort.

 

I never order without prices up front - especially in holiday areas - never be scared to lose face or look cheap. It's worse if you ate the food before you saw the bill...

 

Once in the city I was served food so bad it wasn't edible, and my companion at the time (back in about 2002) said 'You can't do that, you ordered the food!' as I walked out without paying or eating.

Hell of lots traps on tourist sites 

[GrandPapillon]

250 for that Thai dish is not unusual in 5 star hotels, or crappy hotel posing as 5 star hotels ????

[welovesundaysatspace]

54 minutes ago, Mister Fixit said:

‘With' and 'over' seem synonymous to me.  Live and learn eh?

“With” — two separate plates, the one comes with the other (therefore usually larger portion)

“Over” — one plate, with the one dish over the other (therefore usually smaller portion) 

 

Don’t know how to put it better in English without it sounding synonymously. 

[2530Ubon]

3 hours ago, Always Lit said:

Expensive yes. But don't you see a menu with prices listed before ordering? (if it's a fancy resort)

Unlikely to be a high class resort - look at the picture, it was served on a plastic plate and looks like it had cling film attached to it. 250 baht is criminal (IMO) for a simple pork & basil dish that's usually 40 baht.

[Always Lit]

17 minutes ago, 2530Ubon said:

Unlikely to be a high class resort - look at the picture, it was served on a plastic plate and looks like it had cling film attached to it. 250 baht is criminal (IMO) for a simple pork & basil dish that's usually 40 baht.

In this case, the restaurant is at fault for not providing a menu with listed prices (so that customers can see before ordering).

The other side of the equation, is the customer could have just asked the staff what the prices are if none were listed.

[Xonax]

I often pay 250 Baht for "kapow moo" or similar Thai dishes in nice restaurants in BKK shopping malls and I will happily be coming back for more, because it is delicious and prepared with high quality ingredients in a nice and clean environment.  I know that I could get the same kind of food in the food plaza on a different floor for 50 Baht or less, but it would not be as tasteful, as the more expensive one. Is 250 Baht to much for a plate of "kapow moo"? I would say, that will fully depend on what it is made of and what kind of restaurant it is served in.

Since the plate is covered with film, I assume that it was ordered as roomservice. In hotels and resorts roomservice is always more expensive, than if you go to eat in the restaurant.

[ukrules]

29 minutes ago, Always Lit said:

In this case, the restaurant is at fault for not providing a menu with listed prices (so that customers can see before ordering).

 

Do we know where were no prices on the menu? Assume nothing here.

 

[ChipButty]

That plate and the hand written bill says it all to me

[2530Ubon]

25 minutes ago, Xonax said:

I often pay 250 Baht for "kapow moo" or similar Thai dishes in nice restaurants in BKK shopping malls and I will happily be coming back for more, because it is delicious and prepared with high quality ingredients.

Pork, basil, garlic and chilli. Not really much you can do about quality with such basic ingredients. Unless of course the pigs were hand fed from virgins and the Basil & chilli were planted in royal manure.

[ChipButty]

I have actually got up and walked out, especially here in the tourist areas of Phuket, one day I'd been doing a bit of running around and I was on my way home going through Kata was feeling a little hungry so I pulled off the main drag into a side street and find a little shop house Thai place chicken fried rice would be good enough.

She gave me the menu 220 baht for chicken fried rice, now I speak Thai to her, Im going back some years ago now, I just got up and walked out. drive a few km's near home get for 50 baht.

 

[ronaldo0]

Maybe in a posh hotel it would be 250 bht per portion or posh restaurant, but the fact it’s got cling film on it makes me think reheat in microwave job ! ????