Discount/loyalty Cards/promotions

[sceadugenga]

Risking the ire of the moderators I have heard but not substantiated that a certain house of relaxation has a similar scheme. Don't PM me because I have not idea how it works but apparently it is a scheme that revolves around how many times you come there

Will people please STOP sending me PMs wanting details on this - I don't know anything more about it

CB

Coming to CM Saturday now, if it's your day off we'll do a road test for the benefit of the members.

Come on, lot of interest here and the honor of Australia at stake!!!!

[Ulysses G.]

Regular customers at The Chedi's bar or restaurant can get a VIP card good for 20% discount on all food and beverages, no expiry date. The Thai and Indian menu is excellent.

I would imagine that the Chedi is quite expensive, but for REALLY good Indian vegetarian it would be worth it.

I haven't found one Indian restaurant in Thailand that I thought was more than adequate, although there are so many, I've probably just missed the ones that are.

Is the Chedi worth the price?

For you The Chedi is probably not 'worth the price' as judging from your cited favorites here at TV, you'd want larger portions, lower prices, and preferably a chatty American (or at least farang) owner ...

I'm afraid that you have the wrong idea about what kind of restaurants I prefer.

I loved Chinese, Japanese, Mexican and seafood places when I lived in San Francisco, but they don't have restaurants like that in Chiang Mai and it's rather far away, so I have to make the best of what is available here.

I remember when you used to rave about the wonderful food at JJ's back in the old days, so you might know where I'm coming from.

I do love the Duke's and The Thailand Tattler recently included it on its best restaurants in Thailand list, so I don't seem to be alone there.

As far as Indian food goes, the best that I have had was in India, but a guy that I do business with there brought me to all his favorite restaurants and had his personal chef cook me meals, so I might have gotten spoiled. I found some amazing Indian places in Hanoi, Vientiane, and Luang Prabang, so it seems strange to me that I have never stumbled on any in Thailand, but I haven't found one good one. I have tried many Indian places that were recommended in Bangkok over the years, but I never found one that was more than mediocre. By the way, a friend of mine, who is American, but lived in India until he was 20 years old and goes back all the time, doesn't think that Indian restaurants in Bangkok are up to much either, but what does he know?

Maybe I'll get lucky with the Chedi?

Edited May 24, 2007 by Ulysses G.

[p1p]

I'm probably pointing out the obvious, but the cuisine is oriented towards the discerning palate. Some folks can't tell the difference between average cooking and world-class cooking, and some folks are unhappy when the price of a meal is beyond what their income can accommodate, no matter the quality. Anyone in either of these categories will probably find fault with The Chedi.

This is a major problem with trying to open a good restaurant in Chiang Mai. Quality costs money, often a lot of it. For example: If I wanted to make a really top quality Neapolitan pizza here, the Mozzarella di Bufala Campana, (Quality Buffalo Mozarella) alone would cost something over 200 baht per pizza. With italian pizza flour, good extra virgin olive oil, sauce made from vine ripened plum tomatoes and fresh oregano, I could not put a pizza on a plate at a cost, (to me,) of less than, at least, 600 Baht.

Some people here can appreciate the difference between this and the 100 Baht alternative, but they are few and far between.

I saw this the whole time before when I was running my restaurants here. Customers would walk in and take one look at the menu, walk out and go to Darrets, JJs or elsewhere, where the prices and quality were significantly lower.

I compare this with London, where I could sell plates at £100+ and we frequently had customers spending over £500 per head. We had bookings over a year ahead from all quarters of the world, and were booked up for two sittings per evening almost every night. In Chiang Mai, this is impossible.

[WaiWai]

Perhaps as more Thais begin to understand and appreciate good "Western" (non-Asian) food, and the customer base increases, it will be easier for such restaurants to operate here. Still the problem of getting high quality, fresh ingredients at reasonable cost remains, I suppose, though as more Thais get interested this may be less of a difficulty. Perhaps someone needs to start some "Western" cooking schools. Could be quite a hit .

Also, having to employ Thai staff must be a difficulty. Most simply don't have the experience with non-Thai cuisines to be able to understand the foods they are preparing. It's not a sensibility that can be acquired quickly, I think.

Meanwhile, p1p, from what I read here*, you might be a rather good cook. How about a simple place where you whip up a "plat du jour" with whatever is fresh & available ? Just two or three dishes available per day. In the hands of a good cook, this could work. Omelette with mushrooms and herbs, light pasta dishes, risotto, a fresh salad ... just like a gourmet mother/father would make .

(*and the taste of your pasta sauce, several jars of which reside in the fridge)

Ahh ... better get back to my own work .

Edited May 25, 2007 by WaiWai

[Ulysses G.]

I'm probably pointing out the obvious, but the cuisine is oriented towards the discerning palate. Some folks can't tell the difference between average cooking and world-class cooking, and some folks are unhappy when the price of a meal is beyond what their income can accommodate, no matter the quality. Anyone in either of these categories will probably find fault with The Chedi.

I saw this the whole time before when I was running my restaurants here. Customers would walk in and take one look at the menu, walk out and go to Darrets, JJs or elsewhere, where the prices and quality were significantly lower.

I remember when you opened the Easy Diner near Thapae Gate - kind of a high-class, American drive-in, Burger type place - and the prices were a little higher than the norm for Chiang Mai, but the quality was much higher than anything in town ( I still think that your cheeseburgers beat anything that is out there now). Anyway, lot of people were outraged at the prices, without considering the difference in quality at all.

I don't eat burgers much, but when I do, I always wish that Easy Diner was still around!

Edited May 25, 2007 by Ulysses G.

[Ajarn]

Personally, I found the food at Easy Diner to be simply 'okay'. Never noticed anything special... The Mango Tree, in my opinion was mostly crap, with some decent hambugers... For sure, the fancy western dishes there were awful. Tried many things, but only once due to the quality of what was being served. I never ever saw p1p contribute anything to the food or the service.

[Ulysses G.]

Personally, I found the food at Easy Diner to be simply 'okay'. Never noticed anything special... The Mango Tree, in my opinion was mostly crap, with some decent hambugers... For sure, the fancy western dishes there were awful. Tried many things, but only once due to the quality of what was being served. I never ever saw p1p contribute anything to the food or the service.

Didn't you think the burgers were better at Easy Diner? They reduced the size at the Mango Tree and - being vastly over-weight - I was never quite as happy.

[tigerbeer]

As far as Indian food goes, the best that I have had was in India, but a guy that I do business with there brought me to all his favorite restaurants and had his personal chef cook me meals, so I might have gotten spoiled. I found some amazing Indian places in Hanoi, Vientiane, and Luang Prabang, so it seems strange to me that I have never stumbled on any in Thailand, but I haven't found one good one. I have tried many Indian places that were recommended in Bangkok over the years, but I never found one that was more than mediocre. By the way, a friend of mine, who is American, but lived in India until he was 20 years old and goes back all the time, doesn't think that Indian restaurants in Bangkok are up to much either, but what does he know?

Maybe I'll get lucky with the Chedi?

indian food differs from north to south and east to west. you were probably used to the food that you ate in india and thought that was the best. and what you had was probably 10% of india has to offer in food. hence i dont see any contribution by you on indian food to be of relevance with comparison to what thailand has to offer. indian restaurants in thailand are as authentic as it gets as most, if not all of the ingredients are easily available in bkk. so i don't see any reason why indian food here might not be as good as that in india. so how much do you really know about indian food?

your friend who lived up to 20 years old was probably not old enough to justify what is good food and what is not, and so yes of course, what does he know?

tacos, pizza's, steaks, burgers, am sure you are lucky enough to have duke's here. at least you feel like home (san francisco). or actually being in san francisco, definately lucky! (for you)

[Ajarn]

Personally, I found the food at Easy Diner to be simply 'okay'. Never noticed anything special... The Mango Tree, in my opinion was mostly crap, with some decent hambugers... For sure, the fancy western dishes there were awful. Tried many things, but only once due to the quality of what was being served. I never ever saw p1p contribute anything to the food or the service.

Didn't you think the burgers were better at Easy Diner? They reduced the size at the Mango Tree and - being vastly over-weight - I was never quite as happy.

Frankly, they both seemed the same taste, and size...

tacos, pizza's, steaks, burgers, am sure you are lucky enough to have duke's here. at least you feel like home (san francisco). or actually being in san francisco, definately lucky! (for you)

I'm from San Francisco, and in my opinion, there are much better hamburger places there than Dukes. It wouldn't be on my 'hamburger list' if I still lived there...

Edited May 26, 2007 by Ajarn

[Ulysses G.]

indian food differs from north to south and east to west. you were probably used to the food that you ate in india and thought that was the best. and what you had was probably 10% of india has to offer in food. hence i dont see any contribution by you on indian food to be of relevance with comparison to what thailand has to offer. indian restaurants in thailand are as authentic as it gets as most, if not all of the ingredients are easily available in bkk. so i don't see any reason why indian food here might not be as good as that in india. so how much do you really know about indian food?

your friend who lived up to 20 years old was probably not old enough to justify what is good food and what is not, and so yes of course, what does he know?

You might be right about my taste in Indian food as I don't claim to be an expert, I just know what I like. However, as I have mentioned in the past, I have met many self-proclaimed experts who agreed with me about Indian restaurants in Thailand, including many on an old Thai visa thread that I am too lazy to find. Who to believe?

Sorry, I wasn't clear, my friend that I mentioned is Indian, but eventually became a U.S. citizen after attending University in the U.S. and living there on and off for a while. I think he knows much more about Indian food than any of us.

I don't really like the Duke's burgers either, but a lot of other things are quite tasty.

Edited May 26, 2007 by Ulysses G.

[Ulysses G.]

I'm from San Francisco, and in my opinion, there are much better hamburger places there than Dukes. It wouldn't be on my 'hamburger list' if I still lived there...

Clown Alley springs to mind, but there are many other!

[tigerbeer]

Sorry, I wasn't clear, my friend that I mentioned is Indian, but eventually became a U.S. citizen after attending University in the U.S. and living there on and off for a while. I think he knows much more about Indian food than any of us.

is that an assumption or a known fact? cause ur assumption doesn't mean anything here on this forum. (at least to me)

[Ulysses G.]

What is a "fact" when it comes to taste in food?

He is a University educated Indian-American who didn't leave India until he was 20 years old and has spent many years in both India and America. He loves Indian food and brought me to what I thought was Chiang Mai's best Indian restaurant at that time - which we both agreed was OK at the most.

That is "fact" enough for me.

Edited May 26, 2007 by Ulysses G.

[tigerbeer]

What is a "fact" when it comes to taste in food?

He is a University educated Indian-American who didn't leave India until he was 20 years old and has spent many years in both India and America. He loves Indian food and brought me to what I thought was Chiang Mai's best Indian restaurant at that time - which we both agreed was OK at the most.

That is "fact" enough for me.

different answer to a different question. i asked on what basis did you think that your friend knows better than any of us as you mentioned earlier.

[Ulysses G.]

Mostly because, I don't think that any of "us" is Indian.

[sabaijai]

Regular customers at The Chedi's bar or restaurant can get a VIP card good for 20% discount on all food and beverages, no expiry date. The Thai and Indian menu is excellent.

I would imagine that the Chedi is quite expensive, but for REALLY good Indian vegetarian it would be worth it.

I haven't found one Indian restaurant in Thailand that I thought was more than adequate, although there are so many, I've probably just missed the ones that are.

Is the Chedi worth the price?

For you The Chedi is probably not 'worth the price' as judging from your cited favorites here at TV, you'd want larger portions, lower prices, and preferably a chatty American (or at least farang) owner ...

I'm afraid that you have the wrong idea about what kind of restaurants I prefer.

I found some amazing Indian places in Hanoi, Vientiane, and Luang Prabang, so it seems strange to me that I have never stumbled on any in Thailand, but I haven't found one good one.

I've eaten at every Indian resto in Vientiane and Luang Prabang, and none of them stands up to any of the Bangkok Indian eateries I cited above, at least for my tastes. The Indian restos in VTE and LPG all pretty much taste the same (same network of friends and relatives, virtually identical menus, standard Pakistani/N Indian fare lacking freshness of flavours). Bangkok has several different styles of Indian cuisine, there's simply no comparison!

p1p has a point. in chiang mai at least, you get what you pay for.

I remember when you used to rave about the wonderful food at JJ's back in the old days, so you might know where I'm coming from. laugh.gif

Not sure what your point is. At its peak, JJ was excellent value (and far more edible than America across the road ).

I

do love the Duke's and The Thailand Tattler recently included it on its best restaurants in Thailand list, so I don't seem to be alone there. wink.gif

Consider the source.

[Ulysses G.]

America/the Dukes versus JJ's farang food in 1991.

I wonder if there are enough old timers on here that ate in both places to do a poll question on that one?

[Ulysses G.]

I do love the Duke's and The Thailand Tattler recently included it on its best restaurants in Thailand list, so I don't seem to be alone there.

Consider the source.

Mi Casa was on it too.

Edited May 26, 2007 by Ulysses G.

[Ajarn]

America/the Dukes versus JJ's farang food in 1991.

I wonder if there are enough old timers on here that ate in both places to do a poll question on that one?

I'd say, that in 1991, both places were good, wth America a bit better, generally. In the last two years of the America (97-98), when one of the guys left (the one who did the work), leaving it in the hands of the other guy, the one who didn't have a clue.. At that time, I would say that JJ's was clearly the superior place to dine....

Edited May 26, 2007 by Ajarn

[sabaijai]

I do love the Duke's and The Thailand Tattler recently included it on its best restaurants in Thailand list, so I don't seem to be alone there.

Consider the source.

Mi Casa was on it too.

Must have been quite a lengthy list then, to accommodate both Duke's and Mi Casa.

[Ulysses G.]

America/the Dukes versus JJ's farang food in 1991.

I wonder if there are enough old timers on here that ate in both places to do a poll question on that one?

I'd say, that in 1991, both places were good, wth America a bit better, generally. In the last two years of the America (97-98), when one of the guys left (the one who did the work), leaving it in the hands of the other guy, the one who didn't have a clue.. At that time, I would say that JJ's was clearly the superior place to dine....

That may be the mix-up here. Actually two different groups of people owned the America over a long period of time, and the second group had never worked in eating places before.

In 1991, America restaurant was owned by Dave, the guy who owns the Duke's now. He was the original owner and an experienced restaurateur and he sold it in about 1993 to Tony and Greg and it went steadily downhill until it closed.

When Dave owned it, the Lonely Planet guidebook gave it quite a good review. I remember, because I was there when they interviewed Dave's partner Willy - a really nice guy who was a TV Chef in Hawaii.

After Tony and Greg took over, they changed the menu a little bit and then never did much to improve anything after that. They were not real restaurant people and let the place run into the ground until they became teachers instead.

[WaiWai]

I looked up "Thailand Tatler" as I am not familiar with it. Here's their list for Chiang Mai's "best restaurants, 2007" :

Chiang Mai Restaurants Listed Alphabetically

BANN TAZALA

Chiang Mai City/French

0-5385-0111

FARANG SES

Chiang Mai City/French

0-5388-8888

FUJIAN

Chiang Mai City/Chinese

0-5388-8888

GIORGIO

Chiang Mai City/Italian

0-5381-8263

LE COQ D'OR

Chiang Mai City/French

0-5328-2024

LE CRYSTAL

Chiang Mai City/French

0-5387-2890-1

MI CASA

Chiang Mai City/Mediterranean

0-5381-0088

MOXIE

Chiang Mai City/Thai

0-5399-9999

PICCOLA ROMA PALACE

Chiang Mai City/Italian

0-5382-0297-8

TERRACES

Chiang Mai City/Mediterranean

0-5329-8181

THE DUKE'S

Chiang Mai City/Steakhouse

0-5324-9231

THE HOUSE

Chiang Mai City/International

0-5341-9011

THE RACHAMANKHA

Chiang Mai City/Thai

0-5390-4111

THE RESTAURANT

Chiang Mai City/Thai

0-5325-3333

The restaurants are chosen by readers of "Thailand Tatler" ( for procedure see http://www.thailandsbestrestaurants.com/2007/ ).

"Thailand Tatler" is sponsered by American Express. It's an offshoot of "Tatler", which I have heard of, described by Wikipaedia as, "a contemporary British society magazine published by Condé Nast Publications. It carries articles on a broad range of topics, but its primary focus is on social trends amongst the very wealthy and aristocratic."

Guess that's why I haven't been to many of these joints .

Edited May 27, 2007 by WaiWai

[WaiWai]

We could do our own poll here, voting on budget, mid-range & higher-range categories of restaurants nominated by forum members, if anyone could be bothered to set it up. (I don't know how ).

[sabaijai]

America/the Dukes versus JJ's farang food in 1991.

I wonder if there are enough old timers on here that ate in both places to do a poll question on that one?

I'd say, that in 1991, both places were good, wth America a bit better, generally. In the last two years of the America (97-98), when one of the guys left (the one who did the work), leaving it in the hands of the other guy, the one who didn't have a clue.. At that time, I would say that JJ's was clearly the superior place to dine....

That may be the mix-up here. Actually two different groups of people owned the America over a long period of time, and the second group had never worked in eating places before.

In 1991, America restaurant was owned by Dave, the guy who owns the Duke's now. He was the original owner and an experienced restaurateur and he sold it in about 1993 to Tony and Greg and it went steadily downhill until it closed.

When Dave owned it, the Lonely Planet guidebook gave it quite a good review. I remember, because I was there when they interviewed Dave's partner Willy - a really nice guy who was a TV Chef in Hawaii.

After Tony and Greg took over, they changed the menu a little bit and then never did much to improve anything after that. They were not real restaurant people and let the place run into the ground until they became teachers instead.

That could be, I can only remember the latter version, pretty awful, esp the attempts at Mexican dishes.

"Thailand Tatler" is sponsered by American Express. It's an offshoot of "Tatler", which I have heard of, described by Wikipaedia as, "a contemporary British society magazine published by Condé Nast Publications. It carries articles on a broad range of topics, but its primary focus is on social trends amongst the very wealthy and aristocratic."

Thailand Tatler has no connection to the British magazine of similar name.

Apologies to the OP for going so far off topic at this point. Back to discount cards, anyone?

[Ulysses G.]

That could be, I can only remember the latter version, pretty awful, esp the attempts at Mexican dishes.

That answers a lot of questions. I didn't go there at that point either.

[WaiWai]

Thailand Tatler has no connection to the British magazine of similar name.

Apologies.

But they're still very superior !

Founded in 1999, Blue Mango Publishing is dedicated

to providing superior magazines, books and products

that explore and celebrate luxury living in Thailand,

throughout Asia and round the world.

Our readers are highly affluent, well educated and cosmopolitan. They appreciate the finer things in life and can afford to indulge in them.

Blue Mango endeavours to provide this exclusive niche with beautiful design, sparkling writing, entertaining coverage and essential information.

Blue Mango operates under the publishing umbrella of Communication Management Ltd of Hong Kong, the publisher of the Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia and Philippine, Korea, Shanghai and Beijing Tatlers. With a combined publication history that spans one-half century in Southeast Asia, the publisher’s mission remains to inspire and unveil Asia's elite while surpassing the reader’s highest expectations with thoroughly entertaining, essential and exclusive coverage of living in Asia.

[malcy]

America/the Dukes versus JJ's farang food in 1991.

I wonder if there are enough old timers on here that ate in both places to do a poll question on that one?

i went to the america thapae road in 92 very average nothing special ,the root beer was ok. jj used to do pancakes and maple syrup lovely many a breakfast had in there after a night in blue sky . went to the dukes in march excellent food and staff and imo much better than america used to be.

[meadish_sweetball]

Mostly because, I don't think that any of "us" is Indian.

Letters on a computer screen are great for lots of things, but one thing they are particularly ill suited for, is conveying nationality, facial features, skin colour and accent... unless of course, they try to describe these things in detail, as in "Ulysses's elegantly twined moustache jumped up and down on top of his voluptuous upper lip, reminiscent of a rodeo rider on an extraordinarily agitated bull in a packed Texas stadium, as he guffawed his way through Meadish's latest Thaivisa post before leaving his secret sanctuary behind the cosy little back-alley shop in order to savour yet another satisfyingly humonguous meal at his favourite all-American watering hole on the far banks of the Mighty Ping."

...or do you think my sker-burdie-mirdies an a feezer in-dee-ohfen come through that clearly?

[meadish_sweetball]

Gentlemen, please keep it civil and take the personal discussion to PMs so we can keep the thread on track, please.

[p1p]

I have just checked back and there have been over twenty posts running off topic, (Including those made invisdible.)

I therefore feel it is time to close this topic.