Sunday Breakfast

[jfchandler]

Seriously, Bangkok is in serious need of a good western food breakfast cafe that doesn't charge ridiculously high hotel prices...

There's bunches of coffee and bakery places here... but there's not much in the way of good Western breakfast food, especially outside of the large and expensive upper-level hotels.

Re the comment below, indeed, I'd never heard or knew much about Duke's in CM, having only been an occasional visitor up north. But now I'm won over, and Dukes at the Emporium here in BKK is one of my favorite places now by virtue of their great burgers, BBQ ribs and more.

If Duke's can do it successfully, why not BisB???

F that. Keep them in Chiang Mai. They really are the best.

Hey UG BisB could franchise out. Just look at the Dukes; another Chiang Mai Sponsor . What a success story they have in Bangkok.

[tutsiwarrior]

Either this below is some obscure movie reference that I managed to miss, or, you've really gone off the deep end...

OK, back to sausages, pancakes, hash browns, omelets, huevos rancheros and the like...

but, if yer in LA then ye gotta worry about some white punk with a british accent standing up in his restaurant booth an' waving a gun around an' shouting 'this is a robbery!'...then his gurl fren' stands up and snarls that she's gonna shoot everyone just fer fun...an' that pretty much puts a dent in yer enjoyment of yer denver omelette an' blueberry hot cakes...

(but mebbe, if the gurl fren' lifts her leg an' stands high enough when pointing her weapon then yew can look up her skoit...she looked cute in de famous film that selected cheap restaurant breakfasts as a production design...)

'garcon! coffee!'

the waitress sez: 'garcon means "boy"'

well, dunno...I always thought that there was a connection between cheap breakfasts and cinema, but if folks are gonna get all philistine over here den dey can dunk dey donuts where de sun doan shine...

however, I haveta admit that one morning when an associate had spent 30 minutes preparing a superb ranchera sauce I said that I wanted to have my eggs scrambled...he endured but later after we had been drinkin' gave me a tongue lashing that I shall never forget...

ranchera sauce?...scrambled huevos rancheros?..philistinism?...geddit?

Edited June 26, 2010 by tutsiwarrior

[jfchandler]

No problem, Tutsi... I'll stay on this planet, and you can stay on yours...somewhere...

[thaigerd]

A 1 week old topic and still alive, thank you

Just in the middle for preparing our early dinner for tonight:

Roasted duck, red cabbage and potato dumplings. Ducks are stuffed with minced pork and I am doing now a duck gravy. Bought additional duck bones to get a very strong gravy and it will simmer for some hours.

Perfect weather for cooking here: Rainy and not hot.

Gerd

[NanaFoods]

Seems someone needs to lay off the bug powder (for those who saw Naked Lunch).

[thaigerd]

Seems someone needs to lay off the bug powder (for those who saw Naked Lunch).

I have not seen it, could you explain please?

[tutsiwarrior]

Seems someone needs to lay off the bug powder (for those who saw Naked Lunch).

I have not seen it, could you explain please?

look out, gerd, they're out to lynch me as per usual fer suggesting that breakfast may be viewed alternatively...

an' it ain't got nuthin' to do wid different planets/realities; quite simply, we are faced with breakfast presentation fascism...eggs, hot cakes, potatoes and coffee can combine to seduce and ultimately destroy the unsuspecting...

lets go back to de tongue lashing that I mentioned above an' de wholesome dialog that follows...

(between draughts of vodka) '...and you felt it necessary to apply my ranchera sauce to yer disgusting scrambled eggs?...not only is it out of order it is also morally perverse...'

'get outta here, willye; I put ranchera sauce on cauliflower...yew justa fcukin' snob wid de eggs...'

'and, should I take this from A CRETIN that thought that Billy Budd was written by Conrad?...'

(ouch ) 'well, him an Melville were both old guys that wrote about sailors a lot...a legitimate mistake...(jesus)'

'ENGLISH WASN'T EVEN CONRAD'S FIRST LANGUAGE, YOU FCUKIN' IDIOT!!!'

utterly vanquished and defeated by the salsa ranchera issue tutsi withdraws in literary disgrace...

he died about 10-12 years ago in drunken squalor somewhere in southern Mexico...one of our mutual associates had to go and collect the remains...

there is a lot more to breakfast than meets the eye...

Edited June 27, 2010 by tutsiwarrior

[Ulysses G.]

Either this below is some obscure movie reference that I managed to miss, or, you've really gone off the deep end...

Pulp Fiction, I'm pretty sure. 

[NanaFoods]

Seems someone needs to lay off the bug powder (for those who saw Naked Lunch).

I have not seen it, could you explain please?

Its a "'cult classic" movie starring Peter Weller (of Robocop) - probably his first big break.

Its about a society that gets hooked on a new insecticide they commonly called "bug powder" - kill bugs and makes people hallucinate.

[jfchandler]

And now, after that brief interlude, back to the feature presentation of the day:

Sausages, pancakes, hash browns and other assorted breakfast goodies.

[NanaFoods]

BTW - I thought I had seen that humongous breakfast posted above before... but in the US.

Seems a very similar version of the English "Full Breakfast" in the US is often called a "Trucker's Special Breakfast" or simply "The Trucker's Breakfast". The assortment of items varies, but many truck stops have these huge breakfasts.

Apparently this is the case in Oz as well - assortment much like the English Full Breakfast.

Edited June 28, 2010 by ChefHeat

[Ulysses G.]

TWENTY DOLLARS for breakfast? I guess I've been here longer than I realize. 

[jfchandler]

As I mentioned before, I had quite good and satisfying $6 plus tax breakfasts during my recent trip back to the U.S. at Denny's coffee shops.

$4 for two eggs (which I chose as scrambed egg whites), two pieces of turkey bacon (my choice among available bacon or sausage) and two pancakes, along with a $2 side order of hash browns and a biscuit smothered in country/sausage gravy... looking very much like the biscuit shown above.

Add in an overpriced hot tea for $2+ and the total bill came to about $8.60, which with tip added ended up about $10 all total.

One of the things that is nice about IHOP and/or Denny's being chains is that you can expect both consistency of menu and consistency of preparation from place to place to place, so you don't really need to worry about whether a location in city A is going to be the same or different meal as a location in city B. Either you like them, or you don't.

Large chain or not, the scrambled eggs were cooked fine, the pancakes were moist and light, the turkey bacon was quite good and their version of hash browns is excellent, with the top fried medium brown and crunchy, with the bottom layer soft and moist.

Sure you could go to lots of other places, but for $10 all in and a location always nearby and open 24 hours, why would you???

PS - Why can't someone open a restaurant in Bangkok that serves a $8 to $10 / 250 to 300+ baht breakfast like that???

[onethailand]

Denny's used to be here but the licensee didn't know how to market, nor could they keep any consistency with the products being sold. Pity because I would've happily supported that operation otherwise.

[jfchandler]

It's a another sad and unfortunate story, OT....

If I had a dollar for every time I've heard you recount XXXXXX "used to be here but the licensee didn't know how to market, nor could they keep any consistency with the products,", I'd be a very wealthy man by now..

Denny's used to be here but the licensee didn't know how to market, nor could they keep any consistency with the products being sold. Pity because I would've happily supported that operation otherwise.

[Ulysses G.]

Bob's Big boy was a similar story. 

[onethailand]

Haha... unfortunately in Denny's case, it was true - they gave it a good run, had two or three different locations at different times, including in RCA - but they did almost zero marketing.

Ulysses - I actually met the owner of Big Boy here in Thailand - he's a British guy - father of the Thai singer Briohny (who was just a typical grumpy 14-year old when I met her - but then again Cindy Burbidge was a grumpy 14-year old when I met her!).

Big Boy couldn't make it work because they simply couldn't get good beef, plus they also skimped on their marketing. And being located in Seacon Square, they also tried to modify their menu to suit Thai teeny-boppers.

Anyhow, JFC - marketing is the main downfall of a lot of failed franchises. Wendy's, Popeye's, Yoshinoya (Beef Bowl) and Long John Silver didn't market much, but they would've done better in current times with flyers and ads in magazines - something that was uncommon back then. But then again they were all licensed by a cosmetics company... here in Singapore, they are all doing well.

Arby's arguably had the best run of the lot, being located right on the corner of Patpong and Silom - but never seemed to do well with the locals. I think they would've been better off somewhere in Sukhumvit - for that matter, any of the above would've done better on Sukhumvit - can't figure out why Wendy's didn't do so well in their Sukhumvit location though. And Denny's last location was in Soi 33 where Tenderloins is now.

[bkkjames]

Haha... unfortunately in Denny's case, it was true - they gave it a good run, had two or three different locations at different times, including in RCA - but they did almost zero marketing.

Ulysses - I actually met the owner of Big Boy here in Thailand - he's a British guy - father of the Thai singer Briohny (who was just a typical grumpy 14-year old when I met her - but then again Cindy Burbidge was a grumpy 14-year old when I met her!).  

Big Boy couldn't make it work because they simply couldn't get good beef, plus they also skimped on their marketing.  And being located in Seacon Square, they also tried to modify their menu to suit Thai teeny-boppers.

Anyhow, JFC - marketing is the main downfall of a lot of failed franchises.  Wendy's, Popeye's, Yoshinoya (Beef Bowl) and Long John Silver didn't market much, but they would've done better in current times with flyers and ads in magazines - something that was uncommon back then.  But then again they were all licensed by a cosmetics company... here in Singapore, they are all doing well.

Arby's arguably had the best run of the lot, being located right on the corner of Patpong and Silom - but never seemed to do well with the locals.  I think they would've been better off somewhere in Sukhumvit - for that matter, any of the above would've done better on Sukhumvit - can't figure out why Wendy's didn't do so well in their Sukhumvit location though.  And Denny's last location was in Soi 33 where Tenderloins is now.

Wasn't there a Big Boy on lower Sukhumvit a few years back?

[onethailand]

Wasn't there a Big Boy on lower Sukhumvit a few years back?

If there was, I sure didn't notice it!

Oh - and add Carl's Jr to my list of restaurants licensed by the cosmetics company above. Carl's is also doing good business in Singapore.

[bkkjames]

Wasn't there a Big Boy on lower Sukhumvit a few years back?

If there was, I sure didn't notice it!

Oh - and add Carl's Jr to my list of restaurants licensed by the cosmetics company above.  Carl's is also doing good business in Singapore.

Pretty sure there was but at least 8 years ago.

Speaking of Burger Chains, I heard about a new one opening on Suk 31, can't remember the name. Unfortunately not Fuddruckers.

[onethailand]

Pretty sure there was but at least 8 years ago.

Funny... surely I would've remembered it, unless it was tucked into some alley or invisible mall like Nana Square...

Speaking of Burger Chains, I heard about a new one opening on Suk 31, can't remember the name. Unfortunately not Fuddruckers.

dam_n... but if they can replicate the Fuddrucker's concept...

[bkkjames]

Pretty sure there was but at least 8 years ago.

Funny... surely I would've remembered it, unless it was tucked into some alley or invisible mall like Nana Square...

Speaking of Burger Chains, I heard about a new one opening on Suk 31, can't remember the name. Unfortunately not Fuddruckers.

dam_n... but if they can replicate the Fuddrucker's concept...

Think i remember now, called American Burger Company - saw a classified ad looking for staff in the BK Post a couple weeks back.

http://www0.epinions...nt_208111505028

Edit, not sure why this is int he breakfast thread, can a nice Mod please move it to the burger one?

Edited June 29, 2010 by bkkjames

[onethailand]

Think i remember now, called American Burger Company - saw a classified ad looking for staff in the BK Post a couple weeks back.

http://www0.epinions...nt_208111505028

Edit, not sure why this is int he breakfast thread, can a nice Mod please move it to the burger one?

Mmm... looks promising...

(sorry, Gerd - your food just puts my brain into high gear!)

Edited June 29, 2010 by onethailand

[jfchandler]

I don't know the status of the BKK plan for ABC...

But I did find some photos of their burgers out on the web.... Look pretty decent, though I've never heard of this company before.

Link 1

Link 2

Link 3

NY Times profile on ABC and its founder

If they do open here, among the other important things, as suggested above, operating with a good beef supplier will be really important.

Edited June 29, 2010 by jfchandler

[theoldgit]

Or, at IHOP, for $5.99 (about 190 baht), they were offering two eggs fixed as you like, hash browns, two bacon or sausage, and two or three (I can't recall which) pancakes topped with your choice of fruit compote.

I remember on my first trip to the US was driving up the I-5 and we stopped at a IHop for breakfast, ordered Pigs in the blanket and smothered them with maple syrup, I didn't know they had sausages inside - still eat them though.

We were staying with friends in a town in Oregon, where they filmed Kindergarten Cop, we went to church with our hosts and they told us that the priest would invite us to stay back for coffee, but we were to decline. We were indeed invited for coffee and we did decline, the reason soon became obvious, there was a mad charge for the only decent restaurant serving breakfast, with the priest leading the charge, if we had stayed for coffee we would have missed breakfast as there were not enough seats.

[Kilgore Trout]

That's just a quick Snack - how about This  

I wonder if this restaurant is located next to the ER ward. 

my thoughts exactly, hope they have a defibrillator on hand

[powderpuff]

Breakfast.

Homemade biscuits, a slab of ham (98 baht) 2 fried eggs & gravy. Food that sticks to your bones. Made in my kitchen.

Eggs

Add gravy

About 3 mins in.

[zaphodbeeblebrox]

Breakfast.

Homemade biscuits, a slab of ham (98 baht) 2 fried eggs & gravy. Food that sticks to your bones. Made in my kitchen.

Eggs

Add gravy

About 3 mins in.

Yeah, that's a good hangover cure. I personally prefer the Hawaiian version called loco moco. Substitute 2 hamburger patties for the ham, and rice for the biscuits. Plate it in a bowl.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loco_Moco

[matchless51]

I realy like hashbrown potatoes but could never cook them right, i learnt (from a cook) that the secret is to peel the spuds then put in cold water and bring to the boil, then grate, now i cook them how i like em, even with rice bran oil. Buckwheat pancakes are great with bacon and eggs and big dobs of butter, bratwurst are good for breakfast but the Germans think your mental frying them up with eggs and shinken and painting it red with tomatoe sauce, i'd like to be able to make a hollandaise sauce, eggs benadict or florentine, whoooaaaa, don't mind the Ol wiestwurst either, with a salzstangen mit khasee, and that fruity mustard, lambsfry and bacon, kiwi style, now thats a good breakers, mmmm had beef liver with mash for dinner, none left, bugga, food threads must be fattening , got some scollops in the freezer, righto food time.

[SausageKing]

I realy like hashbrown potatoes but could never cook them right, i learnt (from a cook) that the secret is to peel the spuds then put in cold water and bring to the boil, then grate, now i cook them how i like em, even with rice bran oil. Buckwheat pancakes are great with bacon and eggs and big dobs of butter, bratwurst are good for breakfast but the Germans think your mental frying them up with eggs and shinken and painting it red with tomatoe sauce, i'd like to be able to make a hollandaise sauce, eggs benadict or florentine, whoooaaaa, don't mind the Ol wiestwurst either, with a salzstangen mit khasee, and that fruity mustard, lambsfry and bacon, kiwi style, now thats a good breakers, mmmm had beef liver with mash for dinner, none left, bugga, food threads must be fattening , got some scollops in the freezer, righto food time.

How about this for starters ha ha