Prices In Los

[necronx99]

Who in their right mind pays a "bar fine"?

The kind of guy who either doesn't realize or doesn't care that the wench is no more or less likely to have sex with him if he waits until her shift ends and meets her outside the bar.

Oh wait . . . you did say "right" mind, didn't you?

In that case, no one in their right mind pays a bar fine

It's an assurance thing. Yes you can wait (if you want to hang around for hours) but there is no guarantee that by then that someone else hasn't snapped that particular one up.

I want it, I want it now, I pay the premium.

[Ijustwannateach]

Some of the things which have hit people the hardest are things which are still so cheap they hardly come up on our radar- when the busses and trains double in price, for instance- it's a big slice of the income pie for the lower income workers. Food prices have shot up insanely in just the last 5 years- again, not so someone on a tourist budget or western income would notice.

The thing that irks me is when you get restaurants HERE- using, in many instances, food and produce from farms HERE- and they produce foreign-style food that is priced even higher (for sometimes dubious quality) than it would be in its native lands. That's just taking the mickey.

[StreetCowboy]

Who in their right mind pays a "bar fine"?

The kind of guy who either doesn't realize or doesn't care that the wench is no more or less likely to have sex with him if he waits until her shift ends and meets her outside the bar.

Oh wait . . . you did say "right" mind, didn't you?

In that case, no one in their right mind pays a bar fine

It's an assurance thing. Yes you can wait (if you want to hang around for hours) but there is no guarantee that by then that someone else hasn't snapped that particular one up.

I want it, I want it now, I pay the premium.

No, I'll just have another beer and see what's on offer down the road.

And maybe another beer, and then I'll head back at two.

Yes, one more... and then I have to be getting back to...

... how did I end up here?

There's nothing as expensive as procrastination.

SC

[Ulysses G.]

The thing that irks me is when you get restaurants HERE- using, in many instances, food and produce from farms HERE- and they produce foreign-style food that is priced even higher (for sometimes dubious quality) than it would be in its native lands. That's just taking the mickey.

Why? That is capitalism. If foreign food is of good quality, there is little competition from other restauarants and as many of us never go home, it is worth paying for reasonable quality food that is difficult to find otherwise.

Of course we would like to get things as cheaply as possible, but I do not find a lot of good Western restauarants in Thailand that are all that inexpensive compared to Thai food.

Edited February 6, 2012 by Ulysses G.

[StreetCowboy]

The thing that irks me is when you get restaurants HERE- using, in many instances, food and produce from farms HERE- and they produce foreign-style food that is priced even higher (for sometimes dubious quality) than it would be in its native lands. That's just taking the mickey.

Why? That is capitalism. If foreign food is of good quality, there is little competition from other restauarants and as many of us never go home, it is worth paying for reasonable quality food that is difficult to find otherwise.

Of course we would like to get things as cheaply as possible, but I do not find a lot of good Western restauarants in Thailand that are all that inexpensive compared to Thai food.

Sometimes I go into restaurants and think "This is ridiculously expensive, why am I paying these prices..."

Sorry, got that wrong; sometimes, I don't go to restaurants because they are too expensive.

I go to places I can afford to eat.

If IJWT thinks restaurants are profiteering, perhaps he would like to invest time and effort in under-cutting them. Restaurants are one industry which is very competitive in Thailand.

SC

[TAWP]

Food costs for me has gone up some 10% per year on average over the last 4 years, cannot remember before that.

Salary costs in the company has gone up too ofc, average salary amongst our thai non-manager staff are some B40k/m...

[bendix]

The thing that irks me is when you get restaurants HERE- using, in many instances, food and produce from farms HERE- and they produce foreign-style food that is priced even higher (for sometimes dubious quality) than it would be in its native lands. That's just taking the mickey.

As someone else said, how can it be taking the mickey. Capitalism works on freedom of will - if people weren't willing to pay those prices, then inevitably the restaurants wouldnt charge them. That they do charge them tells you it is the correct market price, otherwise the supplier would go bankrupt.

Same for people complaining about prices on soi cowboy - I walked down there in January and it was as busy as ever, despite the prices.

Supply and demand, people. Supply and demand.

That YOU might not like to pay or it can afford to pay it is neither here nor there.

[moonbarman]

Phuket 2004 ,Overstay 3oobht day, royal umbrella red rice 106bht 5kg, diesel 13.6bht litre, roadside pad thai 20bht,mince pork makro 47bht kg, beer patong my bar chang50bht btl, singha + heineken 60bht btl, bells, gin, vodka, 60bht shot, cocktails 80bht +.

Phuket 2012, Overstay 500bht day,royal umbrella red rice 225bht 5kg, diesel 30.5bht litre, roadside pad thai 50bht, mince pork makro 118bht kg, beer patong selection of bars last weekend chang cheapest 90bht btl most 100, singha cheapest 100bht btl heineken 120bht btl, whiskey, gin, vodka 100 bht+ a shot, cocktails 180bht+. For sure prices have risen loads since the tsunami, and in 2001 i used to pay 8bht for pad thai breakfast in Phrae, Chang mai and other places up north. (I wish i was young again please) .

Edited February 8, 2012 by moonbarman

[inthepink]

Aha but your forgetting one crucial fact......the Chinese are coming, and they are coming in droves. I believe construction has nearly started on the new Chinese Economic Area in Bangkok, and you will soon find Chinese businessmen pouring all over Thailand in unimaginable numbers. I am aware that there is already a substantial Chinese ethnic group in Thailand ( many of them HI-So ) but these new guys will create far greater competition, and far greater demands on the Thai economy.

That in tangent with the continuing inward investment from countries like Japan will create a serious boom in Thailand in the next few years, infrastructure spending will soar, new deep sea ports will open, Chiang Mai will boom as it is the first stop on the new China - BKK rail link, etc etc.

Good point!

But this sort of development is mainly dependent on foreign investments. Thailand itself is only part of the game for delivering cheap labor. The question is, if this is still interesting for Japanese or Chinese companies 20 years later?

Unless Thailand can stand on its own feet, it will fail.

At the moment, they cannot produce even a washing machine. Thai products, except for agricultural products, are not competitve at all. Everything you see here of some value is imported.

That is very different to the situation in Korea 30 years ago. Even at that time, Koreans were very aware that a high standard of education and high work ethics are the only way to proceed. Both, education and work ethic is barely existant here. And the world moves on quickly. You cannot waste another 20 years with "mai pen rai", "mai mee" and virtually no abilities of foreign languages.

As far as I remember, Thailand biggest export earner over the last few years has been vehicle transporters so to claim that "they" cannot even produce a washing machine is a bit silly.