Cat House

[venturalaw]

The woman who runs the Cat House is Jackie. She is an awesome cook. She didnt run the last place into the ground, the owner put up her rental rates stupidly high that she had to relocate. Sorry eyecatcher, im not saying your opinion isnt valid though. Jackie trains up young guys that have no other opportunies (usually Burmese), and treats them like family. Yes its a business, so customers have expectations, but its a small run affair and run with compassion, so i never minded that things took some time..i just made sure that i went when i had time to spare! Since Jackie moved to the new location i havent had opportunity to visit. Used to go quite a lot to her old location, for food, and even just for her wicked smoothies!

Edit: and if you talk to Jackie, shes adorable. ..and she really takes pride in cooking.

Agree 100%. One of my favorite places because the food is different, and really flavorful. Plus Jackie is a sweetheart. Her English is excellent and her food portions are generous and fairly priced.

Edited April 1, 2013 by venturalaw

[venturalaw]

Jackie is the bomb. Both incarnations of The Cat House have consistently served me better than average food every time I've gone, and always the best salad mix in Chiang Mai.

It's true Jackie serves healthful food, but the hand cut fries with garlic mayo are among my favorite sinful dishes.

A gem.

What makes the place special is that the food is different and delicious, and the atmosphere is far from the standard fair. It's unique, affordable and very much worth a try.

[venturalaw]

The above reads like typical trip advisor reviews, ranging from excellent to well under par. It seems I was perhaps misinformed about the demise of the last business, and thats the danger of hearsay but one thing is clear from the above reviews...the service is not upto standard, and a business can not survive if service is not tip top because there are too many inpatient farangs here....good service is indemic to the Western world and if we dont like something, or we are waiting THEN 9 times out of ten we will stand up and make it known.

So my conclusion here, is the people saying they had a great time at the cat house are simply being sympathetic to her cause and her personality and not offering an unbiased opinion.

almost everyone agrees that the food is good or great, and that the service can sometimes be slow. Does not this agreement seem genuine and unbiased?

you say her "business can not survive" because "there are too many impatient farangs here" and if "we are waiting THEN 9 times out of ten we will stand up and make it known" Come on, man, you are sitting in a little restaurant and they are obviously busy making food, are you really gonna stand up and complain? Have you no decency? Can you not put yourself in another's position for that moment? I mean, is impatience and self-centeredness really something you are proud of, being from the "Western World"?

Correct. I've been to restaurants where one is ignored, or even treated rudely. That is NOT the case here. It's a homey atmosphere - with its own style of tasty food. Really different and great.

[meadish_sweetball]

The above reads like typical trip advisor reviews, ranging from excellent to well under par. It seems I was perhaps misinformed about the demise of the last business, and thats the danger of hearsay but one thing is clear from the above reviews...the service is not upto standard, and a business can not survive if service is not tip top because there are too many inpatient farangs here....good service is indemic to the Western world and if we dont like something, or we are waiting THEN 9 times out of ten we will stand up and make it known.

So my conclusion here, is the people saying they had a great time at the cat house are simply being sympathetic to her cause and her personality and not offering an unbiased opinion.

People simply have different opinions or ideas about what type of place they like.

I, and many people I know, appreciate a friendly/familiar atmosphere over 'well-oiled' impersonal service. The place I regularly return to on one of Thailand's islands is run by a small family with a couple of Burmese staff. Food orders are not seldom misunderstood or forgot, but if you have a modicum of patience, it is fixed. And the upside is that you feel at home there, and the smiles you get are genuine rather than something learned out of a service manual. What's good is also that the place is not super popular, but it attracts people like us, so the whole place always feels nice and warm, a bit like coming home.

So, horses for courses, I think.

[Thakkar]

<snip>

I couldn't possibly own all the restaurants that I recommend on Thai Visa.

Oh, I think you do, you conglomerate CEO, Master of the Universe, Tycoon type person, you! Constantly on here with your inscrutable smiley avatar always defending, never criticizing, so annoyingly polite as an Apple Shop employee! How else do you explain all the time you have for typing up 32,000 posts, huh?

T

[Thakkar]

BTW, UG, I suspect you own ThaiVisa, too. George is just a patsy for this particularly heinous crime of yours.

T

[Baloo22]

I had previously read this topic on The Cat House Restaurant. I finished my morning appointment at the US Consulate today and decided to try out The Cat House Restaurant for an early lunch. Ordered a Burrito and a Mango-Banana-Something? (can't remember the 3rd fruit in it) smoothie.

The Burrito was large and good. The Burrito meal included a salad. The salad came with salad dressing already on it. I liked that salad dressing but those who want a specific salad dressing of their choosing, be sure to tell the waitress ahead of time. The smoothie was good also.

The Burrito with salad was 85baht and the smoothie was 40baht. IMO, I had a good lunch meal at a reasonable price.

[daoyai]

I remember when she had a Thai food place, MM soi 1 or 2 , great food but yea slow, worth the wait.

[Rotweiler]

We were there last week. Service a tad slow, but the food was very good. Taste is very much a personal thing. Thank goodness or we would have no choices at all - sticky rice and chilli sauce for breakfast lunch and dinner.

[Frank James]

I went there once, a few months ago, and there was some very noisy remodeling taking place. The food was OK, the service was so-so. I might go back and try it again sometime. The menu is appealing, and the prices are reasonable. Just hope nobody's running a Skil saw, as they were that other time.