Starters/appetizer

[pmarlin]

Went out last night to one of my favorite restaurants and was really hungry. This kitchen at times is slow to get the food out and knowing this I ordered an starter/appetizer to tie me over until I got the main course. After about a 30 min wait I asked the waitress where was the appetizer and she went and came back with the main course along with the appetizer. This is not the first time this has happened in a restaurant in Bangkok. I'm getting tired of the brain dead staff some of the restaurants hire. By the way ate the main course took one bite of the appetizer and had then take it away and told the staff it tasted like crap. No more appetizers for me unless it is in one of the high end places. I've learned my lesion.

[FunFon]

You are obviously clueless wrt Thai culture.

There is no concept here of "courses" having a certain order, nor any idea that people at a given table should get their food at around the same time.

Food comes out in the order the cook finishes it, end of story.

If you want western-style levels of service then you have to pay 20x the normal price for your food, your choices of restaurants that do this "properly" according to your back-home cultural conditioning are extremely limiting and will only be found in Bangkok and the scummy tourist-infested areas.

If you want to enjoy your stay here at a reasonable cost, then let those preconceptions go, relax and cultivate the virtue of patience and tolerance for other ways of life.

Note that some cultures even within the west prefer the salad before the main course, others serve it after - are either of these choices "impolite" or "ignorant"?

Side note - if you really do want the different components of your meal served in a particular sequence, then order your starter first and don't order anything else. When the starter arrives, then order your mains, etc. Simple.

Edited April 20, 2013 by FunFon

[arthurwait]

Who said it was a Thai restaurant ?

[Payboy]

That's why I have starters at the pub and then head over to my favorite restaurant for the main course.

[BoonToong]

You are obviously clueless wrt Thai culture.

There is no concept here of "courses" having a certain order, nor any idea that people at a given table should get their food at around the same time.

Food comes out in the order the cook finishes it, end of story.

If you want western-style levels of service then you have to pay 20x the normal price for your food, your choices of restaurants that do this "properly" according to your back-home cultural conditioning are extremely limiting and will only be found in Bangkok and the scummy tourist-infested areas.

If you want to enjoy your stay here at a reasonable cost, then let those preconceptions go, relax and cultivate the virtue of patience and tolerance for other ways of life.

Note that some cultures even within the west prefer the salad before the main course, others serve it after - are either of these choices "impolite" or "ignorant"?

You are obviously clueless wrt Thai culture.

My experience is that when I talked to the staff (sometimes in English, sometimes in basic Thai) and explained that I wanted my order delivered as a first course then a main, in the majority of cases they have done so.

PMarlin, FunFon is partially correct in his generalisations in that the food usually arrives all at the same time, so just smile at the staff and try to explain what you want.

[David48]

That's why I have starters at the pub and then head over to my favorite restaurant for the main course.

What makes me think your 'starter' is served in a glass ...

.

[smokie36]

That's why I have starters at the pub and then head over to my favorite restaurant for the main course.

What makes me think your 'starter' is served in a glass ...

.

Ceviche for every meal!

[pmarlin]

Who said it was a Thai restaurant ?

It wasn't

[Payboy]

That's why I have starters at the pub and then head over to my favorite restaurant for the main course.

What makes me think your 'starter' is served in a glass ...

.

Shrimp cocktail, David, shrimp cocktails.

[pmarlin]

You are obviously clueless wrt Thai culture.

There is no concept here of "courses" having a certain order, nor any idea that people at a given table should get their food at around the same time.

Food comes out in the order the cook finishes it, end of story.

If you want western-style levels of service then you have to pay 20x the normal price for your food, your choices of restaurants that do this "properly" according to your back-home cultural conditioning are extremely limiting and will only be found in Bangkok and the scummy tourist-infested areas.

If you want to enjoy your stay here at a reasonable cost, then let those preconceptions go, relax and cultivate the virtue of patience and tolerance for other ways of life.

Note that some cultures even within the west prefer the salad before the main course, others serve it after - are either of these choices "impolite" or "ignorant"?

You are obviously clueless wrt Thai culture.

My experience is that when I talked to the staff (sometimes in English, sometimes in basic Thai) and explained that I wanted my order delivered as a first course then a main, in the majority of cases they have done so.

PMarlin, FunFon is partially correct in his generalisations in that the food usually arrives all at the same time, so just smile at the staff and try to explain what you want.

Funfon is never correct and beside I never read his stuff.

[David48]

That's why I have starters at the pub and then head over to my favorite restaurant for the main course.

What makes me think your 'starter' is served in a glass ...

.

Shrimp cocktail, David, shrimp cocktails.

Shaken ... not stirred?

.

[pmarlin]

That's why I have starters at the pub and then head over to my favorite restaurant for the main course.

I agree best advice so far.

[FunFon]

Who said it was a Thai restaurant ?

And who's claiming that makes a difference?

-

My experience is that when I talked to the staff (sometimes in English, sometimes in basic Thai) and explained that I wanted my order delivered as a first course then a main, in the majority of cases they have done so.

PMarlin, FunFon is partially correct in his generalisations in that the food usually arrives all at the same time, so just smile at the staff and try to explain what you want.

If it's in Thailand and isn't a fancy expensive place (for me, under B100 for a plate of food but even under B200 probably, usually no aircon, any level of English would definitely be unusual) then even if they're serving Italian or whatever the servers are Thai and therefore 99% of the time have no clue and would consider any such request just another example of crazy farang alien ideas.

For those that never eat in such places, then I do truly feel sorry for you, letting your money cut you off from some of the best pleasures this country has to offer.

Sure if (in a past life) I were paying crazy money like 500 per person I would like to think such a request could be honored, but I'd still recommend not getting bent out of shape if the staff can't handle it, I'd much rather get my food hot than have most of the dishes sit out in the kitchen for an extra 20 minutes just to arrive in some particular order my mommy told me was correct back in the old country.

[FunFon]

Ceviche for every meal!

Mmm yum, if mum wants to take me out for a nice meal when we get home, there's a Cuban place I'm now dreaming of. . .

[Payboy]

That's why I have starters at the pub and then head over to my favorite restaurant for the main course.

What makes me think your 'starter' is served in a glass ...

.

Shrimp cocktail, David, shrimp cocktails.

Shaken ... not stirred?

.

Now you're talking about dessert.

[chickenslegs]

You are obviously clueless wrt Thai culture.

There is no concept here of "courses" having a certain order, nor any idea that people at a given table should get their food at around the same time.

Food comes out in the order the cook finishes it, end of story.

If you want western-style levels of service then you have to pay 20x the normal price for your food, your choices of restaurants that do this "properly" according to your back-home cultural conditioning are extremely limiting and will only be found in Bangkok and the scummy tourist-infested areas.

If you want to enjoy your stay here at a reasonable cost, then let those preconceptions go, relax and cultivate the virtue of patience and tolerance for other ways of life.

Note that some cultures even within the west prefer the salad before the main course, others serve it after - are either of these choices "impolite" or "ignorant"?

Side note - if you really do want the different components of your meal served in a particular sequence, then order your starter first and don't order anything else. When the starter arrives, then order your mains, etc. Simple.

In a restaurant where the menu is divided into Starters/appetizers, Main Courses, and Sweets it would be reasonable to expect the starter to be served first, followed by the main course and, finally, the sweet.

If there is no concept of 'courses' why would the menu be displayed in this way, and why am I never served my mango and sticky rice together with my tom yum goong?

[yourauntbob]

Who said it was a Thai restaurant ?

And who's claiming that makes a difference?

-

>My experience is that when I talked to the staff (sometimes in English, sometimes in basic Thai) and explained that I wanted my order delivered as a first course then a main, in the majority of cases they have done so.

PMarlin, FunFon is partially correct in his generalisations in that the food usually arrives all at the same time, so just smile at the staff and try to explain what you want.

If it's in Thailand and isn't a fancy expensive place (for me, under B100 for a plate of food but even under B200 probably, usually no aircon, any level of English would definitely be unusual) then even if they're serving Italian or whatever the servers are Thai and therefore 99% of the time have no clue and would consider any such request just another example of crazy farang alien ideas.

For those that never eat in such places, then I do truly feel sorry for you, letting your money cut you off from some of the best pleasures this country has to offer.

Sure if (in a past life) I were paying crazy money like 500 per person I would like to think such a request could be honored, but I'd still recommend not getting bent out of shape if the staff can't handle it, I'd much rather get my food hot than have most of the dishes sit out in the kitchen for an extra 20 minutes just to arrive in some particular order my mommy told me was correct back in the old country.

Agreed, but even over 1000 baht per person many restaurants have trouble wit western style of service. My experiences have been closer to yours (Funfon) and I have given up on trying to make the service here like it would be back home. Most restaurants have Thai staff and mainly Thai customers (even most western restaurants have more Thai's than farang in them) so they serve in a Thai style.

[Nautilus05]

Could you possibly find something more petulant to bitch about?

Your appetizer came at the same time as your main course? Really, that's what you decided was worth bitching about???

[FunFon]

In a restaurant where the menu is divided into Starters/appetizers, Main Courses, and Sweets it would be reasonable to expect the starter to be served first, followed by the main course and, finally, the sweet.

If there is no concept of 'courses' why would the menu be displayed in this way, and why am I never served my mango and sticky rice together with my tom yum goong?

-

Because the person that wrote the menu may well not have ever stepped foot in the restaurant and certainly hasn't been around hands-on training the staff to any western-recognisable standard.

Thais don't have any cultural pattern of "sweets at the end", you really haven't noticed that they don't eat pudding after a meal? and that the word for "sweets" (khanom) can be applied to things with chili, pork, seafood, lentils with or without a sweet taste, consumed anytime of day or night?

Just order one dish at a time if you insist on your back-home ways.

And try to get a clue about the local habits if you're planning on anything more than a fly-through tourist visit.

[krisb]

Well that's it. You should go home immediately.