Cheapest Charlie

[Konini]

You call a guy that goes eating at Hotel Hilton for a cheap Charlie??? Where the rooms cost a fortune and the food cost a fortune.....

I maybe just do not undrstand this word: cheap Charlie - or maybe just do not undrstand you???

Glegolo

For the price they charge for the buffet, I'd expect water to be free. I mean, really? Paying for water on top of the big food price?

(One of my bug-bears, as I only ever drink water with food, and get annoyed at the very high price some restaurants charge for it).

(Not annoyed enough to take my own, I'm cheap, but not that cheap).

[Spoonman]

I know some that steal sand from the beach to take home and put into a sock so that they can filter urine into drinking water.

No Sh*t???

Nah just urine.

[Konini]

My mother is a Scot and was always frugal but not cheap, she would buy the best quality shoes for the family as they were a better buy in the long run.

Until I was 16 I had cotton knickers from Marks and Spencer and Clark's Shoes while all of my friends had frills and high heels from the market. At times I hated mam for it and I could tantrum for England, but she wouldn't move.

I couldn't see why she did it, but once I had to buy them for myself, guess what I bought?

[laislica]

I knew someone who would refill a 2 litre water bottle everyday at the school he worked at to save himself 10 baht for a 20 litre bottle.

Local folk would too.....................

Absolutely, if you really want to know how Thai's value 1 baht..... just be observant.

Correct, 1 ltr petrol, 1 baht short of the needed 43. The shopkeeper then proceeds to change the 1000 baht note LOL

[Jingthing]

Live and let live. The cheapest of Charlies make me look like a big spender. When you're fat it's fun to be seen with fatter people.

[DLP]

Most cheap charlies will say its not the money its the principal, after they have complained about the price of something.

[Trentham]

I personally resent paying almost the same prices for bottled water per litre as you do petrol. Consider the cost of building drilling platforms, laying massive plpelines, refining the crude into petrol, delivering it in big trucks. Think about the huge salary bills for the oil companies and the fact that they sell it to the service stations for less than we pay at the pump. The service stations also have salaries to pay and many other costs such as rent, insurance, electricity and so on. The costs of producing bottled water are almost negligible when compared to those when producing petrol.

However if I must pay then I do so.

A word of warning - it can be hazardous re-using plastic bottles too often. Read here.... http://environment.about.com/od/healthenvironment/a/plastic_bottles.htm

[Deez]

I often take my own water in to bars and other high end venues. Why. I purchase 20 litre bottles for 12 baht. Why the <removed> do I want to pay 20 or 30 baht for 500ml here in Phuket.

Gee, I don't know, maybe because they are running a business? Do you bring your own ink to get something done at the Print Shop?

[blazes]

When I was a kid a hundred years ago, it was quite normal at British seaside resorts to see a notice in one of those little cafes that served beans on toast and a cuppa tea, a notice which said:

CUSTOMERS ARE KINDLY REQUESTED NOT TO CONSUME THEIR OWN FOOD ON THE PREMISES.

I miss that and Donald McGill "dirty' postcards.

[BritManToo]

Most cheap charlies will say its not the money its the principal, after they have complained about the price of something.

The world is being slowly destroyed by wasteful people.

I don't want to be one of those people. That is my principal.

Edited April 9, 2014 by BritManToo

[maccaroni man]

I have yet to eat food in a so-called 5 star hotel in Bangkok that was worth even half of what I paid for it. They use Thai crap ingredients. They use Thai cooks that have no idea about western food. They use Thai waiters that don't speak english well enough. The after dinner coffee is the crap "Bon Cafe". I'll stick to som tam and catfish on the street(delicious!) and I'll only eat western food when out of Thailand. I'm not surprised people bring their own tea to a restaurant. They simply want to enjoy a good cup of tea with their dinner and they know most restaurants serve cheap crap tea to save money and they think their customers are idiots and won't notice.

. That's interesting could you give an example of the 5 stars you have eaten at? I have only found top quality foods at the Marriott and the chefs were very good; many of them trained on cruise ships and Europe.

[NeilSA1]

I use 1 tea bag to make 2 cups of tea!

(Dilmah Ceylon tea bags from Makro @129Bht for 100)

Must taste and look like gnat's pee...

Good lord! I wouldn't know what gnat's pee tasted like

[dorayme]

Saw a caucasian man at the food court in Central Festival in Pattaya go from table to table after the table was vacated with his own fork eating the food that was not consumed.

[Jingthing]

Saw a caucasian man at the food court in Central Festival in Pattaya go from table to table after the table was vacated with his own fork eating the food that was not consumed.

That's impressive.

[kded]

My mother always taught me if you look after the pennies the pounds look after themselves and it has not caused me any problems. I am proud to be frugal and save money when & where I can. I managed to retire at 55 not because I have a lot of money but what I earned I saved and try as I might no-one wants to employ me now - a woman with a mind of her own and not afraid to say so.

I don't downgrade people for whatever their actions are - because who really knows the full story and if they are not hurting you personally what is the problem? Find something positive to do in your life and set a good example - wingeing and complaining are neither.

[Jingthing]

There's are distinctions to be made depending on people's motivations which aren't necessarily apparent from casual observation.

If someone is dumpster diving, truly needy, and they just need the nutrition, isn't that more virtuous than begging?

Some people seek out waste food for ecological reasons, not poverty or meanness, it's a valid ideology.

[bkkgooner]

1 of the tightest gits in thailand is worth around £40 million (and growing daily) he bought a house right down in naklua cos it was cheap, he walks outside to buy 30bt barbeque chicken because restaurants are too expensive. he will only drink on naklua road because going further into pattaya means he would have to change baht busses costing another 10bt fare.

he once went in to fill up his pick up truck and told them (in front of 3 guys in the truck) to put "100baht" in the tank! drop round for a drink with him and he will crack open a small bottle of sprite (for 2) and keep it topped up with ice until its just ice water. he painted his rain gutters on his house up to 2 m high from the ground and got a thai to go up a ladder to paint the rest, this saved him 200baht labour charge.

he will be the richest corpse in the graveyard, no doubt about that.

Sounds like he is really enjoying his wealth doesn't it?

Life is all about balance for me, work hard save as much as you can and then always give yourself a treat of a few beers at the weekend, going out for a posh meal with the wife or a day trip with the family. 40 million in the bank and eating gai ping every day just sounds sad

Not much interest in retiring early if it means working myself to death or not allowing myself to enjoy life

[AngelsLariat]

I often take my own water in to bars and other high end venues. Why. I purchase 20 litre bottles for 12 baht. Why the <removed> do I want to pay 20 or 30 baht for 500ml here in Phuket.

Thailand's efforts to attract quality Westerners are paying off nicely.

[steven100]

There's plenty of cheap charlies in Pattaya who walk all over town to buy chang beer as cheap as possible.

[mauGR1]

There is nothing wrong, IMHO, in being a cheap charlie..As long as you respect others.

..I find impolite, to say the least, to bring your food and drinks into a restaurant.

The people working in the restaurants are supposed to earn a living, they are not there for leisure.

[F4UCorsair]

Saw backpackers arguing over a big bowl of soup saying they ordered the small one.

Difference was 10฿

Sent from my HTC One X using Tapatalk

I've seen plenty of backpackers starving themselves because they wouldn't pay B30 for a meal but then drink booze all night. Beats me.

[hanno]

I have yet to eat food in a so-called 5 star hotel in Bangkok that was worth even half of what I paid for it. They use Thai crap ingredients. They use Thai cooks that have no idea about western food. They use Thai waiters that don't speak english well enough. The after dinner coffee is the crap "Bon Cafe". I'll stick to som tam and catfish on the street(delicious!) and I'll only eat western food when out of Thailand. I'm not surprised people bring their own tea to a restaurant. They simply want to enjoy a good cup of tea with their dinner and they know most restaurants serve cheap crap tea to save money and they think their customers are idiots and won't notice.

. That's interesting could you give an example of the 5 stars you have eaten at? I have only found top quality foods at the Marriott and the chefs were very good; many of them trained on cruise ships and Europe.

I would like to know as well. I do tend to splurge a little bit on my visits to BKK, and most of the food I have had in the big hotels was top notch.

[Berkshire]

There is nothing wrong, IMHO, in being a cheap charlie..As long as you respect others.

..I find impolite, to say the least, to bring your food and drinks into a restaurant.

The people working in the restaurants are supposed to earn a living, they are not there for leisure.

Agree. I used to hang with an American guy who loved to drink. But only cheap wine. So whenever we went out to a restaurant, he would bring a big-ass jug of cheap wine and sit there all night long drinking it. And if the restaurant tried to charge him for it, he'd go ape-shit. I tried to explain to him that the restaurant has overhead cost which includes providing him a comfortable atmosphere to plant his fat ass. If he wants to drink his cheap wine, do it at home. Have no idea if he's still pulling the same stunt because I choose not to hang with him anymore. Freakin embarrassing.

[Andre0720]

The one who dilapidates his money, steals from his sucessors,

Cheap Charlies steal from themselves....

[bra]

Every meal that I have had at restaurant at a 5 star hotel in Bangkok has been just that - 5 Star. One of the best cheap Charlie acts I have seen is a guy in a 5 Star hotel in Singapore walking down the corridor and collecting food (some partly eaten) from room service trolleys left outside the room by guests.

But the best cheap Charlie I knew was an Airline Captain in Australia who would take the toilet rolls from the toilets with him after the last flight at night at his home port!

[mrfaroukh]

I see a farang, German or Brit or..... come around 14:00 to 15:00 take a spoon go around and then eat and drink the left overs. I don't call him cheap charlie because I don't know what is his story. May be he is short of cash etc. At least he does not beg.

[mca]

Not so much cheap Charlie but trying to.take the piss. When I worked in one of the big international hotels in Bangkok we had a power cut for literally 5 minutes. The emergency generator kicked in anyhow. Half an hour later an Indian gentleman and his brother from the adjoining room came down to the front desk and demanded their room for free because of their "suffering"

Err....No.

[somchaismith]

Saw a caucasian man at the food court in Central Festival in Pattaya go from table to table after the table was vacated with his own fork eating the food that was not consumed.

I actually know of two greedy, fat caucasians who would fight each for the best of those scraps. The worst thing about it is neither of them are short of a quid.

Actually saw one going round a bar, tipping all the glass dregs, from recently vacated tables, into his own glass.

[somchaismith]

The Hilton should have complimentary water anyhow.

[stickylies]

sometimes i go to restaurants and have:

1. my own COKE ZERO (they don't sell that)

2. my own BROWN RICE (they don't sell that)

3. my own RED WINE (they don't sell that)

and nobody cares. i pay my bill and tip 10% (with a minimum of 30THB)....

i don't like the chemical crap known as thai beer and never eat white rice. i'm one of the quality tourists thailand is looking for, 5555555