price creep ---- restaurants

[Mojomor]

Recently some restaurants have been raising prices.

An item that use to be 60 baht has risen to 70 baht ---- okay it's only 10 baht, but that's 16%.

Another item 160 baht gone to 180 baht ---- only 20 baht but it's a 12.5% increase.

Another item gone from 110 baht to 140 baht ---- only 30 baht but must be 28% approx.

The point is, nobody is giving me an extra 15% per year, so something has got to give in time.

[PattayaPhom]

Was the last increase only last year?...probably not, so over a 2 or 3 year period not that much really considering that minimum wage has kicked in plus prices of chicken, pork, rice etc have doulbled over the past 3 years.

[Torrens54]

I wouldn't blame the Restaurateurs.

As mentioned, consider the increase in the minimum wage and a whole bag of increases in the prices of everything from Rice, through Meat and Vegetables, not to mention fuel.

Now, if you want to point a finger at anyone, I reckon you don't have to be a Rhodes Scholar to figure out WHO.

. Good Luck, Pot Luck or whatever "Luck" you wish.

Edited May 16, 2014 by Torrens54

[howerde]

Those feeling the pinch could start drinking chang, or even cut out hookers and booze altogether, but i guess that was the reaon to move to Thailand in the first place, tough choices ahead for some.

[Jingthing]

It's a crying shame!
But I'll keep paying whatever until I'm skint.

Gotta eat!

[bartender100]

Prices in the shops are shooting up for it seems just about everything as well.

[lemel]

Those feeling the pinch could start drinking chang, or even cut out hookers and booze altogether, but i guess that was the reaon to move to Thailand in the first place, tough choices ahead for some.

Why, is that what you had to do??? Was that the reason you moved to Thailand?...

[Thaiberius]

I always group my eating experiences into one of four categories when in Thailand;

1. Street cafe - £

2. Thai shophouse - ££

3. Thai restaurant catering for farang - £££

3. Farang style - ££££

If anything is not to my liking then I go elsewhere. For example if the food or presentaion is lacking and short of my expectations or the price is creeping up. I don't complain but just move on. There is probably more choice in Thailand than in any other country in the world, why put up with a bad deal?

Edited May 16, 2014 by Thaiberius

[impulse]

Thank goodness the prices at the eateries are going up.

Because the costs of ingredients have skyrocketed, and the only other option is to make the food out of crappier ingredients.

I'd rather pay a fair -albeit higher- price and get food that was just as good as last year (and the year before..)

Otherwise, we'll eventually be eating bowls of salt water with a couple grains of rice and some chicken feathers. Already headed that way at some places I've eaten.

Still, my sympathies go out to those on a fixed income.

Edited May 16, 2014 by impulse

[Pattaya28]

The prices are increasing due to pure Thai greed.

Foreigners are seen as mobile ATM's.

OP posts price increases that are not in line with any inflation, therefore Foreigners are being "milked", which is par for the cause.

Because Pattaya is a holiday destination, up to a large degree, the Thais will get away with it.

[ThaiBob]

The prices are increasing due to pure Thai greed.

Foreigners are seen as mobile ATM's.

OP posts price increases that are not in line with any inflation, therefore Foreigners are being "milked", which is par for the cause.

Because Pattaya is a holiday destination, up to a large degree, the Thais will get away with it.

Right on bro! A perfect example is the increase in baht bus prices over the last 20 years. Greedy bastards!

[moonseeker]

I compare with other international holiday destinations and overall Pattaya is still VERY affordable. It also offers lots of cheap alternatives for lower-end tourists.

Not much to complain about for me. MS>

[AhFarangJa]

Thank goodness the prices at the eateries are going and the only other option is to make the food out of crappier ingredients.

I'd rather pay a fair -albeit higher- price and get food that was just as good as last year (and the year before..)

Otherwise, we'll eventually be eating bowls of salt water with a couple grains of rice and some chicken feathers. Already headed that way at some places I've eaten.

Still, my sympathies go out to those on a fixed income.

Feathers....plural....I only got one...bummer, been ripped off again!

[Asiantravel]

It's a crying shame!

But I'll keep paying whatever until I'm skint.

Gotta eat!

yes saw you enjoying your food last night at Pao on Pattaya Klang

[impulse]

Feathers....plural....I only got one...bummer, been ripped off again!

That reference to feathers is actually a flashback to an old scandal where dried dog food manufacturer(s) were claiming some percentage of their product was chicken.

Somebody looked into it and found out that the chicken they used was mostly feathers.

[AhFarangJa]

Feathers....plural....I only got one...bummer, been ripped off again!

That reference to feathers is actually a flashback to an old scandal where dried dog food manufacturer(s) were claiming some percentage of their product was chicken.

Somebody looked into it and found out that the chicken they used was mostly feathers.

Had the same problem with KFC , think it was mostly dog food

[impulse]

Feathers....plural....I only got one...bummer, been ripped off again!

That reference to feathers is actually a flashback to an old scandal where dried dog food manufacturer(s) were claiming some percentage of their product was chicken.

Somebody looked into it and found out that the chicken they used was mostly feathers.

Had the same problem with KFC , think it was mostly dog food

Strangely, KFC pieces here in Asia are about half the size of KFC pieces (breast and thighs) back home. I can't help but think it's because they have to keep their prices down to be competitive in Asia.

And no, it's not because they're mirroring the relative size of breasts and thighs of the indigenous populations.

[AhFarangJa]

Feathers....plural....I only got one...bummer, been ripped off again!

That reference to feathers is actually a flashback to an old scandal where dried dog food manufacturer(s) were claiming some percentage of their product was chicken.

Somebody looked into it and found out that the chicken they used was mostly feathers.

Had the same problem with KFC , think it was mostly dog food

Strangely, KFC pieces here in Asia are about half the size of KFC pieces (breast and thighs) back home. I can't help but think it's because they have to keep their prices down to be competitive in Asia.

And no, it's not because they're mirroring the relative size of breasts and thighs of the indigenous populations.

I read a little while ago that kfc in U.K. source 41% of its chickens from Brazil, Europe and Thailand. Figure that one out!!

[Mojomor]

Anyway ---- moving away from feathers, and trying to get back on track, it appears that the price of pork has been fairly stable at around 150 baht per kilo for several years now. There was a problem in 2012 when the price dropped suddenly to 100 baht due to over-supply but recovered to 120 baht fairly quickly.

So people claiming input price increase are mistaken. Two of the examples I gave in the OP refer to pork products. There are other forces at work. Interestingly another thread has started on food court prices and fixing certain items. I did notice this, and thought my Khao Mon Kai had gone up from 35 to 40 baht, but was never quite sure, cos I forgot to check. 5 baht on 35 is approx 14%.

Sorry, it seems to me, that businesses are trying to recover their overhead off the people who live here all year round, and then milk it in the high season. And it's not all Thais. There are plenty of Farangs here, who think they are entitled to drive sports coupes, based on their hole in the wall success stories

[impulse]

Anyway ---- moving away from feathers, and trying to get back on track,

Sorry, it seems to me, that businesses are trying to recover their overhead off the people who live here all year round, and then milk it in the high season. And it's not all Thais. There are plenty of Farangs here, who think they are entitled to drive sports coupes, based on their hole in the wall success stories

Quality of the ingredients- and what happens to quality when prices are forced artificially low- are exactly on track.

And while the prices of a single commodity like pork may or may not be going up, the proprietors' costs of fuel to get to work, electricity to cook with, labor to serve you, rent on their shop, printing up their menus, other ingredients, diesel and trucking charges to deliver their materials, and all the other costs of running a business- are increasing.

They also have to cover increasing familial costs just to live the same lifestyle as the family next door- property prices, electricity, food, clothing, schooling their kids, smart phones, and all the other things business owners like to enjoy. Not to mention the expectations raised by increasing exposure to "the good life" through the interweb, TV soaps and seeing all the entitled foreigners driving their sports cars. (Which, BTW, means the increasing cost of living here is at least partially self inflicted by our own behavior)

Edited May 18, 2014 by Rimmer

[Thaiberius]

Many restaurants in Bangkok/Pattaya that are offering western food at western prices with staff paid 3rd world wages are doing quite well. Compare the fixed cost of wages in Thailand against the fixed cost of wages in Manchester, Birmingham or London and they are miniscule. Fuel prices and many foodstuff prices are also lower in Thailand than they are in the west. Certainly many western foods such as olive oil, pulses, condiments etc are more expensive in Thailand but the margins due to lower overheads in some areas make up for this. Of course Thai food is a different kettle of fish (pun intended). Typically Thai food served in a western style restaurant is two to three times the price of what one might expect to pay in a typical family shophouse restaurant.

[Flanno]

I love reading Thai Visa for this type of post. It's so similar to some conversations I overhear in bars along Soi Bukhow ie how damn expensive everything is. Nothing positive but constant whining. Usually the accents indicate they are Brits. It makes me laugh no end. I've been in bars when the free food comes out and it's like a stampede to get in first. Some of the 'diners' eat so much you'd swear they hadn't eaten for a week. If it's so expensive to eat in restaurants the down at heel diners could always try eating where most Thais do, at the street stalls. I do occasionally and they are excellent value and I pay same price as the locals. Of course the alternative to high prices here is to go home and face reality.

[NoshowJones]

Feathers....plural....I only got one...bummer, been ripped off again!

That reference to feathers is actually a flashback to an old scandal where dried dog food manufacturer(s) were claiming some percentage of their product was chicken.

Somebody looked into it and found out that the chicken they used was mostly feathers.

Had the same problem with KFC , think it was mostly dog food

Strangely, KFC pieces here in Asia are about half the size of KFC pieces (breast and thighs) back home. I can't help but think it's because they have to keep their prices down to be competitive in Asia.

And no, it's not because they're mirroring the relative size of breasts and thighs of the indigenous populations.

Not just in Pattaya but anywhere, the three main fast food restaurants, KFC, McDonalds and BurgerKing. KFCs portions of chips are only a fraction of what you get with the other two.

[PattayaPhom]

A rare night out on Friday in the Metropolis and not being a drinker was amazed the norm was THB 50 for a 6 Baht bottle of soda water!...maybe coz the price of lime has shot up recently.

[tropo]

The prices are increasing due to pure Thai greed.

Foreigners are seen as mobile ATM's.

OP posts price increases that are not in line with any inflation, therefore Foreigners are being "milked", which is par for the cause.

Because Pattaya is a holiday destination, up to a large degree, the Thais will get away with it.

The OP doesn't have a clue what's going on. They don't increase the prices by much at all and a 10 baht increase could be the first for many years. One restaurant I eat at often has only had 2 price increases in 8 years. Most Thai restaurants I eat at have gone up, for example, per meal, from 70 - 90, 60 - 80, 80 - 100, in 8 years. Some even less.

And all this talk about "Thai greed" is ridiculous. Restaurants are businesses which exist to make money. Calling it "Thai greed" is just Thai bashing. I find the comment quite offensive (annoying). In your country it's probably called maximizing profit, but here it's "Thai greed"?

The sole purpose of any business is to make maximum profit, therefore the right prices are the highest the market can bear, taking into consideration volume of sales. Obviously if you consider the prices at any particular restaurant too high, you don't eat there. If a particular restaurant prices themselves too high, they will not make money - but you're calling that "Thai greed", when in fact it's just misreading the market.

Edited May 18, 2014 by tropo

[Bernard Flint]

Of course prices increase, due to many reasons.

HOWEVER

i HAVE FOUND MANY IMPORTED PRODUCTS ARE LESS EXPENSIVE THAN 8 YEARS AGO. Overall there are bargains to be had in many restaraunts, so vote with your feet

[Rimmer]

Off topic post and replies removed, the topic is about:

price creep ---- restaurants