I went to dream boys last night and drinks price is horrendous

[Shonen]

15 hours ago, gayinpattaya said:

I miss Soi Twilight. For me, it was the heart of Bangkok's nightlife. When it closed, Bangkok was really ruined for me. 
I don't dislike Bangkok, I just prefer living in Pattaya, specifically Jomtien. 

The major problems for me in Bangkok is the pollution, the never ending traffic and the heat. 

I agree. I live five months in Thailand a year and only spend one week in Bangkok.

im also glad I’m into twinks, as they’re a dime a dozen in Pattaya   So it’s much easier to negotiate prices. Just the pollution alone is worth staying away from Bangkok.

[yp11]

18 hours ago, vinapu said:

and I think at Banana cost of Boy drink is actually cheaper than one of customer's

Agreed, entrance fee THB 380 the cheapest among all bar and their show start from 930pm till midnight

Boy's drink I think 300-350 THB but I am not sure how much they been  charged or how many drink ordered, the staff explain each bill by pointing out the bill is for which boy 

[yp11]

12 hours ago, Wellhellothere said:

I pretty sure that there’s a big sign saying boys drink 350 baht lol

I’m very curious what happened in the end, did they reluctantly pay?

I'm not sure what was happened at the end if they paid.

I noticed because many staff went to their table and they explain each of the  bill by pointing out that is for which boy and boy.

I remember there is a sign nearby the stage around THB 300-350 per drink for boy, slightly cheaper than other bars.

[vinapu]

6 hours ago, Boy69 said:

I feel the same all the fun was in Soi Twilight , but the same can be said about Pattaya: Sunnee is almost a ghost town, Boyz Town is a pale shadow to its glory days and Jomtien Complex never appealed to me.

I miss parties Nero, the emperor was throwing in the Colloseo or Circus Maximus but world goes on , sigh

[vinapu]

6 hours ago, PeterRS said:

....when business is slow - or has been slow - the automatic reaction of bar owners is to raise prices. It is the only thing they know. Reducing prices to encourage higher patronage, reducing off prices, making shows more appealing . . . they do not want to know!

 

perhaps if they tried to lower it expected surge in patronage did not materialize. We don't know those things until we sit at the till.  I'd let owners to run their business.

Recently we had complain about extortionate fees at Dreamboys Patpong  (I agree , too steep for what they offer) and yet there was report bar was 80 % full.

[PeterRS]

21 hours ago, reader said:

You can get a glass of acceptable red at Wine Connection for 120 bht and bottle for 550.

Totally agree about Wine Connection and their rather good wines by the glass. You also get a decent amount in the glass - no doubt at least 175 ml. My problem was merely that after 2 hours wilting in the onsen, I was hungry. The restaurant across the road seemed worth investigating. Next time I will just hop on the skytrain at the nearby St. Louis station for the 2 stops to Saladaeang and get my meal at Wine Connection.

[reader]

Keep in mind Silom Complex location closes at 9:30 but Sukhumvit alley 11 location at closes at 11:30.

[PeterRS]

22 hours ago, Boy69 said:

I think the problem is with the shrinking of the gay tourists arriving to Thailand the old generation is fading away and the younger generation isn't coming in big numbers and if they do their behaviour is different than ours so the bars are trying to extract as more money as they can from the shrinking clientele entering their bars.

Thinking back more than a few years, Soi Twilight did not really come into its own until the 1990s. Then it was not just go-go bars but massage spas staffed by cute guys and the much lamented Dick's Cafe where people watching could be an enjoyment all on its own. Until then it was basically only Twilight Bar (later remodelled as Hotmale around 2000). There were go-go bars dotted around including the wonderful Barbiery just across from Soi Twilight, but Silom Soi 4 seemed the place for gay men to go, with Rome Club being a magnet and especially when Telephone opened. Overall the clientele certainly seemed to be younger than today with many from Hong Kong at week-ends. And then there were more Thais than farang.

But back in the 1980s, there were considerably fewer long flights from Europe and the USA and there were far fewer cheap tickets. In Europe the gay spots in Paris, Amsterdam, Hamburg and other cities were cheaper and easier to get to. Those who discovered they had a liking for Asians could find many Indonesians in Amsterdam, Vietnamese in Paris . . . and so on. I have written elsewhere of meeting young men of both nationalities in large saunas in both cities. But I am always curious how Thailand found its way on to the mass gay tourist travel map.

I guess the reputation of the country had something to do with it. The number of prominent gay men who had visited and stayed in the country - the Somerset Maughams, Noel Cowards and many others - must have spread information. Word of mouth from Hong Kongers and other Asian-based westerners probably also had something to do with it. Then there were those stopping over when flying the kangaroo route from Australia and New Zealand. But if my recollection is correct, it was the 1990s when gay tourism started to explode. Is that other members' view?

I have no idea if Eastern Europe and South America were attrative to larger numbers of gay tourists back then. I certainly wish I had discovered some South American countries much earlier. But I am happy that a career change saw me move to Asia and discover a world of gay entertainment I never imagined existed. Like others, I fear that the younger generation of western guys have too much choice for Thailand now to be top of their list. On the other hand, the increasingly richer guys from North and South East Asia that I have met seem to love the gay scene in Thailand. They - and repressed Chinese ladies - are likely surely to be the punters of the future.

 

[Londoner]

PeterRS's allusion to Soi Twilight reminds me of my first visits, back in 1997.  I recall Blue Star, on the Hotmale side of the soi, which was unique in that it had two troupes of guys, one  of twinks and the other of more muscular guys.  They would combine occasionally au naturel; some of the twinks would  keep their hands strategically -placed while the more hefty guys let it all hang loose.

A year or so later, Screwboys set up shop there for a short time while its Patpong premises was (I believe) being refurbished. It too was very raunchy compared to what came later. Alas, those times will never return.

One question; is my memory of the soi not being completely paved true? Can it be that it was partly dirt-road? It certainly had the air of an area that was being developed piecemeal. 

And yes, for people- watching, Dick's  was unbeatable. I can recall spending  many evenings there. I liked the food too, particularly the chicken and cashew -nuts. 

[a-447]

I think Screwboys in Soi Twilight was the first gay bar I visited in Bangkok.

A tout approached me in Patpong market and took me there - for a fee, of course.

I still have very vivid memories of  a handsome young guy in white briefs coming towards me, clutching his junk. And there was a fuck show happening right in front of my eyes. I thought I'd died and gone to heaven!

I wonder what they charged for drinks back then? Anyone remember? I think I gave the tout 200 baht.

[vinapu]

6 hours ago, PeterRS said:

....... guys from North and South East Asia that I have met seem to love the gay scene in Thailand. They - and repressed Chinese ladies - are likely surely to be the punters of the future.

 

I'd say that future is already there.  During recent trip I just returned from , for fun I pay attention to who clientele in bars is and definitely always farangs , young and old,  were minority. On at least two occasions I was only farang in audience , fact actually noticed by Tawan boy sitting beside me " no farang, only  you".

I for one don't mind that at all, it doesn't matter  who keeps bars running as long as somebody does. Surely,  at one point in future is may lead to situation when we may not feel welcomed but that is very theoretical prospect now. 

I also don't mind ladies in boy  bars. Surely,  they are competition and chances are we are on losing end in many cases but they oil industry and feed boys. Sure all that screaming is annoying but so it loud music , pesky mamasans, drink prices, heat and traffic outside, double pricing, packed BTS trains and so many things annoying us  but never to  a degree we look for an alternative.

[vinapu]

4 hours ago, Londoner said:

I liked the food too, particularly the chicken and cashew -nuts. 

like that ?

[reader]

41 minutes ago, vinapu said:

Sure all that screaming is annoying but so it loud music , pesky mamasans, drink prices, heat and traffic outside, double pricing, packed BTS trains and so many things annoying us  but never to  a degree we look for an alternative.

Or to borrow Harry Truman’s favorite  rejoinder: “if you can’t stand the heat get out of the kitchen.”

[reader]

5 hours ago, Londoner said:

 I liked the food too, particularly the chicken and cashew -nuts. 

After getting massage in Saphan Kwai, I like to stop by Beer Park eatery for their version:

[vinapu]

looks yummy but is seems they  only open in the evening, last time I was passing by about 5 pm , they told me ' not open yet"

[Londoner]

I'm already dribbling, thanks to those photos....but no matter, only six days away from experiencing Balcony's version of the dish. Not forgetting the papaya salad, mai phaet.

[Travellerdave]

2 hours ago, vinapu said:

I'd say that future is already there.  During recent trip I just returned from , for fun I pay attention to who clientele in bars is and definitely always farangs , young and old,  were minority. On at least two occasions I was only farang in audience , fact actually noticed by Tawan boy sitting beside me " no farang, only  you".

I for one don't mind that at all, it doesn't matter  who keeps bars running as long as somebody does. Surely,  at one point in future is may lead to situation when we may not feel welcomed but that is very theoretical prospect now. 

I also don't mind ladies in boy  bars. Surely,  they are competition and chances are we are on losing end in many cases but they oil industry and feed boys. Sure all that screaming is annoying but so it loud music , pesky mamasans, drink prices, heat and traffic outside, double pricing, packed BTS trains and so many things annoying us  but never to  a degree we look for an alternative.

Spot on Vinapu - I would add to your list of annoyances: “ladies and str couples on our gay beach”

I really like reading your reports particularly when, im back home. Love the pictures of chicken and cashew nuts which is also my favourite too. The dish does vary a lot in Bkk and Pats particularly with the proportion of expensive cashew nuts compared with that of the chicken and other ingredients. I always feel cheated when there are few nuts. I’ve tried a couple of times making it here in U.K. - getting chicken and cashew nuts is easy but I cannot replicate the spicy taste of the juice. The second time I tipped half of it in the waste. I must look for a good cook book or have a lesson during my next trip.

 

[vinapu]

2 hours ago, Travellerdave said:

Spot on Vinapu - I would add to your list of annoyances: “ladies and str couples on our gay beach”

I really like reading your reports particularly when, im back home. Love the pictures of chicken and cashew nuts which is also my favourite too. The dish does vary a lot in Bkk and Pats particularly with the proportion of expensive cashew nuts compared with that of the chicken and other ingredients. I always feel cheated when there are few nuts. I’ve tried a couple of times making it here in U.K. - getting chicken and cashew nuts is easy but I cannot replicate the spicy taste of the juice. The second time I tipped half of it in the waste. I must look for a good cook book or have a lesson during my next trip.

 

I'm not in favor of ghettoization and don't mind if people blend in as long as they behave and employ ' live and let live"  attitude. So far I never had problems with straights or ladies , be it in bar, street, shops or restaurant. Sometimes may be some look or raised brows but that's about it. We gays are no saints either unfortunately.

 

As for the dish, that's the beauty of it, with few ingredients which can be mixed in different proportions and meat which can be added  cooked or fried  there's possibility of multitude of variations.

As for trying it at home, many  exotic drinks or dishes taste well on vacation and/or in country of their origin but not necessarily at home. I tried it at least 3 times in various Thai eateries here and while Singha beer tasted all the same , chicken with nuts was just distant relative of what I tried in LOS

[Olddaddy]

6 hours ago, Londoner said:

I'm already dribbling, thanks to those photos....but no matter, only six days away from experiencing Balcony's version of the dish. Not forgetting the papaya salad, mai phaet.

6 days away? When you going?

[vinapu]

1 hour ago, Olddaddy said:

6 days away? When you going?

not sure what Londoner answers but my guess will be in 6 days

[floridarob]

@vinapu Was my guess as well, but thought it might be a trick question ....

[colmx]

3500 for a bottle of JWR seems pretty acceptable to me. Assume it was 1L and all mixers were included?

[jason1975]

12 minutes ago, colmx said:

3500 for a bottle of JWR seems pretty acceptable to me. Assume it was 1L and all mixers were included?

Bottle costs 4000 baht at Jupiter so it's cheaper at Dreamboys.

[a-447]

Vinapu wrote:

"As for the dish, that's the beauty of it, with few ingredients which can be mixed in different proportions and meat which can be added  cooked or fried  there's possibility of multitude of variations."

I've always been happy to follow Vinapu's recommendations - the Classroom hotel in Pattaya, the Raya in Silom - but am reluctant to try the chicken and cashew dish.

I find stir-fry dishes in Asia use way too much oil. I once went to the Central Festival foodhall in Pattaya where you can watch them cooking your meal. I saw the chef pour a huge ladle of what I thought was water into the wok. When I sat down to eat it, it turned out to be oil! The food was literalky swimming in it. Yuk!!

I learnt how to say "just a little oil" in Thai and they were quite happy to accommodate me, but it was still too much for me.

When I used to cook at home - I eat out these days - I used a little water instead of oil to stir -fry.

One of my favourite Chinese dishes is fried rice; well, it used to be until I saw how it was made. Never again!

[PeterRS]

2 minutes ago, a-447 said:

I've always been happy to follow Vinapu's recommendations - the Classroom hotel in Pattaya, the Raya in Silom - but am reluctant to try the chicken and cashew dish.

I find stir-fry dishes in Asia use way too much oil. I once went to the Central Festival foodhall in Pattaya where you can watch them cooking your meal. I saw the chef pour a huge ladle of what I thought was water into the wok. When I sat down to eat it, it turned out to be oil! The food was literalky swimming in it. Yuk!!

I learnt how to say "just a little oil" in Thai and they were quite happy to accommodate me, but it was still too much for me.

When I used to cook at home - I eat out these days - I used a little water instead of oil to stir -fry.

One of my favourite Chinese dishes is fried rice; well, it used to be until I saw how it was made. Never again!

I agree that I find too much oil in several basically Chinese dishes offered in Thailand. But then I am used to the superb Chinese cuisine in Hong Kong where it does not get any better. I certainly would not expect Thai chefs to follow Hong Kong recipes to a T and I assume Thais prefer more oil. I recall an excellent italian restaurant opening in a major city in England. Friends and I thought the cuisine quite wonderful. One guest who travelled extensively in Italy dismissed it as Italian food as the English like it!