Mama-san

[Gaybutton]

Comments here and there have popped up often on various threads, but I don't recall a thread devoted exclusively to mama-sans. So, I'm starting one. I think regular readers of this board are already well aware of my personal opinion of the mama-sans. In general, I do not particularly care for them, to put it mildly.

 

I'd like to know your opinions of mama-sans in the gay go-go bars (I never see any in the beer bars).

 

Other than starting this thread, I'll keep out of it (for once). As I said, my opinion is already well known, but I'd like to know what the rest of you have to say about the mama-sans.

[atri1666]

Same opinion like you. I dont like and need them.

[Guest]

Some I find very annoying. Some I really like and are good to ask questions and give advice. I have had a few run ins over the years with some aggressive ones but for the most part, I have learned to use them for better knowledge and the ones that are a pain I simply wave away immediately.

 

When you are good to a mamasan and you treat them with respect and kindness, when the new boys from Issan get off the bus, you are the first one they call. Totally worth it IMHO.

[Guest cdnmatt]

I've never really had a problem with them. In my eyes, they're just people trying to make a dollar, like everyone else. Agreed, some can be a little pushy, but once you learn how to handle them, it's no worries. They don't care when I push them away, so why should I?

 

On the flip side, I've met a couple pretty decent mamasans who I enjoyed chatting with as well.

[Guest]

They are essentially pushy salespeople out to make a quick buck.

 

I prefer to avoid them. Most can be persuaded to go away without much difficulty, but a small number are pests.

 

If the guy I fancy speaks enough English, I prefer to keep the mamasan out of the discussion altogether.

 

They may have a role if a translator is required, but as they only ever say what the customer wants to hear, this is of limited value. The mamasans that do not speak much English are totally useless.

[Guest Astrrro]

Same opinion like you. I dont like and need them.

 

Same opinion here.

[Guest fountainhall]

When you are good to a mamasan and you treat them with respect and kindness, when the new boys from Issan get off the bus, you are the first one they call. Totally worth it IMHO.

Whilst I have never had a mamasan go that far, I find it can sometimes be helpful to buy them a drink. Sure, one response to that is: 'why should we?' The only reason is that it does seem to mellow them and you get a lot more information about the boys than otherwise. And I sometimes find the boys themselves seem happier when the mamasan is being looked after!

[Guest xiandarkthorne]

Maybe it's because I'm a fairly easy-going guy (you could say slutty and I wouldn't object) when I hit the bars but I've only ever had ONE bad encounter with a mama-san - and that was on Phuket the first time I went there and made the mistake of paying for drinks by handing the mama-san my credit card. The bill came to 3,000 Baht - but it was as much my own fault, I guess since I wanted to off 3 guys at the same time and told the mama-san to add the off-fees to the bill with all our drinks. Considering how drunk I was by then, things could have turned out worse so maybe I shouldn't even consider that a genuinely bad experience.

 

Anyway, I always tip them Baht100 and occasionally buy them the drink they want (not all of them have asked for it) and they've always been helpful when it comes to getting me the guy I point out to them. They might not be too happy about my choice of guy (I almost always opt for the one who makes eye contact longest with me from the stage - I believe it's usually because he's most desperate to be offed and would probably make me happier than a guy who looks disdainfully past me) but on the whole, I should say the ones I've met have been quite helpful to me.

[macaroni21]

I'd say that 70 - 80 percent of the time that I've had any dealings at all with gogo bar mamasans, I was left unhappy, so I mostly avoid contact with them. The problem of course is that some cling on, won't go away and keep pestering.

 

I'm sure most punters have similar views and experiences.

 

What I've lately been intrigued about is how the gogo boys themselves view their mamasans. I've tried asking this question but on the whole the boys either don't seem to have any problem with them or they have been lying to me. They don't see their mamasans as the grasping, congenital liars as I do.

 

Have any others ever enquired likewise - what the boys think of the mamasans they work for?

[Guest lvdkeyes]

I haven't had dealings with mamasans for several years, but once before I lived here I offed a mamasan and had a great time. As we left the bars all the boys cheered and whistled. Name of bar withheld as he still works there.

[Guest jomtien]

Mama-sans are like boys to me.....some I like, some I don't. The ones I like I have a lot of fun with. I ignore the ones I don't like. I have found saying "Have b/f, just looking" shoos them away nicely.

[Guest allieb]

Mama-sans are like hemorrhoids. An irritating asshole that is difficult to get rid of. If I get approached by one I turn my back. If she persists I walk out.

[Guest RichLB]

I think we are misunderstanding the function of mamasans. As I understand it, their job is to be an onsite manager of the bar. They are supposed to keep track of the boys, time their dinner breaks, make sure they dance when they're supposed to, hire and fire, etc. In many, if not all, bars they get a percentage of the off fee so when not dealing with the gogo boys, they are likely to push to get you to off a boy. I don't think their real task is to make customers happy - although I think it should be.

[Guest jomtien]

. I don't think their real task is to make customers happy - although I think it should be.

 

In theory, if they match you up with a boy that makes you happy it increases their chances of seeing more tips/drinks in the future. Some are good at this. Many, unfortunately, are not. It may have to do with that odd Thai habit of thinking 'in the now'.

[Guest FanOfThailand]

To say all mamasans are annoying and useless I think is unfair.

 

I am going to guess that most full time residents of Pattaya find the mamasans annoyingly useless while visitors such as myself find them sometimes annoying and useless and sometimes helpful and entertaining.

I have learned over the years that the information they provide is a sales pitch in most instances so I don't always believe everything I'm told.

[ChristianPFC]

My (limited) experiences with mamasans are slightly positive so far. Although I don't understand why I get a place allotted upon entering the bar, it was usually ok, only in one case I later noticed that another place gives a better vantage point and I asked if I could move over which was ok. No problems with pestering, a polite but firm "No" was always enough to get rid of him/her.

 

There are encounters whose entertaining value is arguable. Mamasan sits down next to me asks me which boy I like and as there is no-one who catches my eye I give an elusive answer which leads to the usual discussion: "Do you want him? Young boy, big cock, can do everything, or him, ..." finally "or do you want me?" with both of us laughing.

 

Or one case, where mamasans hand moved upwards from my knee to my crotch and finally a disappointed "What is this?". (I thought this was all, but when he/she started kneading I had to remove his/her hand gently.) I can laugh about this, maybe others don't find it funny.

 

I don't think they are useless, although if the bar-owner trained some of the boys they could do mamasan's job (doorman, waiter, giving advice about boys), but that would probably end in a conflict of interests.

[Guest]

Anyway, I always tip them Baht100 and occasionally buy them the drink they want (not all of them have asked for it) and they've always been helpful when it comes to getting me the guy I point out to them.

 

I do the same and it has always benefited me. I rarely find a mamasan I don't like. There are a few, but they are easily avoided and when you avoid them, they tend to go away rather quickly. Not always quietly, but quickly.

 

Have any others ever enquired likewise - what the boys think of the mamasans they work for?

Yes, I know of many boys who are devoted to mamasan as they take them in when they have nothing, feed them when they need food and try to find work for them when they need cash. I am sure all this does not go without expectations but the boys I know respect the mamasan who is good to them as she is the only one helping them when they hit rock bottom.

 

Mama-sans are like boys to me.....some I like, some I don't. The ones I like I have a lot of fun with. I ignore the ones I don't like. I have found saying "Have b/f, just looking" shoos them away nicely.

As you and I have been in bars together quiet a few times, I have always liked the way you treat the mamasans and they return that treatment to you.

 

Mama-sans are like hemorrhoids. An irritating asshole that is difficult to get rid of. If I get approached by one I turn my back. If she persists I walk out.

 

LOL Thanks.

 

They are supposed to keep track of the boys, time their dinner breaks, make sure they dance when they're supposed to, hire and fire, etc.

 

Yes, and they are supposed to know their boys well enough to be salesman to customers.

 

To say all mamasans are annoying and useless I think is unfair.

I agree. I like many and rarely find them annoying. There are a few but I have learned to just tell them I want them instead of a boy and they laugh and move on.

 

I don't think they are useless, although if the bar-owner trained some of the boys they could do mamasan's job (doorman, waiter, giving advice about boys), but that would probably end in a conflict of interests.

 

I agree. I have known boys who speak better English and know more of what the boys do and they are also gogo boys. The difference according to the boy is they make more money dancing than being mamasan.

[Guest jomtien]

 

 

I agree. I have known boys who speak better English and know more of what the boys do and they are also gogo boys. The difference according to the boy is they make more money dancing than being mamasan.

 

 

It also takes a certain mind-set and work ethic to be a good mamasan. If you've ever been in a gogo near opening time where only a few boys appeared, and watched the mamasan work her phone in a frenzy to goad/motivate/threaten/cajole her dancers to get their butt to work, you can start to appreciate just how hard the job can be.