Tourist Traps
Re: Tourist Traps
That looks excellent. I do most of my own cooking so going to restaurant is quite rare. The price of mediocre plonk surprised me.Stravaiger wrote: ↑Thu Mar 21, 2024 9:55 amI sympathise. See my comment about taking wine to restos with no corkage - this used to be fairly common.Doc67 wrote: ↑Thu Mar 21, 2024 8:36 am
I was drinking white (not a great pairing with a BB). The viognier was truly vile, it was rejected at the tasting, and then it just jumped to $6 for a run- of-the-mill Sauv Blanc, and I know I can buy wine like that for ~$8. They wanted $30 a bottle. All the reds started at about $6 iirc, and I have no clue about French wine, Chateau Blah Blah means nothing to me. What I do know is at $6 a glass, it will be very ordinary in there, judging by the white I had. And the servings are tiny. I have seen this a lot at different places, there is no set measure for wine and many are free-poured to a point on the glass, and no more. I reckon the measure was about 100-125ml. That's fucking stingy. I saw them pour a glass of sparkling wine ($6) in a flute glass and it barely went above the halfway point. It looked half drunk.
There is a lot of cheap wine floating about in PP chasing a buyer, Big C have had some good deals on some at the cheaper end, and trade discounts at Wine Warehouse starts at 30%, so a very decent bottle of Argentinian Malbec from the Mendoza valley comes in at around $10 a bottle. Oskar, for example, want $36 for it, and this type of mark up is commonplace. Metro are the same in this regard, and then it gets the ++ treatment.
At one time Bouchon had quite a good reputation for its wine selection and pricing - Kuroneko ?
I don't think 125ml is stingy provided the price is right, but from your description it sounds like very poor value. I had a glass of white Macon Lugny there that was partially spoiled (storage/heat) so that may have been the problem with the viognier.
I agree about Kiwi / Mini Big C - it has been the place for the best deals for a while. And significantly better than The Warehouse in the $10-20 range even with a 30% discount.
This is a good resource for world price comparisons
https://www.wine-searcher.com/find/de+p ... rt_order=p
Things went south about ten years ago when I started hearing diners saying But it's cheaper than Thailand ! The restaurateurs must have heard them too. I think Oskars is part of a Thai chain, and they helped to introduce Thai prices. Pepe Bistro were selling $5 glasses that retailed at $8 /bottle.
I like Bouchon's Bourguignon but mine is just as good, with ingredients no more than $4 or 5 pp. So compare two plates and a shared bottle, $56 there or $20 with much better wine at home.
Do many places allow you to BYO with corkage? I wonder what they would try to charge. I am going to lunch at somewhere nice tomorrow and might try my luck.
- armchairlawyer
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Re: Tourist Traps
Note I said every bar on 136, for the other bar streets it’s only every other bar.
Re: Tourist Traps
Stravaiger wrote: ↑Thu Mar 21, 2024 9:55 amI sympathise. See my comment about taking wine to restos with no corkage - this used to be fairly common.Doc67 wrote: ↑Thu Mar 21, 2024 8:36 am
I was drinking white (not a great pairing with a BB). The viognier was truly vile, it was rejected at the tasting, and then it just jumped to $6 for a run- of-the-mill Sauv Blanc, and I know I can buy wine like that for ~$8. They wanted $30 a bottle. All the reds started at about $6 iirc, and I have no clue about French wine, Chateau Blah Blah means nothing to me. What I do know is at $6 a glass, it will be very ordinary in there, judging by the white I had. And the servings are tiny. I have seen this a lot at different places, there is no set measure for wine and many are free-poured to a point on the glass, and no more. I reckon the measure was about 100-125ml. That's fucking stingy. I saw them pour a glass of sparkling wine ($6) in a flute glass and it barely went above the halfway point. It looked half drunk.
I ve been at Bouchons a couple of times for X-mas and Newyears dinner, its a fancy place and for my standards overpriced, but if for special occasions friends go there i join them and dont complain. If something what costs 20 dollar, they sell for 56, thats 2.8 compared whats not really bad for such a fancy place i would say. Do the numbers: a can of Anchor at 2500 R x2.8 is 7000 R or exactly the price from an Anchor at Harrys, and thats not really a fancy place, not ?? At Larrys I believe its the same price. If you dont want to pay x2.8, very easy: cook home, not ??
There is a lot of cheap wine floating about in PP chasing a buyer, Big C have had some good deals on some at the cheaper end, and trade discounts at Wine Warehouse starts at 30%, so a very decent bottle of Argentinian Malbec from the Mendoza valley comes in at around $10 a bottle. Oskar, for example, want $36 for it, and this type of mark up is commonplace. Metro are the same in this regard, and then it gets the ++ treatment.
At one time Bouchon had quite a good reputation for its wine selection and pricing - Kuroneko ?
I don't think 125ml is stingy provided the price is right, but from your description it sounds like very poor value. I had a glass of white Macon Lugny there that was partially spoiled (storage/heat) so that may have been the problem with the viognier.
I agree about Kiwi / Mini Big C - it has been the place for the best deals for a while. And significantly better than The Warehouse in the $10-20 range even with a 30% discount.
This is a good resource for world price comparisons
https://www.wine-searcher.com/find/de+p ... rt_order=p
Things went south about ten years ago when I started hearing diners saying But it's cheaper than Thailand ! The restaurateurs must have heard them too. I think Oskars is part of a Thai chain, and they helped to introduce Thai prices. Pepe Bistro were selling $5 glasses that retailed at $8 /bottle.
I like Bouchon's Bourguignon but mine is just as good, with ingredients no more than $4 or 5 pp. So compare two plates and a shared bottle, $56 there or $20 with much better wine at home.
- Fridaywithmateo
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Re: Tourist Traps
The only places I go to (once or twice a week) are ... Larry's, Oscar on the Corner (after 1030pm), and an Indoseia restaurant ... Padang I think is the name ... I prefer drinking with the guys at Happy Mart near Orussey Market ... good mix of expats tourists and locals ... some real characters ... Mr Somalia, Mr watch hustler, the Japanese ojisans, and the local gangsters ... everyone seems to get along just fine ... #goodvibes
Re: Tourist Traps
We'll this thread didn't take long to get off topic
To be fair, in comparison to many other countries, I don't think Cambodia really has too many tourist traps per se.
To be fair, in comparison to many other countries, I don't think Cambodia really has too many tourist traps per se.
Re: Tourist Traps
How are we on page 5 and Topaz didn't get a mention yet?
Service is continually dismal, food bang average - except for the deserts which are superb, and all for a large multiple of dollars versus better service & food elsewhere. If Topaz was priced at La Croisette/Metro levels, I could accept it, but otherwise it is a big no go for me. Sadly I rub shoulders with folks who love it, I dread it whenever one of them suggests to go there. Lots of VIP customers, not a lot of VIP service.
I tend to agree with there being some oddity in the Riverside Metro, can't put a finger on it - but fact is the other Metro location staff are trained at such a level they put 5-star hotels to shame, and Topaz staff look like a bunch of trainees straight from a bar.
Similarly, how has Ballsack Lane escaped unscathed? Come on, it is dire and I don't even need to name establishments individually. A cesspit of wannabe influencers. There I said it.
I might be getting old, has anyone got a cloud I can shout at?
Service is continually dismal, food bang average - except for the deserts which are superb, and all for a large multiple of dollars versus better service & food elsewhere. If Topaz was priced at La Croisette/Metro levels, I could accept it, but otherwise it is a big no go for me. Sadly I rub shoulders with folks who love it, I dread it whenever one of them suggests to go there. Lots of VIP customers, not a lot of VIP service.
I tend to agree with there being some oddity in the Riverside Metro, can't put a finger on it - but fact is the other Metro location staff are trained at such a level they put 5-star hotels to shame, and Topaz staff look like a bunch of trainees straight from a bar.
Similarly, how has Ballsack Lane escaped unscathed? Come on, it is dire and I don't even need to name establishments individually. A cesspit of wannabe influencers. There I said it.
I might be getting old, has anyone got a cloud I can shout at?
Meum est propositum in taberna mori,
ut sint Guinness proxima morientis ori.
tunc cantabunt letius angelorum chori:
"Sit Deus propitius huic potatori."
ut sint Guinness proxima morientis ori.
tunc cantabunt letius angelorum chori:
"Sit Deus propitius huic potatori."
- alexvanlaar
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Re: Tourist Traps
wait, it's getting worseSpigzy wrote: ↑Thu Mar 21, 2024 6:11 pm How are we on page 5 and Topaz didn't get a mention yet?
Service is continually dismal, food bang average - except for the deserts which are superb, and all for a large multiple of dollars versus better service & food elsewhere. If Topaz was priced at La Croisette/Metro levels, I could accept it, but otherwise it is a big no go for me. Sadly I rub shoulders with folks who love it, I dread it whenever one of them suggests to go there. Lots of VIP customers, not a lot of VIP service.
I tend to agree with there being some oddity in the Riverside Metro, can't put a finger on it - but fact is the other Metro location staff are trained at such a level they put 5-star hotels to shame, and Topaz staff look like a bunch of trainees straight from a bar.
Similarly, how has Ballsack Lane escaped unscathed? Come on, it is dire and I don't even need to name establishments individually. A cesspit of wannabe influencers. There I said it.
I might be getting old, has anyone got a cloud I can shout at?
- John Bingham
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Re: Tourist Traps
I've only been there a few times. If you get a VIP room you get good service. It's a nice setting but I agree that some of the food is very average. I remember their soft-shelled crabs being dry and barely edible. It's probably popular with some more affluent tourists but I thought most of the customers seemed to be expats. I never cared about the price as it was always junket style and I wasn't picking up the bill. What other Khmer food restaurants would you recommend that aren't dumps?Spigzy wrote: ↑Thu Mar 21, 2024 6:11 pm How are we on page 5 and Topaz didn't get a mention yet?
Service is continually dismal, food bang average - except for the deserts which are superb, and all for a large multiple of dollars versus better service & food elsewhere. If Topaz was priced at La Croisette/Metro levels, I could accept it, but otherwise it is a big no go for me. Sadly I rub shoulders with folks who love it, I dread it whenever one of them suggests to go there. Lots of VIP customers, not a lot of VIP service.
Silence, exile, and cunning.
Re: Tourist Traps
Kravanh (st.174)
One More (Toul Kork)
One More (Toul Kork)
Meum est propositum in taberna mori,
ut sint Guinness proxima morientis ori.
tunc cantabunt letius angelorum chori:
"Sit Deus propitius huic potatori."
ut sint Guinness proxima morientis ori.
tunc cantabunt letius angelorum chori:
"Sit Deus propitius huic potatori."
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Re: Tourist Traps
I’ve always thought of tourist traps as things that people, who don’t know any better, expect to be cheap, only to be scammed or intimidated into paying significantly more than what it should actually cost. Things like the massage shops that switch out your $100 bills for fakes, or as someone else mentioned, tuk tuk drivers who charge old people too much for a tour of the city.
Anyone with any sense should know that if you want to eat at fancy restaurants on the riverside, and drink imported wine, you’re going to pay a premium for it.
Any place that has the prices on the menu should not be considered a tourist trap. They’re simply expensive restaurants, and by the sounds of things, these places attract as many locals and expats, as tourists.
Anyone with any sense should know that if you want to eat at fancy restaurants on the riverside, and drink imported wine, you’re going to pay a premium for it.
Any place that has the prices on the menu should not be considered a tourist trap. They’re simply expensive restaurants, and by the sounds of things, these places attract as many locals and expats, as tourists.
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