liquidflux Posted August 20, 2001 Report Share Posted August 20, 2001 I know this is probably a stupid question but I'll go ahead and ask it anyway. When in the bars how do you pay for your drinks? Do you pay as you go or do they run a tab and you pay when you leave? I'm guessing they keep a running total and this accounts for the occasions when they try to overcharge you etc etc. Just trying to be a little prepared for when I hit the scene in December! Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 20, 2001 Report Share Posted August 20, 2001 Almost all of the bars will run a tab for you. They'll put the bill for each drink into a container on your table so you check how much at any time. Most bars are fairly honest when it comes to bills (why piss off a punter with money to spend for the sake of a few baht) but it is not unknown for girls to try and add a few 'lady drinks' to your bill (particularly when they are trying to get you to pay for drinks for their friends). Just a case of being firm but polite with the girls. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nervous_Dog Posted August 20, 2001 Report Share Posted August 20, 2001 You get a little plastic cup, and they stick your docket in that. If you buy a lady drink (Make sure it is a soft drink NOT a Barcadi Freezer that will freeze your expence account) She will take your docket and add her drink to it. When your ready to pay just say "Check Bin" and it will be tallyed up for you. Usually this s all wrttten in English, so you can keep track of it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 20, 2001 Report Share Posted August 20, 2001 With only a few exceptions (some Soi 33 painter bars), when you buy your first drink, a small wooden or plastic cup is placed on your table, into which drink receipts are placed. In most places, it is a "running" receipt - as you drink more, additional entries are made, line by line (they continually walk away with your receipt, then return it with your new drink, with the extra line added). In a few places, they simply add an extra receipt for each new drink - one receipt per drink. Most places, if you buy a lady drink, they add this to your receipt just as if you bought yourself a drink, but they also add a smaller receipt (typically stapled to a corner) that reflects the employee number and drink price of the lady for whom you bought the drink. They may also hand her a copy of the mini-receipt. All of this is to ensure she gets "credit" for the drink you bought her (she gets a cut - maybe 30%). All this continues until you are ready to leave. All you have to do is pick up the cup, make eye contact with a server, and say "check bin". The server will take your bill away, and hand it to the cashier. The cashier will total the bill (usually using a calculator), and then turn the bill over and write the final figure in large numbers on the back. Thae server will then return to you and show you the final total. That is what you pay. If the number looks wrong, you can always turn the bill back over and total it yourself. You hand the server enough money to pay the total, and she will bring your change back on a silver tray. Most places are pretty honest. But it's still a good idea to do a quick mental tabulation before you do the "check bin" routine, so that you know roughly what the bill should be. If they know you are a newbie, you might be set up for a mild "milking". Typically, you leave a small tip, if service was good - leave the tip on the silver tray. Minimum tip - any coins that come back in change. A "big" tip is maybe 40 baht. Whatever you leave on the tray goes into a tip pool, which all the servers split at end of shift. If one particular server did something outstanding to assist you, you can giver her a direct tip, by placing the tip money directly into her hand - it is good form to do this only if you have also left some kind of "general" tip in the change tray. The above may sound ridiculously precise, but it is really amazing how exactly the process duplicates itself, throughout the realm. It is all ritual, polished to a high art. Have a great visit! Cheers! Bangkok Butterfly Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 20, 2001 Report Share Posted August 20, 2001 May I add to this since I feel the question has been answered good.... What is a REASONABLE amount to pay in ladies drinks? Conservative vs liberal? Maybe..1 per hour?! Maybe...Every girl that has a good conversation with you?! I'm cheap but I don't want to be an ass! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Straycat Posted August 21, 2001 Report Share Posted August 21, 2001 quote: Originally posted by peesooahbkk: Typically, you leave a small tip, if service was good - leave the tip on the silver tray. Minimum tip - any coins that come back in change. A "big" tip is maybe 40 baht. peesooahbkk, that is a very good post which could serve as an example on how to answer newbie questions. Very good! However, a word of warning. You will see that the amounts of coins you get back will be plain ridicilous at times...I mean, here you have 10, 20 and 50 baht bills and still you can get back up to 40-60 baht in coins :-) Hmmm....wonder why?? ;-)) Number of ladydrinks...hate to say it, but it really is "up to you". You will find ladies that will not mention lady-drinks for hours while other will say "buy me cola" before you even noticed them... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 21, 2001 Report Share Posted August 21, 2001 Regarding how may drinks to buy for a girl, I was given some advice a few years ago. If you like her, have no intention of barfining her but want her to stick around for while it going to cost you a lot of watered down cokes. Buy her aa couple (keeps the owner and the mamasan happy) and tell her you'll give her a tip (100 Baht) before you leave. She gets the money, the bar saves face by selling a couple of drinks and you keep her with you for a while (hopefully) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhordPhan Posted August 21, 2001 Report Share Posted August 21, 2001 quote: Originally posted by boogaloo: May I add to this since I feel the question has been answered good.... What is a REASONABLE amount to pay in ladies drinks? Conservative vs liberal? Maybe..1 per hour?! Maybe...Every girl that has a good conversation with you?! I'm cheap but I don't want to be an ass! Boog, Hamlet's advice is good. You really only need to buy 2, maybe 3 at the absolute outside. The girls need to "sell" several drinks a night but they get very little of the proceeds. One told me she got 10b per drink, others have told me they got 20b per. My experience is similar to Hamlet's. If you're not gonna bar fine them slip them a couple of hundred baht over the course of the evening, depending on how long you're gonna hang out. They're deliriously happy, the bar is happy, your wallet is happy. PhordPhan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chanchao Posted August 21, 2001 Report Share Posted August 21, 2001 Do you guys really stay with one girl that long?? I'd feel like being married and having kids if it goes on for more than an hour. :-) It's very rare for me to buy a second lady drink, and I don't recall ever having bought a third one for the same girl. And if I'd want to pay bar then that wouldn't stop me from visiting a few more bars first, then returning to pick up the girl. Cheers, Chanchao Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cardinalblue Posted August 25, 2001 Report Share Posted August 25, 2001 I have been told by a number of girls at a number of places is that they get 30 baht a drink. With regards to giving them some money directly with no intention of taking them out of the bar, I stay away from this practice because I think it plants some bad seeds/expectations in their minds. One of the biggest turn-offs in the bar scene is when you are about to leave the girl asks "a tip for me". I really don't want to see this become an expectation/pratice on the girl's part paying them for sitting with you. That is the purpose behind their drink cut. If you like them a lot, then bar fine them out and give them some baht then even if you no intention in sleeping with her. I have find to have a much better time with the girl because you can see how she interacts/more herself in a more natural setting than her bar. I have gotten a better read on the girl when I get them out of the bar............. Cardinalblue Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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