There's a whole new Thai demographic out there... city dwelling Thai's with money and a taste for something different. I made my third sweep through Villa market and there was plenty of local shoppers. Certainly they weren't doing the Big-C weekly cartload shopping (even farangs don't do that at Villa!) but browsing for selected items, maybe for a recipe to try at home?BigBubba wrote:***
Haven't posted in awhile, so a little update. Since opening our Facebook Page a month ago we've had a surprising number of Thai customers. I was reluctant to try it, but after seeing every one of my wife's friends posting on FB I thought why not. Turns out to be the easiest thing we've done to broaden our customer base.
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Bubba and Jun
I think that any bar/restaurant that is currently aiming for the rather limited (in size and funds) farang market needs to embrace the local market to survive. Don't offer bog standard Thai dishes... there's plenty others doing that better and cheaper, but do try some select bistro-style or light-dinner menu items, either western or Asian. Thai's don't like big, 3-course meals such as the traditional Sunday roast. They eat like birds... several times a day! Accordingly, offer them wraps, dips, tacos, soups and salads with extras... stuff that's relatively cheap and quick to make, mixes up the flavours and service that makes want to come back as well as tell their friends.
