Tokyo Trip:
Okay. Way off topic folks but what can I say. When I travel I like to take it all in, relate my travels to my life/work and of course write about it. This may appeal to no one but maybe someone out there shares my issues with McDonald’s Thailand. Where is the breakfast food?
I have lived in Hong Kong, China and I have traveled all over Asia and other parts of the world and almost everywhere I have been the local McDonald’s will have a breakfast menu similar to the mother ship. Sausage McMuffin with eggs, the Big Breakfast, and the Bacon& Egg with Cheese - u get my drift. Nothing is better for a hangover than a proper McDonald’s breakfast. In Hong Kong, this was the best spot to eat on a Sunday since all the house maids would eat there as well. I hardly ever go to McDonald’s for anything else but I love the breakfast menu.
What gives about Thailand? Why don’t they have breakfast? Don’t tell me they don’t eat breakfast cause they do and don’t tell me they don’t eat Western style food since they eat tons of it. I can’t figure it out. Any theories? My friend has a good one. If McDonald’s Thailand were to serve breakfast it might just be too much complication for the Thai staff to deal with. They would need to have a morning and non-morning kitchen setup. They would have to change the menu board each day and they would have to keep track of the time to make sure they were keeping to what was available at listed menu times. Could it just be too much for the staff to deal with? Sometimes I wonder.
Anyway. So there I was in Tokyo, hungover and needing breakfast. McDonald’s begged for me and I came forth. I had 2 Sausage McMuffins with Egg, hash browns, coffee and juice. I was in heaven. Sure - I over did it but I needed to given I was going back to Bkk with no similar opportunity. Okay - it is only food but I can’t lie. I miss it.
One last shot. Those of you may know that most of the average salary workers commute by train for an hour or 2 each way to get to work in Tokyo. Many times they stop off for breakfast, get a nap and then go to work. At the time of this photo there were 2 other people sleeping in the McDonald’s. Btw - I ate on site. No need for a to-go bag…
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Does Burger King do breakfast?
View all comments by Combover
Re: Post - Back in BKK,Judgement Day and can I add cheese??
One burning question with regard to the Tokyo branch of McDonalds.
If you want the eggs and bacon with cheese McMuffin.
Can you order it without cheese or will the Rules Police decend and cart you off for re-programming whilst the server receives councilling for the trauma they have just experienced??
View all comments by Ian English
Typing error: Ian English is aka ChelseaBlue
Think I need re-programming…….der!!!
View all comments by ChelseaBlue
When was it decided that anything bought at McMucks could be classified as food?
View all comments by Wombat
CO - I never do burger king.
Ian Aka CB - seems u can modify with abandon at mc d’s in tokyo. I guess language might be the only mitigating factor. Interesting sidenote, the counter person at the mc d in tokyo was a chinese immigrant who spoke flawless english.
W - each to his own but I think mc d breakfast is almost manna.
View all comments by smitty
Hey Smitty
Nice to know there is some de-regulation in Japan,even if it only extends to Mc’s in Tokyo.Think I’ll have a nice dollop of Wasabi on my Royale with cheese….that’ll clear the nasel passages!!!
Request : Cassanova’s in NEP are wondering if the burger modifications can be done with ‘gay abandon’…..seems fair.
View all comments by ChelseaBlue
Double sausage & egg mcmuffin. Heaven.
I had one for breakfast every day when I was back in the UK - the silver lining in an otherwise particularly grim cloud.
View all comments by Bangkok Bad Boy
Now theres’s a thought….”Full Monty English Breakfast” available at the “Big Mango” mid-afternoon, I could certainly was that down with a few Lao’ssssss
View all comments by laocowboy
Correction………..WASH that down with a few lao’ssssssss
View all comments by laocowboy
Yesterday I saw the BK at Thonglor Marketplace is serving breakfast.
View all comments by bkk22
I know this is way off point, but when I was in Phuket recently I enjoyed a 99 baht breakfast of eggs, sausage and hash browns at Scruffy Murphy’s available until 2 pm daily. Good quality and great value.
Now, that’s what Nana Plaza needs, and it’s a great way to increase the space utilization at the Mango. Breakfast from 6 am to 2 pm, with a quick lunch option… the punters will probably desert the Day & Night bar.
View all comments by werewolf
But Werewolf, 6am to 2pm is when the Big Mango Bosses do their sleeping. How can you expect them to be there to supervise a quality breakfast?
View all comments by Combover
BK serves breakfast but it can’t compare to Mc D’s.
If Mango was on the first floor I would do it but since it is on the second floor my guess is we would not get much walk by traffic at all but a nice breakfast is much needed around soi 4. I used to go the the bustop but ever since the move the whole place went down hill.
View all comments by smitty
Good call Smitty on Bus Stop.
Really liked the place before and always had decent numbers in the place most times of the day.Good food,no hassle etc.
Cannot fathom why the hell they changed it.I rarely go there now, the layout is totally screwed and too hot as no air-flow.
If something works why the hell do people need to fuck things up.
View all comments by ChelseaBlue
Well - they had to move since the landlord sold their land out to the big green monster on Soi 4 that some might call a pub.
What I don’t get is when given the chance top build a new joint they ended up with what they did. There is no place to sit where u don’t sweat to death, I can never see a TV clearly and on top of it the food is not the same. Big bummer. Used to eat there regularly.
View all comments by smitty
Smitty
Crazy thing is that the ‘green monster’ is a total waste of space also.
Who the hell thought that Soi 4 was in need of a couple of Irish Theme Bars.They’re old news and about as authentic as Thaksins buisness plans!!
I think most people travel half-way round the world for a change of culture.
Watch out for Paddy’s Day as you’ll probably be in-unindated with ass-holes wearing Guiness hats…..of course none will be Irish.
View all comments by ChelseaBlue
Sorry, been out on boozey lunch with clients…..inundated
View all comments by ChelseaBlue
I used to go to Bus Stop all the time for a breakfast, & I used to enjoy it. I did venture into the “Big Green Monster” on my last visit. I had a full english breakfast there, & it was good, but I also felt I was somewhere like London village.P.S, they also have all the english newspaprers if you feel the need to see what you are missing back home. I can help here by saying that you are not missing nothing. Just been to my mates timber yard, & two of them are dying for a visit. Would love to bring the newbies out!
View all comments by A Oh
You’re right…always great fun showing a Bangkok virgin around the Big Mango.
View all comments by ChelseaBlue
Yeah, & the Mango Boys now have the Bangkok Virgin drink. Got my friend hammered on that, & he took a Mango Girl straight out. Thanks for that one boys btw.
Chelsea Blue, you in UK or BKK at moment? Caught up with you last time I was in BKK.
View all comments by A Oh
In UK but planning an escape in July hopefully.
Cant say I remember meeting, sorry.I’m always so pre-occupied by Nid if it was in The Big Mango.Was I under the influence??
View all comments by ChelseaBlue
The Bus Stop used to be my favorite place to hang out watching cricket and getting a bite to eat. It had a great atmosphere, and I loved the fact that any time night or day there were about 2 dozen girls sitting along the rail chatting and waiting to make eye contact. The renovate destroyed what was a Bangkok icon with nothing worthwhile in return.
One of my favorite nights out until recently was the Coliseum in Thong Lor. I notice it has recently been bulldozed, presumeably to make way for another high rise condo or office building near the BTS.
Same looks to be true at the Night Bazaar in the near future.
Thank God Smitty and Nick stepped up to create a new icon with the Mango!
View all comments by werewolf
Last year, the McDonalds on Rama IV at Sukhumvit Soi 24 was serving a breakfast menu. I haven’t been there in at least a year, so I don’t know if they still serve breakfast and can’t remember their selections.
I think they have a drive-thru here also.
View all comments by DJ
CB - There always seems to be the theory that if u build a pub anywhere in Thailand it needs to be Irish themed but the weird thing is I never meet a lot of Irish people in Thailand. See a lot of English people though…
WW - u are too kind but thanks. Thing is though bustop did their own renovation so what the hell got into them? Yeah. It is a disturbing trend. The esteemed Bangkok planners seem to think that we only need apartments, condos, malls and temples. I don’t get it. Even the Thais are sick of it and the only people benefiting are the elite property developers. Don’t they know we need places to go, open space to enjoy and some activities other than shopping?
The current attitude is a stark contrast to the 70-90s where they were trying to make Bkk a destination and god forbid - actually encouraged tourism. Tourism, besides exports, is still the biggest money maker for Thailand but u wouldn’t know it these days based on how they are treating the place - and the tourists.
DJ - I need to check that out? Can anyone confirm that they serve breakfast on soi 24 Mc D? It is a little far out but worth a trip indeed.
View all comments by smitty
I should be walking past there McDs on Rama 4 tomorrow afternoon on my way to Carrefour. I’ll try to remember to check it out. It’s actually not as far as it seems… about a 25 minute walk from my apartment on SukSoi22.
View all comments by werewolf
So many daywalkers… it’s a different place. Actually it’s always nice to chill the last month. Still can’t go out between 11am and 4pm because of the heat, but going to the market at 6ish in the morning and it’s actually quite cold.
McDonalds….hmmm. why come 10,000 miles to eat plastic food. Then you had to go and mention the breakfast…. damn I miss those double sausage and egg McMuffins. You have to keep turning it so none of the grease escapes. Smitty your right only good thing is the Breakie. Why don’t MC do onion rings?
Wouldn’t suprise me if Soi 24 had a breakfast, the MK’s have differnet menu’s. You can get a watermelon slushy at Seacon MK but not at Carrefour Soi 26.
More shopping malls, it’s going to be like Singapore. Have you ever sat in a cafe in Singapore and watched the world go by? I always wonder where everyone is going and what there doing. I really want to ask them. I don’t get it there all like hamsters running round on a wheel. Emporium seems to be going well, they have retained there crowd but Paragon is always empty (Food hall and cinema exc.). I hope they build one more and it will really be empty but I don’t think they will learn from it.
I still think it’s their country and how they do or don’t things is up to them. I talk about it with friends but keep my opinions to myself around Thai’s. I’m here so must be something I like. I remember people moaning about England and well, if you don’t like it **** off home right.
View all comments by Young Royal
WW: We need to know!
YR: Spot on - it is only about the breakfast!
And yes - it is their country but sometimes I feel like I have a right to comment cause I am investing in it but I am sure no one is listening to me.
View all comments by smitty
Dammit, Smitty, now I can’t get Egg McMuffin and various biscuits out of my mind! Why did you have to remind us of this woeful shortcoming of living in Thailand? I hope werewolf has good news to report on the Soi 24 branch.
View all comments by kallah
He he
Sorry.
When people ask what I miss about America I always stun them with my longings for a Sausage McMuffin with egg. I am a simpleton but other people seem to agree.
Add in my family, my old BMW bike, the california coast and long motorbike rides. That is about it.
View all comments by smitty
speaking of BMW bikes, I know a guy here who has one of those BMW bikes with a roll bar thingy - it actually looks more like he’s driving a pod instead of a bike, but it’s a real head turner. He is probably going to be selling it soon if you’re interested.
Incidentally, can anyone recommend a good place that provides a thorough STD health check? Not a full body physical as they have at Bumrungrad, but something that is STD specific?
View all comments by kallah
This is top in depth cover blowing reporting
View all comments by obi wan
K: that is the BMW that basically failed around the globe. I can’t even call it a motorbike. I need a GS…
Obi Wan: Deal. U know if u found the MC D breakfast in BKK u would be there everyday.
WW: No word yet on breakfast find?
View all comments by smitty
Sorry for the late report; I spent the weekend in bed with cough, fever and other flu-like symptoms.
I made the trek to Carrefour today and can reliably report the following:
McDonalds on Rama 4 & Soi 24 opens at 7 am, has a drive through, but does not have a special breakfast menu… only the normal fare of chicken, pork sandwiches, hamburgers and fries. To quote the lady I spoke to, “This McDonalds, we no serve breakfast”
In order to be thorough, I had my Thai girlfriend repeat the question in Thai with the same result.
We also checked with the small McDs in the Carrefour Center for completeness’ sake. The laughter fairly echoed down the hallway. No breakfast I’m afraid.
View all comments by werewolf
WW: u are a trooper.
so what u are saying is - MC D Thailand sucks?
View all comments by smitty
I’m highly confident that I probably didn’t not say that
View all comments by werewolf
As an avid McDonalds breakfast hater, and having waited on occassion in line for the clock to tick over to 10:26am.
It is one of the things that makes me so happy about Thailand that I can go to McDonalds any time and order the preferred Hangover cure - “cheeseburger, pried open, poisonous pickles removed, fries added, cheeseburger closed” at any time of the McDay.
PS: Subway has breakfast muffins, check out Suk. soi 7/1, or soi 33/1.
Au Bon Pain does a good one as well.
View all comments by Daz
Well - I guess we all have different hangover cures. Hate is pretty strong word though.
I don’t like the Subway one but I do enjoy the Au Bon Pain breakfast - on a cheese bagel, but it can’t beat a Sausage Egg McMuffin with cheese though!
View all comments by smitty
It’s always the ones that like the sausage and egg breakfast, that can’t live without them
View all comments by Daz
So where is the closest Sausage & Egg McMuffin to Bangkok? They’re definitely available in Hong Kong, but there must be a closer option…
View all comments by Bangkok Bad Boy
I would guess Malaysia - which u can drive to.
So maybe we need the Mc D breakfast visa bus full of Lolitas girls…
View all comments by smitty
Sounds like a (business) plan.
View all comments by Bangkok Bad Boy
I know that grease is a great hangover cure…but I can’t agree with the amount of it on the Sausage McMuffin. Just give me the standard Egg McMuffin any day. And yeah, the Au Bon Pain is about as close as I’ve found…plus they deliver!
View all comments by The Heckler
Men,
Why complaint about food.
So many good place 2 eat in bkk and u complain about McD…..come on, go 2 subway.
View all comments by Vampyr50
Subway sucks. The point of the complaint was to highlight why Thailand is the only country that does not serve a proper McDonald’s Breakfast. Some people are a big fan - including me.
View all comments by smitty
Had a Sausgae & Egg McMuffin Meal this mornin!
View all comments by Aoh
Aoh - that is so out of line. hope u choked on it and then burned your mouth when u tried to wash it down with the too hot coffee. deal. I am so jealous.
View all comments by smitty
Have you guys lost it? McDonalds Thailand is all about seeing the beautiful uni girls not about breakfasts menues or big macs. Smap out if it or senility is around the corner
View all comments by Georgie
Let me be clear. I enjoy a sausage mcmuffin with egg. End of story. If I want to eat with the uni girls I go right to where they get lunch while they are on break from school. Direct to the source but either way I still have needs.
View all comments by smitty
Mcdonalds in China used to have no breakfast menu…. it wasn’t that long ago either. Shenzhen has had it for a while however Guangzhou only had one with breakfast menu (now all do). Shanghai and Beijing would have been the first ones to have one for all the homesick laowai who can’t handle Baozi and egg tarts for breakfast.
View all comments by Frank
It appears that mc d Thailand management reads the blog and has taken notice.
http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=137864
what kills me is CP is right down the street from me but I did not know to even go in and check.
Will do soon!
anyone else confirm?
View all comments by smitty
Whoever says that the staff can speak english at Mcdonald’s in Thailand should actually visit one of their outlets. The english is limited to the final cost, kinda sorta…. and if you point to the menu item they will usually get it correct.
If you can find any meaningful english on the thailand website then let me know.
Even in tourist areas where many customers cannot speak Thai, it is only the point and hope method.
It is beyond me how Mcdonald’s can allow such a sub-standard operation to continue with their name on it. They only maintain there minimum standards in modern countries and the rest are glorified street stalls with golden arches over them. Such a shame.
View all comments by Trav
Trav - I think you’ll find that speaking English is generally only at the top of the list of requirements for McDonalds employees in English speaking countries.
They are notoriously parsimonious, and hence are able to offer McShite at low low prices, and that does not involve employing people with university level educations to flip burgers and dole out fries.
View all comments by Combover
Correct. This is not just a Thailand issue. In China they can’t say a word of English most times. Let’s be honest - MCD is cheap cause they have cheap labor. But I don’t find it all that bad and many times there is a frontline mananger working the counter who can. I find MCD in Thailand to be okay and not any worse than being in a poor part of America where the counter dude only speaks Spanish and does not understand English.
View all comments by smitty
I have noticed that McDonalds have special locations where they serve breakfast. Egg McMuffin, Sausage, & Pancakes ect. As I mention it’s not at all locations but at brances like The Mall Ngam Wong Wan, The Mall Bangkapi and several others. Not sure if they have breakfast at locations outside Bangkok.
View all comments by JazzinBkk
Pancakes? you sure about that? I thought it was everything but pancakes?
View all comments by go go groupie
@GGG: My last visit to McDs at Robinsons (Sukhumvit Road near Soi 15) they had NO pancakes, and the breakfast menu was served on hamburger buns… not english muffins. It’s been a while, though.
View all comments by werewolf
I have never seen pancakes and as far as I know only the places claiming to serve breakfast, they all have the same prop up sign, serve the real but limited breakfast menu. However some places are claiming to have breakfast and putting together things similar to the sausage mc muffin but from what I have heard it is not the same thing.
View all comments by smitty
I do not understand why Macdonald here would like the ones in Japan. When I stop by Mc, I buy only French fry and Coke. Frankly, any time. All the people I know do. They don’t suppose that Mc would sell heavy snacks than French fry and Coke, or ice cream.
View all comments by ket
BKK Mc D’s,well i thought England was bad when i saw that people spit in peoples food,but i have seen twice with my own eyes in two Mc D places a burger being dropped on the flood and then serving it to a customer.
View all comments by haro Tellie