BULLY’S PUB
Bully’s Pub has been around for as long as anyone can remember. Situated at the “grotty” end of Sukhumvit Road, between Sois two and four it has had several owners over its long period of existence.

On the evening that I visited this well known watering hole I hadn’t eaten for over 24 hours, mainly due to self inflicted over-indulgence the previous evening at Lek Seafood in Silom. On this particular evening I was without company and thankfully no Swiss chefs in sight to fill my boots with beer.

Bully’s has a rather intimidating bronze statue of a charging bull at its entrance but once past the swinging doors one is greeted with a capacious room that apart from the obligatory tables and chairs has several large screens for sports viewing, half a dozen pool tables, a darts corner and a long bar extending from the doorway to the pool tables at the rear.

Its present owner I’m guessing is from somewhere in Texas Panhandle as the menu is entirely different from that featured on my last visit some two years ago.

The menu now has a cornucopia of offerings in the Tex/Mex cuisine category. Looking down the short but ubiquitious listings one sees potato and Cheese Peppers at 120 baht and Nacho’s at 190 baht. The menu goes on to describe Quesadilla (210 baht), Potato Skins (180 baht), Texas Chilli (150 baht), Chilli Con Queso (210 baht) and then some generic listings including French Fries (90 baht), Spring Rolls (110 baht) and Chicken Satay (110 baht).

I try to catch the eye of one of the waitresses, all of them decked out in green polo tops with the Bully’s logo on them but to no avail. So I head for the bar and to my delight I find they stock Beer Lao. Back at the table and quietly sipping on the lovely beer from neighbouring Laos I find that the waitresses are more intent on playing pool than serving this ravenous would be diner.

Having decided that Quesadilla sounds interesting, I head for the bar once again and order another Beer Lao. I give the barman my order, but he waves in the general directions of the waitresses playing pool “they will take your order”, he says.

By now I’m feeling that I’m about to do “my Irish”, so I tell him sharply “I’ve been trying for over 10 minutes to attract their attention, but it would seem that playing pool is takes priority here over serving customers”.

The barman gives me a serious steely glare and then barks out something in Thai which I think was “quick-smart”.

One of the polo-topped waitresses downs her cue and wanders over to me in a desultory fashion. She doesn’t utter a word but just looks at me. I point out the Quesadilla on the menu and she scribbles something down on her order pad and wanders away towards the bar. Not a word has been exchanged between us.

A minute later she returns with the order chit and puts it in the bill-holder on my table. She inquires “Beer Lao” and looking at my half empty beer I nod in agreement. She reappears with the beer and adjusts my chit.

Ten minutes later the Quesadilla arrives. It turns out as grilled breast of chicken smothered in onions and copious lashings of cheese wedged between a couple of flour tortillas and topped with sour cream and a mild salsa.

It turns out that my selection was probably not the best choice given the “delicate” nature of my tummy which is still in recovery mode from the previous evening’s festivities.

The tortillas I discover are chewy and most certainly not to my liking. I discard them and make a half hearted attempt at the chicken breasts with all of the concoctions adhering to them.

The chook breasts are small, stringy and just warm. The onion rings are of the red variety and the cheese is some nondescript bulk cheese from who knows where.

The salsa as mentioned is very mild to point of not being a salsa at all. The sour cream is OK.

I end up having seven mouthfuls and come to the conclusion that I’m not enjoying the meal, so I push the plate away.

By now the green polo-topped waitress has her eyes firmly on my table, she approaches looks at the pile of left-over food, looks at me, looks at the plate again, shrugs her shoulders and removes the debris from the table.

I finish my beer and conclude that I don’t want any more as I’m still in “recovery” mode.

I pick up the chit wander over to the bar and on the way I discover that I have been billed for the first two Beer Lao that I have already paid for. I point this out to the steely-eyed one, he does a manual adjustment of the bill and barks “495 baht”.

H’mm I think “please” would have been nice as I hand over a 500 baht bill.

The steely-eyed one plonks a five baht note on the bar without eye contact and I head back out through the swinging doors, the bronze charging “Bully” and enter the frenetic atmosphere of Lower Sukhumvit at 8.30 pm on another sweltering night.

SCORE: Service, 1; ambience, 2; value for money, 2; food, 2. TOTAL: 7/40.

COST: 1 X Quesadilla, 210 baht. 3 x Beer Lao at 95 baht each, 285 baht. TOTAL: 495 baht ($AUD17.65 at the time).

LOCATION: Bully’s is quite a large pub on the right hand side of Sukhumvit if you are coming from the Siam direction. It is situated between Sois 2 and 4 and near the JW Marriott hotel.

CONCLUSION: In its present incarnation I couldn’t recommend Bully’s. I’ve enjoyed other times here over the years, but the food is well below par at the present time, the “service” is a discretionary extra or so it would seem, the friendliness and warmth of hospitality of the barman was frigid and that is putting it mildly. The several large screens which were showing a recording of a F1 race were at blaring level.

In an area like Sukhumvit where there is so much competition for the visitor’s and ex-pat’s baht, I found the service or lack thereof somewhat bewildering. I’m of the view that Bully’s at the present time is nothing more than a watering and feed hole for those desperadoes who are heading for the Nana Entertainment Plaza just around the corner.

S&P
This is really for first timers to Thailand as I’m sure most readers who have already visited the Kingdom will have come across an S&P outlet.

This eponymous franchise can be found in every shopping centre and cinema complex in the length and breadth of Thailand. Basic meals of rice and the usual Thai dishes are served in these outlets in sparkling clean premises.

The service is first rate and the prices reasonable. However, it is not for the food that we visit S&P on an almost daily basis when we are in the Land Of Smiles. It is sundaes!

When I was a kid, the local milk bar would make a most delicious sundae and we would sit outside on the steps of the milk bar on a warm evening enjoying a glorious concoction of various coloured ice creams, topped with juices and whipped cream.

I haven’t spied a sundae anywhere in Australia for maybe 30 years. We just don’t seem to do them anymore.

When we head for an S&P we already know what we are going to order. Americans would know it as “knickbocker glory” and older Australians would know it as a “rainbow sundae”.

A tall glass with a kaleidoscope of vividly coloured ice creams, raspberry jam intermittent between the flavours, topped with whipped cream and and triangular wafer. In a sweltering climate like Bangkok is there anything better for lunch than a refreshing, beautiful S&P sundae?

COST: A large “rainbow” sundae costs 99 baht accompanied by free iced water.

WHERE: S&P can be found in all major shopping complexes, at cinemas and at street addresses. To paraphrase the late Karl Malden “Don’t leave Thailand without trying one”.

Footnote: That is the final review in the present series. As mentioned elsewhere your correspondent and Shopper Girl will be returning to Thailand in June/July for an extended visitation. The next series of reviews will be August.

In the meantime: “bon appétit”.

I was in there a couple of years ago with a friend who is on a pool team in BKK and could not wait to get out although that night the food was free because of the pool match - but it is an overpriced bar with no aircon if I remember right or if there is it does not work to its fullest extent - just outside the doors is a seating area behind a ballistrade on the street if its the same bar - I have not been back

Phil,

The air con works fine now. The only "heat" I endured was the rising temper coming up my neck from being ignored by the waitress platoon.

The ballistrade is not longer there. You must go in now and put up with the blaring big screens.

You haven't been back? My advice, don't bother.