BANGKOK ESSENTIALS: STARBUCKS



Like the United States, there seems to be one Starbucks establishment for every ten people here in Bangkok (and for a city with a population of about 7 million, that's a lot of Starbucks). And like the United States, they serve the same delicious but wildly overpriced coffee-flavored beverages. I love their frozen frappucinos, but I am not going to spend 230 baht (over $5.00) for one - especially in a city where I can buy a plate of chicken and rice for about 50 cents American.

So why do I consider Starbucks an essential part of life in Bangkok?

One word: napkins.

You see, there seems to be a short supply of napkins in Bangkok, which is odd for a place whose nickname is the City of Smiles. I am the type of person that needs to wipe my face after every bite of food and the quality of napkins here is that of a single square of single-ply toilet paper.



I need a fistful of these things just to dab my lips after a sip of soup. But at restaurants, that's what they bring me and when I ask for more their expression indicates that this is an extremely odd request. Perhaps Thais are just naturally neater eaters and don't have the need for decent napkins.

Some restrooms even supply toilet paper to use to dry your hands with, rather than the traditional paper hand towel. Several times I have had to resort to the dreaded "wiping my hands on my shorts" method because I just didn't have the energy to pull 20 feet of toilet paper out of the dispenser to adequately dry my hands.

Which brings me back to Starbucks. While they built their reputation by catering to people whose desire for scrumptious caffeine-induced libations blinds them of the exorbitant prices they have to pay to obtain them, their real secret weapon is high quality napkins. These are the kind of napkins that Americans have grown accustomed to - thick, beautiful napkins folded four times for maximum wiping power. One can almost feel their weight as they are discharged from the dispenser to tackle the messiest of mouths and the stickiest of hands.



So next time you're in Bangkok and your slow-eating child has ice cream dribbling down her chin and arms, don't waste time finding a restroom that will charge you 1 baht to enter just to wash her hands. Find a Starbucks - there's one every block and a half - and experience the joy that only only one of their napkins can bring.



Special thanks to one of my oldest friends (Rob) and one of my newest ones (Karen) for their insight on this subject.