Bad Wine Bistros

Wine Happening, Wine Me Up, Wine Bistro, Wine 33, Wine Lounge, Wine Republic, Wine I Love You, Why Wine Why or Wine XYZ… OK, we get it: Your restaurant serves wine. Now could we focus on cooking food that tastes a little better than Sizzler? With only a couple of exceptions, the maximum we’ve been able to give these “wine” places is two stars in our food reviews.

Feather earrings

It’s actually as old as summer 2011, when celebrities Gwyneth Paltrow, Jessica Biel, Jessica Szohr, and Heidi Klum sported the feathered look. But it’s after local fashion icons like Chompoo Araya or Ploy Cherman took to donning them that feather earrings went viral here. With summer 2012 upon us, this trend is officially, totally, absolutely over.

Movies with “Rak” in the title

We began this year with the movie Rak Wei Hei and ATM Err Rak Error in January, then continued with Rak Leaw Feaw Ah and Rak in February. March brought Rak Sood Teen and Rak Aow Yu. And guess what? Rak 555 is opening next week (Apr 5). Thailand’s movie makers have made us realize that there is such a thing as too much love.

Bell Skirts

The ultra-girly, Victorian, fragile look has got to go. In fact, the bell skirt, so popular in the 60s, is becoming a symbol of how women in Thailand might as well still be living in the 60s. Ready to move on? Why not look to Yves Saint-Laurent: the little black dress, the dashing tuxedo suits, the boleros and pencil skirts. It’s time for women who are both sexy and confident, and an end of that whole helpless Blythe Doll thing.

“Cordon Bleu” Chefs

The phrase Cordon Bleu is now being thrown around as if it was on a par with a Michelin star. The Grand Diplome is a serious 9 month-long course, sure, but there are also short 25-hour workshops, making the term “Cordon Bleu-trained” vague at best. Moreover Cordon Bleu graduates often go off and open shop right after school, without ever working in anyone’s kitchen, which means the results disappoint too often.