Is live music killing Sharkies?

[jm]

Surely dives dont have to be small-martinis is a dive isnt it?
Walkabou is a real dive.
Anyone else have dives to recommend?

I don't know, in my mind dives should be intimate, smell like piss and beer, have at least one elderly drunk asleep on the bar. A jukebox is good. I don't think Walkabout or Martini's qualify.

[dv8inpp]

, smell like piss and beer, have at least one elderly drunk asleep on the bar....

So we are talking about the same bar then.

[johnny99]

To quote the owner of Walkabout, " Walkabout is a tourist place" , That is why everything is so expensive and poor quality there. The owner does not care about anything but money and getting it from people.

johnny

[BirdBrain]

Walkabout expensive? Was always the cheapest bar on the street.

[Hemingway]

but it's still one of the only places in town that actually looks like a bar and has good western food.

Good western food? It has western food but i've never been that impressed to be honest. It does look like a bar though.

By western I meant Mexican, which I guess isn't "proper" western. Everytime I go there it's because I'm craving Mexican or something. I've actually never had any of their burgers or Khmer food. The fish tacos are great, so are the burritos. The portions are generous too. I find it's the closest to the real thing in a nice setting. I haven't tried the Mexican place son riverside though as I avoid restaurants there. Alley Cat is alright but I've never been overly impressed by it. Sharkys has the benefit of feeling like I'm in a real bar. I go mostly when I either get food cravings or homesick for a "nice" bar.

Bittee, I wouldn't dismiss Casa Lika on 136St. It's a really great place and I go there at least once a week for my quesadilla fix. They are pretty damn fast to serve food too (well, usually).

[ribblerat]

Walkabout expensive? Was always the cheapest bar on the street.
Cheapest Bar on that Street for years , and still is ..

To quote the owner of Walkabout, " Walkabout is a tourist place" , That is why everything is so expensive and poor quality there. The owner does not care about anything but money and getting it from people.

Johnny99 have you ever been in the Walkabout ? Do you know the owner ?
As for poor quality !! Well sure there's a few poor quality Skanks in there , but considering everything the Pork chops and Mash is good Value , the Spag bol is not too bad and at least the Beers cold and easily the cheapest in the area ..
All in all the Walkabout is what it is ...
But you can't call it expensive ...

[johnny99]

Yes I know the owner. I have spent my fair share of time and money in there. Compared to a few hostess bars maybe cheaper but by far not the cheapest in the area. I'll give it to you the pork chops are good but not cheap. Nothing at Walkabout is a good deal. Walkabout is all about the money and that is about it. Yes it is what it is.

johnny

[chola]

bit of sour grapes there johnny? had your heart broken and your wallet emptied by some nice vietnamese lady in there,and it was all the fault of the walkabout!? i would imagine the owner has had to put up with quite a lot of stress with the place over the years,so what other reasons would he be doing it for,other than making a decent buck?

[vladimir]

'Nothing at Walkabout is a good deal. Walkabout is all about the money and that is about it. Yes it is what it is.'

I disagree. I don't go in there much anymore, but despite what some of the snooties say, about it being ' beneath them', I don't see the problem.

They do a very nice omelette, the prices can be beaten, but not by many in the immediate vicinity. Glen is a very good manager and is very approachable. He's one of the few people who have made a (big) success out of a bar/ restaurant.

And yes, it is about money. Do you think he started it for charity? What other possible reason?

They have food, drinks, free pool (some places charge), music and girls. What else do you want? Compared to some bars (let them remain unnamed), it is clean and well-ventilated.

I've often heard people whinge about it whilst they were sitting in the bar. If you don't like it, simply don't go there, but hundreds of people seem to enjoy it.Alternatively, you could start your own bar with rock-bottom prices...

[ken svay]

I like it for brunch,a toasted sandwich and a pot of lipton tea and the thai papers.

[Khmeria]

Are rank farts killing Sharky's?

[vladimir]

Are rank farts killing Sharky's?

Been there a lot lately?

[Jacked Camry]

I wonder whether there is a bar in Phnom Penh that someone wouldn't rag on?

Having been to Sharky's since the days when it was the Lido, I can't say that it has gone downhill, as nothing was much divier than the Lido. In fact, it was a major upgrade. I used to go to Sharky's all the time as the Mexican food was quite good, as were the daily specials, and they played some of the best music in town. The day of the Big Fight, when the group I was with somehow precipitated what turned out to be an all-out brawl between the Vietnamese and Khmer girls ending when shots were fired into the ceiling by the security dude, started its descent in my eyes. All the regular waitresses but one were sacked, and we stopped going there so often. It was a great bar back in its day.

I haven't been for quite some time, so can't comment on the current state. But shifting to a more polite format with live music isn't such a bad idea, it's not like there's nowhere for people looking for divey bars with ho's to go. Sharky's probably has the best situation to move into a "Gulliver's" type format (referring to the large bar on Soi 4 in Bangkok) since it is large and reasonably well designed to accommodate a lot of people. I will have to go check out the food next time I'm in town, it would be surprising if it went so far downhill but things can often change if the cook moves on.

[ken svay]

Sharkies would need a major refurb if it were to be like gullivers.
But sharkies has needed a major refurb for long time.
I will always remember sharkies for the tenth or was it twelfth birthday party when I shared a joint on the balcony with a group including JM and then staggered inside and fell flat on my back near the pool tables.
It took me sometime to come to and when I did they threw me out -I think that I had drunk two beers.
Great service!

[ChicagoGuy]

Sharkies would need a major refurb if it were to be like gullivers.
But sharkies has needed a major refurb for long time.
I will always remember sharkies for the tenth or was it twelfth birthday party when I shared a joint on the balcony with a group including JM and then staggered inside and fell flat on my back near the pool tables.
It took me sometime to come to and when I did they threw me out -I think that I had drunk two beers.
Great service!

Yes, heaven forbid they throw you out for breaking the law on their premises and then passing out.