Jobless Pattaya man turns van into café

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Utakarn Tiwaratchai heats up coffee outside the Bali Hai skater park.

An unemployed Pattaya man has found a new vocation selling cold drinks from his converted Volkswagen van.

Utakarn Tiwaratchai, 34, used to work for a company providing bakery equipment to 30 Pattaya-area hotels. But when the hotels closed down, there was no need for baked goods and he lost his job.



One day, watching skaters at Jomtien Beach, he came up with the idea of selling them coffee and cold drinks. He and a friend converted his van into a mobile café and parked it at Bali Hai Pier, where a skater park recently opened.

Called Car Camp, the café has found enough customers to keep Utakarn afloat. It opens at 4 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday.

Utakarn converted his Volkswagen van into a coffee shop and named it Car Camp.



An avid skateboarder, friends persuaded Utakarn to open his unique café at Bali Hai.


The cafe has become popular at the Bali Hai skate park.