Recent Dining Experiences - Reviews

[syd barrett]

Yesterday (Sunday) I just fancied a good old traditional Sunday Lunch, so I went to Seasider Restaurent on Soi Chiapoon (sorry about spelling) The Soi runs between Soi Bouakow and 3rd Road close to Crazy Daves and Neeroys.

I had not been for some Months but it was still delicious as usual.

Loads of slices of tender Roast Beef, the good old Yorkshire Pudding, Mashed & Roast potatoes, lots of Veg, thick gravy. 140 bt.. A plate full.

The place is not posh, but it is clean and the service is still good.

I have been eating here for 8 Years and never had a bad experience yet.

Sounds good. I will give it a go next Sunday.

Any info on times & prices?

I have been going to the Bowling Green, just 100 yards away for my 99Baht Sunday Roast recently.

[pattaya_girl]

Hi Syd. The Seasider serves all day and close at 9 or 10 pm.

They have a huge menu and they also do the Lamb and Mint Sauce, Roast Pork or Chicken dinners.

Steaks - T Bone, Pepper Steak. The prices range from approx 100bt to 150 bt...

Try it for yourself and report back - I thought you would know about Seasider.

You can either sit outside, or in Air Con, the Prices are the same.

Like I say, its not posh but it is clean and the Food is Yummy.

I also like the fish & chips, and Sausage & mash, its just like my mum use to make..

Edited September 14, 2009 by pattaya_girl

[syd barrett]

Hi Syd. The Seasider serves all day and close at 9 or 10 pm.

They have a huge menu and they also do the Lamb and Mint Sauce, Roast Pork or Chicken dinners.

Steaks - T Bone, Pepper Steak. The prices range from approx 100bt to 150 bt...

Thanks for the information. I will check it out in the next few days and report back.

It is unusual for a good restaurant/cafe review from Soi Chaiyaphoon, but this place obviously deserves a go! Thanks.

[Jingthing]

OK, I admit it, I am a glutton for punishment. I suffer so you don't have to!

New restaurant report:

Kani Shahani (or something like that ...)

Located on 2nd Road across the street from Villa, a bit north of Villa (down the end of a rabbit warren of typical tourism vendor type places)

Menu claims: Indian, Bangladeshi, Thai Seafood

Food is Hallal

Opened: Rather new I think

What attracted: Full tables of Indian type people during the evening

Ordered:

Vegetable pakora -- greaseball bombs served with dipping sauces, tomato ketchup and Thai chili sauce, yes I said ketchup! No mint sauce. No tamarind sauce. Truly dreadful! 60 baht

Mutton rogan josh: what arrived was a very watering thin curry SOUP (more like a non-coconut milk Thai curry than an Indian curry) with no more than 2 ounces max of not very fresh tasting mutton diced into tiny pieces. The soup included some good spicing including whole pieces of cinnamon and cardamom. The tomato paste aspect promised on the menu was not noticeable. Cost- 160 baht, worth 100 baht max.

Pallau Rice: fair portion of bland SOGGY rice - 50 baht

Soda water - 20 baht

Service: was served by the chef. He sat at my table uninvited watching me eat. The waiter was not in attendance. The chef seemed very friendly, maybe too friendly.

HERE IS WHERE IT GETS REALLY FUNNY!

The bill arrived. As you can deduct from the prices above the bill should have been 290 baht (a bargain at half the price). Anyway, being the ONLY customer in this tiny restaurant, I was presented with a bill for 580 baht! I am not joking! I first looked at it and just handed it back thinking it was a crazy mistake, now give me the real bill. The chef/waiter was not amused. He really thought the meal was supposed to cost 580 baht. Happily I had the menu with me on the table and he had a calculator. Even with those tools he tried to inflate ALL of the menu items in this calculation! Now either this was the most blatant lame outrageous attempt at price gouging I have ever experienced, or this man suffers some kind of cognitive problem and/or he reckoned I did for showing the poor judgment of eating there. Eventually, I just took the calculator from him and pointed at the various menu items and added them up, he couldn't argue about that. I gave no tip and I won't be back. Believe it or not the soup curry was spiced in such a way that I had considered trying the place one more time for their tandoori items, but not now, not ever.

Should you visit this hidden gem? You be the judge.

Edited October 17, 2009 by Jingthing

[Ulysses G.]

I'll pass!

[cochran]

Its been a while since I've posted any restaurant items, but recently found a new place that we really, really liked. The sad thing is that they've been open for the better part of a year, and i'd never even heard of the place!!

Last weekend we met some friends for lunch, and as we were driving around I saw the sign for Grappa, an Italian restaurant inside the Woodland Suites building, off of 2nd Rd just north of the dolphin roundabout. So on Monday night we dropped in there for dinner.

The place is a wine bar and Italian restaurant. Lots of glass, very open atmosphere, comfortable seating. This is a quite nice place - real silverware and real table linens and etc. Of course we started off with cocktails, and if the place has a weakness, that's it. I have DEFINITELY had much worse cocktails in Pattaya, and would probably rank the cocktail at Grappa about 7 of 10. I ordered a Tom Collins, and it was serviceable but nothing to brag about.

After we placed our order, a selection of bread was served. This was hot, fresh, crusty on the outside, tender on the inside, and delicious. One bun was served hollowed out in the middle with a bruschetta-style topping stuffed into it. Pesto and butter are on the side.

I tried their Insalata Riviera as an appetizer, and my constant companion had prosciutto grissini. The salad was served in a thin, crisp pastry, with a lettuce mix, bacon, and vinaigrette on the inside, topped with anchovies, and served with roasted bell pepper, prosciutto, and cooked tuna on the outside. If you're not very hungry, this could serve as a delicious lite meal. Strongly recommended. The prosciutto grissini is served as two cheese grissini with prosciutto wrapped on the end, sort of like a drumstick. This one was served with a side of pesto and a side of a white sauce for dipping. The grissini were crisp and tasty - no stale breadsticks here.

Mains were spinach fettucini with olive oil, garlic, and prosciutto for her, and spinach/cheese tortellini in Bolognese sauce for me. The menu has about 8 different pasta shapes/styles (fettucine, spaghetti, gnocchi, tortellini, penne, etc.) and several sauces to choose from, and you mix and match. Each was served with sliced parmesan on top and two slices of garlic bread. While the bread had good flavor, it was a little more crunchy than I prefer. The pasta, both dishes, was absolutely amazing. The Bolognese was not overly greasy as you sometimes find, and was in perfect proportion to the amount of pasta. It was very well seasoned. When the main dishes came to the table, the serving sizes looked a little skimpy, but as you work your way through it you find its plenty.

I tried a glass of their house red with dinner. This is a decent wine, but I disremember what variety. They serve it at room temperature, which was very much appreciated.

I finished with a tall shot of grappa to settle everything down. In keeping with their namesake, they offer several varieties of grappa. I'm not a connoisseur of this liqueur, so chose from the top (less expensive) end of the list and was satisfied.

My girlfriend ordered one of their desserts - a chocolate and cappucino creme mille feuille - served with a small scoop of chocolate gelato on the side. The pastry was light and crisp, and not overloaded with sweetness - a nice finish, but too much to eat it all.

The wait staff here is professional and attentive, but not intrusive. A nice job of walking the line.

Overall tab was just under 2100. Well worth it, and we will absolutely be back....as soon as I work up either enough appetite to eat so much again, or the intestinal fortitude to order less!!

[syd barrett]

^^ Great report. I have never eaten there, although I was aware of its existence.

I will surely check the place out soon, the food sounds excellent.

Keep up the great reports, the expats here in Pattaya; we all appreciate them!

[cochran]

Thanks, Syd. We don't get out as much as we used to, just because work has really ramped up in the last few months, but when i find a really good one like this, I'll be sure to pass it on!

[PattayaParent]

Grappa used to be out the front of the Amari on Beach Road side didn't it?

[cochran]

PattayaParent, I don't know. When I first came here in Sept. 08, they had Mantra and Henry J. Beans (I stayed at the Amari for a week), but don't remember Grappa there. Could have been.

There's a new place I've seen on Beach Road lately called Terrazo. Any info on that one?

[aussiechick]

Grappa used to be out the front of the Amari on Beach Road side didn't it?

PattayaParent - that was La Gritta which is at all other Amari Hotels. Pattaya Amari is the first to have Mantra as a new concept.

[Lost in LOS]

Fish and Chips. Dont know if it is mentioned already finally found a good one with a big portion of fish, crispy crust, fish tasty and the chips were great. so far everything was really good and reasonably priced with large portions

next to the Eden club/hotel, don't know how else to describe the location [maybe soi 10 thepprasit] The Caddy Shack

[raro]

I stumbled into Klein Heidelbeg last night on the hunt for some food and found the ultimate

GERMAN PORK KNUCKLE - Schweinshaxe!!

315 Baht and outstanding. Nakluea Soi 18, a bit down the road on the right hand side. Will be repeated. The rest of the menu was also quite appealing.

They serve Flensburger Pils as well...

[Jingthing]

I stumbled into Klein Heidelbeg last night on the hunt for some food and found the ultimate

GERMAN PORK KNUCKLE - Schweinshaxe!!

315 Baht and outstanding. Nakluea Soi 18, a bit down the road on the right hand side. Will be repeated. The rest of the menu was also quite appealing.

They serve Flensburger Pils as well...

Sounds interesting. Was the menu translated into English? I find that many of the German places don't bother.

[raro]

I stumbled into Klein Heidelbeg last night on the hunt for some food and found the ultimate

GERMAN PORK KNUCKLE - Schweinshaxe!!

315 Baht and outstanding. Nakluea Soi 18, a bit down the road on the right hand side. Will be repeated. The rest of the menu was also quite appealing.

They serve Flensburger Pils as well...

Sounds interesting. Was the menu translated into English? I find that many of the German places don't bother.

Yes, menu was also in English. On Sunday's they have at 7 pm chicken and duck from the BBQ...might check in for that one.

[PhilHarries]

The restaurant that has gone downhill the most in my opinion is the Sportsman.

EPG.

Do you mean the soi 13 Sportsman? If so I agree with 100% on this one. Their sandwiches are great but their meals are good but food. By that I mean the meal is good.......but.......... I've not been to the soi 6 Sportsman for a couple of years. I also think that the Queen Vic in soi 6 has gone downhill as the last meal I had there was decidedly dodgy. I'm not keen on Jamesons as the last breakfast I had there tasted of iffy cooking oil. There's an odd little place in soi 14 (second road opposite soi 12) called the Box. Menu is in Dutch, so you may need a little translation, but for 165 Baht you get soup, main course and ice cream or coffee. The food isn't exactly haute cuisine but it's good and just enough quantity so your not bloated after. Had a reasonable meal, not great, in the Blue Parrot but am decidedly unimpressed with their 75 Baht daytime price for a Singha.

[MZurf]

Went to Wi's last night. We were actually going to Cherry but they were full.

We have eaten there before and been very satisfied. I had at that time the Norwegian cod and that was delicious.

They have made a lot of changes to their menu since the last time we dined there a few months ago and last night I had the Cajun blackened chicken.

Very tasty although the portion was a bit on the small side and the sauce was a bit sweet for my taste (I hate sweet food).

Excellent service and prices as before. All in all a very good alternative to Cherry.

Menu_Wi_s.pdf

[jaywalker]

My wife & I used to enjoy Steak Bao on Beach Rd, near Soi 10.

The service was truly Thai, as in the appetizers came out about 20 minutes after the main course was served (no joke...happened many times).

We took it all on the chin & laughed about it though, as the food was absolutely fantastic. The atmosphere was really nice as well with a fountain burbling in the outdoor area and a fresh sea-breeze blowing in.

Their Moo Lung Baan was a dish to die for, & the (always late) Sai Krog Isaan was always nice.

This was back in 2001-2004.

There was some tall, blonde Scandinavian manager there who spoke better Thai than English.

They always had some nice, mellow music videos going on their many TV screens & the volume was perfect to create the ambiance we enjoyed (Eagles, Bee-Gee's etc...).

They had cute (but clueless) waitresses & sometimes Beer girls (the promotion type wearing flattering attire) that did their best.

The last time I went there, they apparently still had the same chef. I think this was 2007 or so.

Gone were the Scandinavian guy & ambiance & the cute beer girls. A BUTT-UGLY-FLAMING Katoey in way-too-tight-pants (yes they were flaming pink in color) took our order.

The food was OK, and it came out appetizer first, then main meal next, but all hints at ambiance were GONE.

I had some vacationing friends from Florida over at the time, and had bragged about this "cool" restaurant to them. For some reason they begged off to not join us that night.

Thank God.

I have nothing against katoeys. To each his/her own, as long I don't have to interact with them, but Steak Bao went from being a really cool place into being a really strange place in no time flat.

For me, it was no big deal. It was a bit of a bummer. My Thai wife is as mellow as they get, but she agreed it was joke to have all transvestite staff in what was formerly a somewhat decent restaurant that will set you back 1500-2500 baht on a dinner for 2.

If my friends from Florida had joined us that night, I'd never have heard the end of it.

Jay

[Jingthing]

So was the food still good? Who cares about the sexuality of the staff unless they were trying to seduce you? Geez!

Edited November 4, 2009 by Jingthing

[timekeeper]

my recent and very brief dining out experiences.

i am no Cochran but here goes:

lunch at Grappa at the Woodlands, nice decor, small portions, not fantastic tasting either.

service not great to say there was only us and two others in the place

had to shout them up two or three times to get drinks

very expensive for everything

Pan Pan on the Beach Road, nice enough decor but hot inside, the aircon was on but front door open all the time, had to move to very back of the restaurant to feel the benefit of it

had some Italian standards, minestrone soup; full of veg but no flavour, my wife put in tomato sauce to give it some taste.

had to pay 60 baht for bread accompanyment (3 slices with miniscule butter pot)

spag bol, big portion, poor taste, left half of it

service ok, moderately expensive but won't be back

not a patch on the one in Jomtien

[Crypt36]

SUSHI!!!

There's a couple of these Fuji sushi restaurants in town: NEVER EVER GO THERE!! It's disgusting.

Then there's this Sushi place on the 6th floor of Central where the food comes by automatically on the rolling line in front of you. 280thb for all you can eat. It's ok but far from great.

Zen on the 5th floor of Central: Now this is a good place to have your sushi!

[Lost in LOS]

So was the food still good? Who cares about the sexuality of the staff unless they were trying to seduce you? Geez!

"birds of a feather flock together" just joking Jingthing

seriously, if they are gay I have no problem, many restaurants here have them, half of my restaurant staff in L.A. was gay but the poster said transvestites and many are a bit over the top. Rather not have them as waiters/waitress. I just want good food without the show.

[aussiechick]

Apart from which Steak Bao is long gone!!!!

[cochran]

Have to disagree with you, timekeeper. My experiences from both places were just the opposite! Totally thrilled with Grappa, but you'd need a cattle prod to get me back into the PanPan at Jomtien.

Goes to show you - each of us has his own opinions, and our experiences vary a great deal. Always good to hear other points of view, though.

Everybody - keep them coming!!

[timekeeper]

Have to disagree with you, timekeeper. My experiences from both places were just the opposite! Totally thrilled with Grappa, but you'd need a cattle prod to get me back into the PanPan at Jomtien.

Goes to show you - each of us has his own opinions, and our experiences vary a great deal. Always good to hear other points of view, though.

Everybody - keep them coming!!

i respect your views Cochran and have always enjoyed reading your reviews but for Grappa at least, i felt i was right on the money

my company on the day was a previous head chef from a fancy restaurant in Australia.

he liked the overall decor but not the chandeliers and thought the spag bol he had at 280 baht was small portioned and very ordinary.

i am no chef, but i thought the small ham and mushroom pizza at 180baht was passable and the very small rissotto at 240 baht i had, was salty and i subsequently left half of it

the bill with a few soft drinks was around 1600baht, (when i could get a waiter over to deliver the bill)

maybe its better at night but i won't be going back to find out

i added to my review as i wanted to put a bit of meat on the bone, so to speak .......

[BlackJack]

I know most of those places and mostly agree. Also agree Madras Darbar is a great find. But I never liked Ali Baba at all. You are also correct Shenanigans Jomtien is crap.

shenanigans Jomtien - went there last week and had a long island tea to start - nothing happened - i thought its me and my hardened liver - so i had another and nothing happened - I ate the roast dinner and it wasnt to bad.

the next week i took my GF who normally gets smashed aftger a few sips of a long island tea - she drank one and nothing happened - she then had a red death and nothing happened - normally at 42kgs she would be very drunk but no................

Its worth checking as at 175 per drink I expect to get a buzz on!!!!!!!!

The LIIT has also inspired many variations which are below the recipe.

Ingredients:

•1/2 oz triple sec

•1/2 oz light rum

•1/2 oz gin

•1/2 oz vodka

•1/2 oz tequila

•1 oz sour mix

•cola

•lemon wedge for garnish

[cochran]

Okay, quick update.

Terrazzo, the Italian restaurant at the Holiday Inn on Beach Road. Menu looks good, but if you want Italian, go to Grappa or Toscana. I'd give this one a miss.

Haven't tried many new places lately, as the work schedule is INSANE these days.

I went to Just Burgers and left comments on that thread, so no need to rehash here.

Recommendations for a new place to go? May have some time this weekend to get out for a meal someplace.....

[ericg1953]

Okay, quick update.

Terrazzo, the Italian restaurant at the Holiday Inn on Beach Road. Menu looks good, but if you want Italian, go to Grappa or Toscana. I'd give this one a miss.

Haven't tried many new places lately, as the work schedule is INSANE these days.

I went to Just Burgers and left comments on that thread, so no need to rehash here.

Recommendations for a new place to go? May have some time this weekend to get out for a meal someplace.....

Preecha Seafood in Ban Amphur....great selection of many types of seafood and it's all live in clean tanks. Try some of the clam dishes, they cook them up with garlic and butter and some other sauces available as well.

[BlackJack]

any updates for Christmas dinner

[BlackJack]

or christmas lunch