Eating Great In Pattaya

[Michaelaway]

Today, we were up early and decided to go in to the big streetside-outdoor-indoor market on Pattaya Tai for a few fresh groceries. Like all markets, it's a great place to visit early in the day, when everything is just brought in and freshest. We bought some vegetables and fruit, but as we were leaving we spotted the ladies selling prepared Thai food dishes by-the-bag, for take home (si toong, gahb baan). The seafood looked particularly good, so we decided on:

Curried Crab (Boo pat pong cullie)- 30 baht

Spicy Fried Clams (Hoi lai pad num prik prao)- 30 baht and

Fried Rice with Shrimp & Kale- 40 baht

Total: 100 baht

Conclusion: A great seafood lunch for two!

I guess the reason I decided to post all of this is to say that I like the food here very much. Today was a great example of how, any day in Pattaya, you can find delicious, fresh, flavorful foods for a very reasonable price. 100 baht for a seafood luch for two, wow. And, if you're new to the area, and this sounds interesting, there are dozens of roadside places and markets every day, selling all kinds of great Thai foods for 20-40 baht/ bag.

Final note:

As far as I can tell, the ultimate Pattaya arena for viewing local cooks, and the dozens of different freshly-made dishes they prepare is... The Thepprasit Night Market (F,Sa,Sun- after 17:00).

[bkkjames]

Hungry now.

[patrickinpattaya]

Good post. I love walking round the markets, the smells and the food are great and cheap. You should try the market up at si ratcha, its huge, tends to bee cheaper than patts also

[timekeeper]

not cheap by any means but went to Zico's Brazilian on the beach road last night

lots of cocktails, lots of meat and fish on skewers, good salad bar, samba dancers, good sound system, nice atmosphere

it was pretty good but the service was a bit slow

nevertheless i did leave absolutely stuffed, so no need for any food today

we enjoyed it but its not as good as the one on Samui

[Orac]

not cheap by any means but went to Zico's Brazilian on the beach road last night

lots of cocktails, lots of meat and fish on skewers, good salad bar, samba dancers, good sound system, nice atmosphere

it was pretty good but the service was a bit slow

nevertheless i did leave absolutely stuffed, so no need for any food today

we enjoyed it but its not as good as the one on Samui

Have to agree here but I haven't been for a few months. If you catch the promotions right there can be quite a saving - i think they have an all you can eat for 500 baht after 9pm on wednesdays at the moment (not including drinks).

[californiabeachboy]

I will be visiting Pattaya area next month, staying in Jomtien Beach (soi 9). Can you help me out with where this market is? - either an address or maybe something I can look up in Google Earth. I love to eat, and I love these markets.

Thanks.

[ELCata]

I will be visiting Pattaya area next month, staying in Jomtien Beach (soi 9). Can you help me out with where this market is? - either an address or maybe something I can look up in Google Earth. I love to eat, and I love these markets.

Thanks.

There's plenty of markets (tallats) in Jomtien. A small one on Soi 2 & a BIG one on Treppasit Road for example.

I'd like to know where the Pattaya Tai one is as well, as I'll be staying just up the road in a few weeks. Is this it?

http://www.pattayaphotoguide.com/?fstRUcMpkckDFDNA

[Sommaz]

Big thanks for sharing. Always eager to find good information about food! :-)

[Michaelaway]

Every morning, there's a lot of freshly-prepared Thai foods at the market behind Jomtien Soi's 5 & 7. If you get there at 8:00, and before 11:00, you'll find lots of different foods. Truthfully, this market isn't my first choice (along with the dishes I do like, they sell too many things I don't prefer). Soi Watboon's (below) got many more choices and Thepprasit weekend market is miles more varied. But, they definitely do have some delicious stuff... go check it out.

In Jomtien every evening, you can buy an even bigger number of tasty foods, about 17:00- 19:30, at Soi Watboon(kanjanaram) Market- opposite Majestic Condominium. Lotta good foods!!

Pattaya Tai-

At the intersection of Second Rd., if you walk up Pattaya Tai (going away from the beach) you'll pass the market area on your right, in just a few minutes, before you get to Tukcom. It starts with foods in pots and fruits and vegetables for sale on the sidewalk, and goes back, fairly deep inside. Tons of stuff...

[Michaelaway]

Big thanks for sharing. Always eager to find good information about food! :-)

Supremely awesome avatar, Khun Sommaz.

Now, senses yearning for a gyros... I slowly begin to understand. On humanitarian grounds, it appears they spared the life of the evil despot, Saddam Hussein... and set him up making gyros, somewhere on the Jersey shore... Yassou, Saddam (call me, Steve)...!

[toenail]

Some Westerners may turn their noses up to local market food (like myself once) wondering if it is fresh or clean-but as my Thai friends say, it is more fresh than at many restaurants that do not have a big turnover with the food . Once the food is gone with the vendor - that's it until the next day. The next thing they point out is, if the food was of poor quality or spoiled, then the word gets around fast and none of the locals would purchase their food from the food vendors. As a Westerner, that makes sense to me...and after living in Pattaya for 6 years, I know many restaurants that don't care if the customers come back; for, they think the farang as a drop in tourist-- one eat only.

[JSixpack]

Hungry now.

Diarrhea now.

[craigt3365]

For sure, these local markets are one of the things we love about living here. We have a few where we live, south of Jomtien. Even the little local restaurants are great. Visited one last night and for 200B got a ton of food. Enough for 3 meals....wifey's a bit tired of cooking I guess!

[Michaelaway]

Hummus Alert:

Stopped into Foodmart, Jomtien today and found good-size tubs of hummus @ 99 baht. Had some for lunch with warmed pita bread (30 baht/3 lge. pcs), sliced onion, cured black olives (59 baht) from Friendship and a salad. Dunno if you're hummus fans but, for me, especially after not having it for so long... this was really good (fit my budget well, too)!

[FarangBuddha]

Good post. I love walking round the markets, the smells and the food are great and cheap. You should try the market up at si ratcha, its huge, tends to bee cheaper than patts also

Not with current gas prices.

[kamluan]

not cheap by any means but went to Zico's Brazilian on the beach road last night

lots of cocktails, lots of meat and fish on skewers, good salad bar, samba dancers, good sound system, nice atmosphere

it was pretty good but the service was a bit slow

nevertheless i did leave absolutely stuffed, so no need for any food today

we enjoyed it but its not as good as the one on Samui

Zico's....

lot's of cocktails....i want to go there also,looking for feijoada typical brazilian dish,but it's kind of expensive i think...but still want to try it out whit my lady....

your bin stayed beloy 1000 bath a person?..sorry to ask

[Michaelaway]

Eating Great (on a budget) Update:

Went to Big C Extra (formerly Carrefour) today:

1 Olive Ciabatta bread- 39 baht

1 Cheese Ciabatta bread- 48 baht

1 Pork knuckle (cooked)- 169 baht (included 2 plastic tubs- pickled vegetables & chili sauce)

Total: 256 baht

Sliced the ciabatta loaves; sliced & trimmed the pork- made about 16 sandwiches (added Cheddar to a few). Dee-licious, krap!

[kamluan]

not cheap by any means but went to Zico's Brazilian on the beach road last night

lots of cocktails, lots of meat and fish on skewers, good salad bar, samba dancers, good sound system, nice atmosphere

it was pretty good but the service was a bit slow

nevertheless i did leave absolutely stuffed, so no need for any food today

we enjoyed it but its not as good as the one on Samui

zico's...where you get shrimp on a spit...lol..never seen this is brazil..their fejoada also really doesn't taste nothing brazilian...but for the falang wanting a brazilian atmosfere in pattaya it's the best place to go.....how do the owner is german...lol...

and to expensive too

[Gary74]

Thanks. It looks great with great prices.