Sunrise Tacos Pattaya Big C Location

[SunriseTacos]

Went looking to try the Horchata , the staff looked at me like I was from Mars.

That was my fault, I forgot to inform the staff of the menu addition. It will be there tomorrow. My bad. Gil

[SunriseTacos]

I am unclear. The spit thing for Al Pastor you have where?

Jomtien?

Big C?

Both?

At our Big C location. We have also re jigged the recipie, which will be applied in both locations. Our Al Pastor is vastly improved. Gil

[SunriseTacos]

well Gil should have been there.... and the mexican chefs

I was there all day, since 2pm working the machine, tasting, etc. We were pushing out free tacos from 6pm until 8pm. My chefs were also on site. I will post pictures tomorrow. Gil

[SunriseTacos]

Went looking to try the Horchata , the staff looked at me like I was from Mars.

Sorry, but I totally agree! I was completely ignored by the staff. The whole stall

looked like to be well prepared for closing time. So I felt quite stupid standing there

and I wasn't encouraged to ask for a free tasting.

I was there until 7:30 pm, and we had a line of people taking free tacos away. We close the stall always at 9:30, although often breakdown happens about 845 pm in order to finish and close the lights at 9:30. Gil

Edited July 19, 2012 by SunriseTacos

[SunriseTacos]

Was there with the wife for lunch today.

We had a chicken kebab for 90 odd baht and a large burrito for 220 baht.

Both would have been enough for the both of us. The kebab was nice and tasty, the burrito was basically tasteless and the bread like chewing gum.

Sorry - nuff said

Thank you for your input. Gil

[cdnvic]

There's constructive feedback, and then there's just insults. The first is welcome, the latter will be, and has been deleted.

[Jimmyd]

So I had to go to Big C Extra to pay a bill, but of course the computer was down and I couldn't pay it. I was there already, so I figured I would drop by Sunrise to see what's up.

It's in the place where Spiccio's used to be, for those of you who remember way back then, right at the front of the food court. I was hoping the single tacos al pastor would be available at a decent price--otherwise I wasn't willing to spend that much on what has been rather disappointing food.

Lo and behold--one taco, 49 baht. Nice. Two for 85, nicer! Three for 120, now we're talking! Still skeptical, I went for two (can't pass up a discount like that). First thing they put on is iceberg lettuce. Omigod. Sigh. Then the pastor from the spit which looked very dry. Sigh^2. Next onions and cilantro. Well, that's good. Finally some salad with cabbage in it-aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa! Hold on! Thank god I stopped them in time. Oh, forgot to mention I had already told them not to load the things up with those hideous pineapple chunks.

I get ready to chow down and aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa #2, they gave me flour tortillas. dam_n, I forgot you have to ask for corn. Sigh^3. I asked for their super hot salsa, which they gave me in a side dish.

So I put the salsa on the tacos:

Looking good! Ahem, but how does it taste? Well first bite reveals undercooked (rather cold) tortilla. Plus it's flour. But, hey, the rest of it was pretty good. Meat was kind of dry, but the salsa made up for it. Super hot it's not, but it's a bit spicy. Decent job! At this price I'd go back.

I go up and try to pay my bill again. No ruck, computer no work.

I'm on my way out and I have a brilliant idea--let's try a corn taco! I have been so disappointed with the corn tortillas at Sunrise up to now, I figure it's the acid test. Onward, upward and I order 1, count it 1, corn al pastor taco. Hold the lettuce please! Here it is.

After salsification:

Two corn tortillas! Nice! But the taste was, well....Nice! Omigod!

Not up to San Francisco Taco Truck al pastor tacos, but getting up there, maybe 7 or 8 on a scale of 1 to SF Taco Truck (pic below from a few months ago):

Mr. Sunrise: if you can keep this up at this price, you now have a very frequent customer. I recommend to all Thaivisa Mexican food lovers--get it while you can.

(I'm so impressed, I'll save any further niggling for another post.)

[Jimmyd]

Epilogue (note the finger marks from scraping up the last bit of juiciness):

[Jingthing]

Good report there, thanks.

I have a question about the pineapple. As I have mentioned before the pineapple and mango salsa at Jomtien are unacceptably over-sugared. As there is a BBQ spit at the food court location, is there fruit on top of the spit in the traditional way? If so, that kind of traditionally cooked fruit (natural, no sugar marinade) would be great and totally authentic for Al Pastor tacos.

Edited July 21, 2012 by Jingthing

[Jimmyd]

Yeah, there's pineapple on top. Note in the SF Taco Truck tacos, no visible pineapple chunks. I've had them in Mexico too, and never seen a chunk. I guess it's done, but I've yet to encounter it. Might be mixed in though. Notice how much juicier the meat is on the SF version too, and much smaller chunks.

[Jingthing]

Yeah, there's pineapple on top. Note in the SF Taco Truck tacos, no visible pineapple chunks. I've had them in Mexico too, and never seen a chunk. I guess it's done, but I've yet to encounter it. Might be mixed in though. Notice how much juicier the meat is on the SF version too, and much smaller chunks.

In Mexico, they have taco shops that specifically feature Al Pastor. Never seen one of those WITHOUT the fruit on top. I suggest people try it that way. As it's just fruit and not sugary glop if you don't like it you can just remove without messing up the other fillings. BTW, about the salsa. How is this CHARGED for? Do they put a portion of one salsa on each taco free? (I assume.) Or do they give you a side bowl one salsa free or are they indeed charging 20 baht even for your one salsa?

[Jimmyd]

I got one small bowl of salsa with the two flour tortilla tacos. I got the same amount for the one corn tortilla taco. You can see what I got in the pictures. No extra charge for the salsa.

About the al pastor in Mexico City--do they put visible chunks of pineapple on the tacos, or do you just mean on the spit roasting thingie?

Edited July 21, 2012 by Jimmyd

[Jingthing]

I got one small bowl of salsa with the two flour tortilla tacos. I got the same amount for the one corn tortilla taco. You can see what I got in the pictures. No extra charge for the salsa.

That's good to hear. Wasn't there a previous report they were charging 20 baht for salsa? Maybe for other dishes. In any case, this all sounds good enough to try out to compare to Jomtien. The Al Pastor sounds better in Pattaya.

[lovetotravel]

I got one small bowl of salsa with the two flour tortilla tacos. I got the same amount for the one corn tortilla taco. You can see what I got in the pictures. No extra charge for the salsa.

That's good to hear. Wasn't there a previous report they were charging 20 baht for salsa? Maybe for other dishes. In any case, this all sounds good enough to try out to compare to Jomtien. The Al Pastor sounds better in Pattaya.

I ordered the 3 taco combo with rice and beans. Had to pay 20B to get ANY salsa. None provided.

[Jingthing]

I got one small bowl of salsa with the two flour tortilla tacos. I got the same amount for the one corn tortilla taco. You can see what I got in the pictures. No extra charge for the salsa.

That's good to hear. Wasn't there a previous report they were charging 20 baht for salsa? Maybe for other dishes. In any case, this all sounds good enough to try out to compare to Jomtien. The Al Pastor sounds better in Pattaya.

I ordered the 3 taco combo with rice and beans. Had to pay 20B to get ANY salsa. None provided.

Wow. Lets keep an eye on this. More reports please or a word from the owner.

Al Pastor from Mexico. Pineapple on top. Sliced off fresh and added to taco when ordered.

Edited July 21, 2012 by Jingthing

[Ohyesuare]

That looks pretty good actually with the corn tortilla's, thanks for the detailed report.

[pauljones]

Went to Sunrise Jomtien today.

Place was empty. Service sucked. Portions small. No chips. Expensive. Went away hungry.

Too bad the staff doesn't appreciate the effort or expense the boss has invested.

[Jayman]

Went to Sunrise Jomtien today.

Place was empty. Service sucked. Portions small. No chips. Expensive. Went away hungry.

Too bad the staff doesn't appreciate the effort or expense the boss has invested.

should have just walked over to Sam's.. I get full there and nice service.

[Jingthing]

Went to Sunrise Jomtien today.

Place was empty. Service sucked. Portions small. No chips. Expensive. Went away hungry.

Too bad the staff doesn't appreciate the effort or expense the boss has invested.

Excuse me but did you bother to ASK for chips? Because I find it hard to believe if you did that you wouldn't get the standard gratis portion of chips which is their policy. Should you need to have to ask? No. Edited July 21, 2012 by Jingthing

[Jayman]

Went to Sunrise Jomtien today.

Place was empty. Service sucked. Portions small. No chips. Expensive. Went away hungry.

Too bad the staff doesn't appreciate the effort or expense the boss has invested.

Excuse me but did you bother to ASK for chips? Because I find it hard to believe if you did that you wouldn't get the standard gratis portion of chips which is their policy.

why do you have to ask for gratis? Do you have to ask for the bill in order to pay? do you have to ask for the menu? They should bring the gratis chips right when you sit down and give you the menu.. period.. if you have to ask then they are not doing their job.

If any asking should be done it should be from the service staff to the customer.

Edited July 21, 2012 by Jayman

[Jingthing]

Went to Sunrise Jomtien today.

Place was empty. Service sucked. Portions small. No chips. Expensive. Went away hungry.

Too bad the staff doesn't appreciate the effort or expense the boss has invested.

Excuse me but did you bother to ASK for chips? Because I find it hard to believe if you did that you wouldn't get the standard gratis portion of chips which is their policy.

why do you have to ask for gratis? Do you have to ask for the bill in order to pay? do you have to ask for the menu? They should bring the gratis chips right when you sit down and give you the menu.. period.. if you have to ask then they are not doing their job.

I agree. It's a service issue. The owner has commented about this before and said he tries hard to train the staff about this. But he isn't there all the time, etc. This is Thailand. There are service issues here even in the hiso places. That said, I think people should be more reasonable. At Jomtien, their policy remains, a gratis portion of chips (which are usually very good except for a possible new issue with oversalting) and unlimited access to their salsa bar. No other Mexican place in town does anything like that. Edited July 21, 2012 by Jingthing

[Jayman]

Went to Sunrise Jomtien today.

Place was empty. Service sucked. Portions small. No chips. Expensive. Went away hungry.

Too bad the staff doesn't appreciate the effort or expense the boss has invested.

Excuse me but did you bother to ASK for chips? Because I find it hard to believe if you did that you wouldn't get the standard gratis portion of chips which is their policy.

why do you have to ask for gratis? Do you have to ask for the bill in order to pay? do you have to ask for the menu? They should bring the gratis chips right when you sit down and give you the menu.. period.. if you have to ask then they are not doing their job.

I agree. It's a service issue. The owner has commented about this before and said he tries hard to train the staff about this. But he isn't there all the time, etc. This is Thailand. There are service issues here even in the hiso places. That said, I think people should be more reasonable. At Jomtien, their policy remains, a gratis portion of chips and unlimited access to their salsa bar. No other Mexican place in town does anything like that.

well.. and now that you bring up service I will relate my story on such... when I went to the big C location for the one and only time to try it I ordered the beef taco salad. I'm the only customer and when they gave to me it was chicken. I say, this isn't beef. And they say..oops.. can't you eat chicken? So I said sure, whatever, TIT, I'll eat it. Fact is I can eat either just fine. But then I just read the staff gives flour when ordered corn.... so this service issue is a serious issue for Sunrise. He can't be everywhere at once but he needs to have staff that take a simple order and execute it. I really can't be bothered to keep hearing excuses that it's not possible. Thais are not stupid. The management needs to be more in top of the game if they want to survive in the pattaya restaurant scene.

[Jingthing]

The menu at Sunrise at least at Jomtien is complicated. For the servers that don't speak English well (the Filipinos excepted) anything you might say that is more complicated than pointing to a menu item is problematical. I have to agree there are some troubling service issues at Sunrise. I think we may have to be a bit more proactive at such a place with complications on the menu. If you want corn tortillas, make sure that desire is CONFIRMED by the staff in some way. It should be their job to be more competent? Yes. But bottom line you want what you want, you can usually get it if you try there.

I think there is good evidence the owner does try to be responsive to repeated comments here. Such as napkins. Now they are on tables at Jomtien. Spoons for salsa. Now at the salsa bar. Sweet carnitas. The owner claimed to have fixed that. It's a process and I continue to wish Sunrise good luck as I do think some of what they offer, nobody else in town comes close to.

[Jayman]

well if the staff don't know the difference between chick or beef then there is a serious problem.

Fact is, they knew they screwed it up and apologized and asked me if I would eat the chicken. I'm sure if I refused they would have made it again with beef. My point is, I go to a restaurant because I'm hungry. I don't want to argue with the staff about my order. If they show they can't get it right... i will eat somewhere else. There are tons of places to eat in this city. I don't eat out that much so I still have plenty to chose from.

[Jingthing]

I totally respect freedom of choice in where to eat. I agree that stress and problems with getting orders right makes any restaurant less attractive. But there are pros and cons for any restaurant choice. I think its fair to be clear at Sunrise there are pros and cons but many of us will continue to eat there warts and all because they've got some stuff there that no local competition does.

Edited July 21, 2012 by Jingthing

[Jimmyd]

I didn't order corn tortillas for my tacos the first time--I just assumed I would get them, as to me a taco generally means corn tortillas. Apparently flour is their default--I seem to recall hearing this about Sunrise at some point so chalked it up to experience.

Their 3 al pastor tacos for 120 baht right now is a good value. As I said before, they will have my custom often if they keep it at that price point.

[Heng]

Any "average" Thai who can afford to go to Fuji, MK etc.. should have no problem paying those prices if they like "Mexican" fast food.

I'm a Thai and count me in. Was also a regular at Great American Rib and Bob's as well. *sigh* Not sure if that's a good indicator.

Maybe consider nicotine drops in the chips as a backup plan.

[RabC]

How can screwing up orders be put down to the customer, the customer shouldn't have to stand there trying to explain his order to some half literate staff. If the restaurant wants such a complex menu it should employ staff that are capable of serving it or dumb down the menu to meet the staff aptitude.

Edited to add:

Its these amazing staff that people are paying a service charge for.............

Edited July 21, 2012 by RabC

[Jingthing]

How can screwing up orders be put down to the customer, the customer shouldn't have to stand there trying to explain his order to some half literate staff. If the restaurant wants such a complex menu it should employ staff that are capable of serving it or dumb down the menu to meet the staff aptitude.

Edited to add:

Its these amazing staff that people are paying a service charge for.............

I strongly disagree. Dumb down the menu and there is less choice/chance we can get close to what we want. Don't dumb down the menu -- hire more Filipinos!

[pauljones]

There was about 6 staff visible during my last visit.

4 sitting outside, 2 watching TV.

Without a farang manager on site, they are not going to make it.