Garden Café

Three 5 star styles of dining, impeccable service, uniquely Thai style ambience, at shockingly reasonable rates.

Situated within the grounds of the Pattaya Marriott the Garden Café offers a cool and airy smart modern Thai style café with terrace dining available. Apart from a first class buffet breakfast the café also offers three categories of dining each performed with a culinary excellence that will leave even the most finicky gastronome appeased.Service earns every one of its 5 stars and eight expertly chosen wines by glass will give you the opportunity to pit different vintages with each dish.

All You Can Eat Lunch Menu (Baht 490++)
Taken from the a la carte menu you can choose to dine on exquisite Chinese cuisine that includes a number of appetizers, four of your favourite Chinese soups, more than many main courses, and delicious desserts. The quality is superlative with mouth watering dim sum and exquisite roast duck which along with all the other dishes are cooked strictly to order. If you dined at a stand alone Chinese restaurant of this calibre a budget of 490 Baht would probably be blown after two dishes.
Served: 12pm to 3pm

Cooked to Order Buffet (Baht 750++)
For an evening dinner you will not find better value than this, a feast of top quality international food that includes Giant Prawns, Rock Lobsters, Smoked Salmon, Sushi, Sashimi, Steaks, Lamb, Fine Cheeses, and so much more. Firstly you can start with a huge range of fresh salads that go exceptionally well with the cooked King Prawns and those fantastic Thai Lobster (Gung), and fresher than fresh crab. Build your own Caesar Salad or drizzle your smoked salmon with lemon and capers, and be sure not to miss the many variety of sashimi. For me cold meats and cheese are my idea of heaven and the selection and quality at Garden Café are first class with whole joints of imported cuts being carved and international cheeses that in my opinion are the mark of a top class hotel buffet. On to main courses and we return to seafood but this time cooked to order and if you like prawns then make sure to try the King Prawns Baked with Butter. At this point you may want to try the pasta to order which looks great but for me I like to leave maximum room for meat, and with a switch to red wine I am delighted that the chefs can cook lamb cutlets and tenderloin steak just as competently as every other dish. The meat quality is again superb and if you’d rather keep your red meat intake down then there is equally good fish, chicken and other dishes including vegetarian. Homemade desserts are a forte of such hotels like the Marriott so you can be sure your sweet tooth will be more than looked after, many of the desserts looking so good it seems a shame to destroy such a work of art.
Once again we’d just like to mention the service as the guys and gals took such great care of us, and it’s also worth mentioning that if you like cocktails then try the signature The Garden, it’s a real refresher getting it’s deep green colour from Kiwi fruit, other cocktails like the Pomegranate Muddle are just as good.
Served:  12pm to 11pm

Cantonese Cuisine (Price as per menu)

For this delectable feast you will be at the mercy of the master chef who conjures up the most delightful Cantonese delicacies such as Fish Maw Soup, Steamed Dumplings, Stir Fried Beef in Pepper Sauce and the delectable Roast Duck. It’s a fabulous way to enjoy a family or business dinner that will suit those who are familiar with the very best of Cantonese and Chinese cuisine. The Peking Duck is such a succulent looking bird that it looks like it’s been working out in the Marriott gym and the taste is more than a match for it’s fabulous size. It’s prepared expertly and once you’ve enjoyed the delicately carved off skin with dumplings you can choose the meat cooked in one of two ways of which we strongly recommend the Mieng.
Served: 12pm to 10pm

Pattaya Marriott Resort & Spa
Tel: 038 412 120

Caffe Toscana and Moom Talay

Taking their wealth of culinary expertise and enviable location Toscana have brought a new dining concept to Beach Road Pattaya with their Italian café and Thai seafood restaurant. The idea is that the beachside location is utilised to it’s full potential offering a casual dining venue offering the fantastic food Trattoria Toscana is associated plus the very best in supremely fresh Thai seafood dishes, and for more chilled out times you can feast on grilled chicken, or cold cuts, pizza, foccacia or even just a quick gelato to keep the kids buzzing. My first impressions were that the café itself is a place you feel you could really enjoy sitting with a nice glass of wine, a cold beer or even a coffee and cake. The inside reminds me more of a bistro than café with classic designs incorporating lots of wood and loads of interesting trinkets. Al Fresco is just as enticing and again a place you feel you would like to sit and enjoy the atmosphere with the ocean a few metres away and again just a really beautifully classic designed space.
The wines are from Toscana’s mammoth collection along with 15 or so Grappa’s on offer and a whole host of cocktails, beers and spirits to choose. And as we are already very aware of the outstanding Italian nosh we thought we would give the Thai fare a go which according to Khun Moom is as authentic as can be and although the spice can be turned down on request the Thai flavours will remain.
For appetizers you may want to try Hoy Jor which is actually a Chinese hor d’oeuvre made from crabmeat and pork, and also Tod Mun Kung, Thai Prawn Cakes that were simply superb, packed with prawn meat and fried to a light crisp. Obviously the freshness of the prawns plays a big part here but the method of cooking is also top notch which from personal experience is difficult to emulate.
A real farang favourite of Chicken with Cashew Nuts was also excellent with all those flavours combining like the very slight sweetness from the sauce combined with subtle spice from the dried chilli and touch of sour from rice wine. But being so near the gulf we had to have more seafood so next up we ordered Kung Tod Kratiem Prik Thai, King Prawns fried in Garlic and Pepper, the prawns were as juicy as you can get, so fresh that the pinkish coloured liquid inside the head was sweet, sweet, which in Thai is called mun and in English I suppose it is the brains. As a reminder of importance of detail we were frilled to dip our prawns in hand pummelled seafood sauce which pronounces the flavours of chilli, lime, garlic, fish sauce and palm sugar much better than blending. For our fish dish Pla Kapong Nung See-Iew, Steamed Hong Kong style Sea Bass for which the chef has her own special recipe resulting in a sauce that I feel suits this kind of fish more than any other non-spicy sauce I’ve tried. So after a quick Italian coffee and a delicious cake from the very inexpensive homemade pastry and cake counter we can conclude that Caffe Toscana not only has some of the finest Italian in Pattaya but also some of the freshest and genuine tasting Thai food. And although our selection may have struck you as very foreigner friendly they also serve Thai for Thai’s as well with dishes such as Tom Klong Pla Krob, Khatieou Pad Kee Mao plus all your favourite noodle dishes, spicy salads, curries and much more.

Open: 10.30am to
Tel: 038 362 370
Pattaya Beach Road
North Pattaya

Phra Pa Karn

If you are looking to escape Pattaya for a few hours or just want to dine in a darn fine eating environment then we strongly recommend Phra Pa Karn in Baan Amphur just passed Jomtien off of Sukhumvit Road.
Phra Pa Karn which means lighthouse in English is bang on the seafront sandwiched between two contrasting worlds with a view of Jomtien and Pattaya to the right and an enduring panoramic view of Bang Saray bay and the green blanketed mountains beyond, to the left.
We recommend diners arrive before sunset and take a short stroll around to get some of the chilled out seaside ambience which also includes a nice little children’s park to get the little ones appetite up before dinner. Then once you are ready to sit you can enjoy the sunset from the first or second floor of the restaurant which with its leisurely laid back music is in perfect harmony with the sleepy fisherman village atmosphere. The light blue and white of the restaurant adds to the clean and relaxing air with a small lighthouse to give the restaurants name some meaning. The fishing boats parked at the front of the restaurant are good indication of how fresh the fish and seafood are and on the menu apart from the obvious variety of Thai and sea creatures there is a surprising number International dishes including Lamb, Imported Steaks, Duck and Pasta all in numerous styles. If you’re budget is normally restricted to noodles at Tesco Lotus then you might find this place a little out of reach but the size and quality of the seafood do justice to the pricing and judging by the number of filled tables no one here was overly concern with price. Among some of the many dishes on the menu are the Crab Legs with Yellow Curry Paste and the huge NZ Mussels baked with Spinach and a smattering of cheese.
From 6pm a very nice acoustic set fills the air with a lady singer who is stuffed full of talent.
Open: 11am to 12am
Tel : 086 146 6366

Directions: Take Sukhumvit Road towards Sattahip, when you reach Ban Amphur look out for the Thai Austrian Technical School on your left side and do the next u-turn. Then take the first left where you will see a sign for the restaurant.

Orangery By The Sea

Spread over two floors the Orangery By The Sea offers diners a chance to indulge in cuisine from around the world by bringing six of Bangkok’s finest restaurants to Pattaya. The idea was first conceived for Bangkok’s uber trendy Siam Paragon Shopping Complex to facilitate the many different nations of shoppers and visitors, hand picking the restaurants who they believed offered the finest gourmet cuisine in their field.
So now here in Pattaya we also have a choice of Bangkok’s finest including Royal Thai cuisine from the world famous Blue Elephant, Indian from Rang Mahal regarded by many as Bangkok’s finest, French and Italian from the talented 2 lady chefs of Mes Amis, Lebanese and Mediterranean from The Cedar, Chinese from Lin Fa at Siam City Hotel and Japanese also from this hotel.
Split into 4 sections including 2 stylish bars Orangery is set among modern minimalist décor that incorporates comfort as a major feature with flowering greenery and water features creating soothing demeanours.
For our dinner we chose to sit out on the deck which offers a unique view of Pattaya and boasts cooling breezes conjugating the stylish relaxed ambience. A pair of Filipino singers moved from table to table offering music that was incredibly well crafted, the two guys have amazing voices and lively personalities that actually make you want them to play rather than leave as soon as possible, as I find is normally the case with these often painfully corny table side bands.
On to drinks and a range of excellent juices, smoothies and health drinks and superb cocktails that include the signature Orangery, a fruity beverage with a taste that resembles a Mai Tai only slightly smoother.
Kicking off the food we start with some Asian picky’s from Blue Elephant with Vietnamese style prawns wrapped on sugar cane and from Lin Fa, Prawn Spring Rolls of Paradise a kind of pancake of solid prawn meat that is delectable when dipped in the sweet sauce.
From Mes Amis who also deals with the comfort foods like burgers, sandwiches and fish and chips we enjoyed a delicious Smoked Salmon Caesar Salad with crusted parmesan and also a magnificent Oven Baked Sea Bass, with beautifully balanced light Mediterranean flavours of tomatoes, olives and fresh herbs.
Then a series of curries from Rang Mahal which never fail to impress before finishing off with a dessert from The Cedar called Mohallabia which to you and me is a milk pudding covered with strawberry sauce.
With so many dishes to choose from and such a congenial atmosphere we will be heading back to the Orangery and next time I feel the Cedar deserves a bit more attention, and for those who have never been lucky enough to eat at the Blue Elephant we highly recommend the Foie Gras with Tamarind Sauce it’s one of those dishes that always comes to mind when talking about fine food.

Open: 11am to 12am
The Avenue 2nd & 3rd Floor
Second Road

Shabu Ichi                                                  

It may be brand new in Pattaya but Shabu Shabu has been around since the 13th century when Genghis Khan used it as an efficient way to feed his mobilised troops.
However, its popularity really took off in the 20th century with the first restaurant opening in Osaka, Japan with its popularity quickly spreading throughout Japan then Asia and even now Europe and America.
The beauty of Shabu Shabu and Sukiyaki is that not only are they delicious but they’re also healthy cuisine that is loads of fun to share with friends and family. At Shabu Ichi you will be impressed with the set up which features masses of floor to ceiling windows oozing natural light, highlighting the bright and clean dining environment. Each table has individual hotpots sunken into the table for each diner that is filled with their tasty foundation stock that you then add your vegetables, meat and seafood to create your personalised dish. In a few minutes you can start to devour the concoction with a little Nam Jim or Suki Sauce. The several dipping sauces also include the fiery but superb Nam Jim Jaal a quintessential dip for North Eastern Thai food.
A series of stations house the multitude of fresh vegetables which also includes numerous varieties of exquisite mushrooms, and a station that is almost entirely devoted to Thai style meat balls that include pork, seafood and fish in many shapes and sizes. In the fridges you will find quality thinly sliced meats including premium pork and bacon cuts plus fish fillets, prawns, squid, and chicken, and for the more adventurous for a small extra cost you can try some more exotic meats like crocodile, deer, ostrich, wild boar and beef.
Aside from all the ingredients for Shabu Shabu included in the buffet price they are also salads, fruit, soft drinks and a range of cooked Thai foods like crab fried rice, spicy Thai salad and many more.
The price for this royal feast is just 199+ for lunch, and 229+ for dinner which also includes a variety of sushi and dim sum after 5 pm. Kids love this style of dining and those under 90cm dine free while kids between 90 and 120cm dine for 120+ Baht. Also highly recommended are the a la carte dishes including Hong Kong style roast duck and roasted red pork, we sampled the duck and not only was it deliciously flavourful but also as soft as silk, and during the current promotion it is an incredibly reasonable 99 Baht per dish.
Shabu Ichi is a first for Pattaya and one of the most value for money and delicious dining experiences this cuisine rich city has to offer, and if you’re not familiar with this dining concept then ask the friendly staff or manager to advise you, it’s fun, it’s tasty and mostly importantly it’s kind to both your health and your wealth.

Shabu Ichi
3rd Floor
The Avenue
Second Road
Pattaya

Tel: 038 723 998

Open: 11am to 11pm

Swiss Food Restaurant

When we learnt that Swiss Food Restaurant had been around for 25 years we knew that our first proper Swiss dinner would likely be something to remember.
They are situated in one of Walking Street’s better Sois’s, Soi Diamond and along with an exceptionally classic European style restaurant they also have an adjoining brightly lit more casual 24 hour Bistro/Pizzeria, and just for good measure stylish accommodation starting at just 500 Baht with a rooftop garden suite with sea views and whirlpool a bargain 1500 Baht. But anyway we were not here to rest we were here to gorge and gorge we did, starting with the salad and soup buffet that is free when dining here and includes a great selection of fresh and authentic European salads with a very excellent potato salad, and soup that is superb with the delicious homemade garlic bread. Then for starters you can indulge in Norwegian Smoked Salmon, Shrimp Cocktail and most excellent Beef Carpaccio, along with many other great appetizers like Mussels in Garlic Butter that in my opinion Europeans do so well. For absolute Swiss classicness we had to have a Cheese Fondue which was just awesome, bubbling along and getting more thick and flavourful as we dipped the last remnants of the homemade toasted bread. At each stage of the meal the two Swiss owners worked relentlessly checking on every table and never ever looking bored to discuss the menu items or concepts of Swiss foods, after 25 years their passion seems to be burning just as brightly for their craft which would probably explain the restaurants longevity. Main courses come in many forms with both local and imported steaks like Chateaubriand, or Angus steak flambé in Morel Sauce, Chicken and Pork specialties and Fish and Seafood dishes like Poached Sole Fillet in White Wine Cream Sauce all prepared by the Swiss chef. For us we decided to dine as Swiss as possible and settled on a Pork Escalope with Mushroom Cream Sauce and Noodles which was very tasty indeed, although the Sliced Veal Zurich style in Cream Sauce with Rosti was just sensational, the veal so tender and the sauce perfectly rich. While enjoying these exquisite dishes we noticed that the bistro next door was enjoying a decent turn over of customers while the restaurant where we sat was almost to capacity. There’s a real warmly European air which had us momentarily reminiscing times what seem a million miles away from Pattaya, places like this could almost make you do something quite rash and think about moving back. But then again when you can find food this good at a fraction of European prices it’s more becoming to sympathise with those that have to go back. Along with excellent food the restaurant also takes wine very seriously and each month has affordable but good quality special deals, we were delighted with our South African Chenin Blanc which cost less than 1000 Baht. And to finish off a memorable evening we were served memorable desserts with the specialty Crepe Suzette winning high praise and possibly just nudging the top spot followed by joint second for Pannacotta, sublime Chocolate Mousse (well they are Swiss), and Hot Cherries with Ice Cream.
A fantastic restaurant with great food that is reasonable in price and features some outrageously good value set menu’s starting at 230 Baht. And apparently the pizzas from the Bistro are also excellent and you can have them delivered to your room, or the corner you’re occupying in the Go-Go Bar, or even the Disco.
There are 2 Swiss restaurants in the small Soi so make sure you get the right one.
Swiss Food Restaurant
Soi Diamond
South Pattaya Road or Walking Street
South Pattaya
Tel: 038 423 504
www.swissfood.net
Open: 4pm until 12am
Bistro 24 Hours

The Bay

Although we’re always on the look out for new dining concepts in Pattaya sometimes you just have to follow the crowds and Saturday night’s spread at The Bay consistently pulls in the masses.
The view is undoubtedly one of the best in Pattaya with a huge terrace jutting out over the ocean and a contemporary style indoor dining room both offering the same majestic panorama of the bay.
As for the food it is very likely the most comprehensive offering of Thai and International food you will find on any given day in the city of fun. For starters you can choose from a massive selection of international cold cuts and delightful accompanying pickles, together with a large selection of breads from the bakery before moving on to the delicious salads. The next station is a seafood lover’s heaven with all the cooked chilled crustaceans you ever dreamt of, along with some huge fresh oysters, followed by sushi and sashimi corner that is the best I have seen from a hotel buffet in Pattaya. There’s also premium grade smoked salmon prepared in a couple of styles along with all the trimmings like capers or chopped shallots that you can add yourself.
Outside the dining room on the terrace you will encounter the barbecue grill that serves up sumptuous fresh off the boat king prawns, rock lobsters and crabs, along with steaks, lamb cutlets, sausages and so on.
And although you will be positively drooling over the barbecued goodies you will more than likely be overwhelmed by the next section which is a buffet of just about every cuisine imaginable. Starting off with a proper Lebanese style rotating chicken kebab with that creamy garlic sauce, then some samosas, and somewhere further on a selection of Indian food that for me is the best I have tasted in this city.
As The Bay is Italian by nature you can choose from a superlative range of spaghetti and other forms of pasta all made to order in which ever sauce your heart desires, but leaving room for another very special cuisine of the Dusit which is Chinese from the hotel’s The Peak Restaurant. Suckling pig is to die for, then there’s the first class dim sum, roast duck, and Chinese mixed fried rice that is possibly the best in the world. That might be slightly too bullish but try it here or at The Peak and you’ll know what I mean.
Moving on and if you’ve still got room for more main courses then you can go for some lamb stew, steak medallions Italian style, vegetarian cuisine and the list goes on until you head back up the stairs into the aircon dining room and start the assault on the desserts and cheeses.
And although even I’m tired of saying it but the quality is unsurpassed, the homemade desserts are amazing and I don’t even like sweet stuff normally, especially good are the mousses, and in particular a berry rich pannacotta mousse that converted me to being a sweet tooth. If you like pancakes then hit the crepe station specialising in crepe suzette.
Finally and my most favourite thing in the world, cheese, and predictably the selection is second to none, quite frankly nowhere I have been in Pattaya even comes close to The Bay’s cheese board, I’m still having heart murmurs now.
So now your thinking amazing buffet with incredible views at a 5 star hotel must be a fortune. Wrong, this royal feast costs just 1460 Baht net per person which begs the question how do they do it.

The Bay
Dusit Thani Pattaya
Saturdays 7pm until 10pm

Vitamina by Valentino

One of Pattaya’s newest restaurants on Thappraya Road next to Royal Hill Resort serving Italian food along with breakfast, sandwiches and some Thai food.
Interiorly the dining room is not huge but clean and smart but not too formal, light walls and partition glass doors keep the atmosphere bright. It makes me think of a simple laid back setting that an Italian family might enjoy. Outside is a pleasant garden area and on the roof they have a garden where live music is performed each night between 6pm and 8pm weather permitting, it was pouring when we went so we didn’t get a chance to hear the music. The live music coincides with the cocktail happy hour mixed apparently by an Italian cocktail specialist. Predominantly the menu is Italian with pastas, pizza, salads, meat and seafood dishes, plus some antipasto like bruschette with olive oil and tomatoes.
On our visit we tried 3 of the pastas Penne Bolognese, Penne Pesto and Lasagne, all of which the owner assured us are as authentic as they come. Personally I liked the Penne Pesto but even more so the very drinkable Italian house wine. We also tried one of the meat dishes Cotoletta alla Milanese a simple but tasty veal cut fried in breadcrumbs that with a squeeze of lime worked quite well. Another main dish recommended by the owner is Ossobuco. But the best dish we tried was the sweet and sour vegetables the very nice waitress made for our son because he said hadn’t had any veggies all day. This would lead us to believe that the Thai food may be a stronger point of the restaurant.

Thappraya Road
Jomtien
Tel: 038 250913
www.vitaminavalentino.com