Under 300 Baht ... And Mediocre (Updated Jan. 15, 2020)

[Evil Penevil 7,628]

I started the "Under 300 Baht ... And Good!" thread to disprove a particularly silly statement that claimed if you spend less than 300 baht on farang food in Pattaya, you get "garbage."

 

 

 

 

It was easy to find dozens of examples of good farang food that cost less than 300 baht in Pattaya. The "Under 300 Baht..." thread has run more than two years and still has a ways to go. There are so many restaurants in town where you can get good food under 300 baht and it's almost impossible to cover them all.

 

 

 

 

 

However, not all the food in I try qualifies as good. Mediocre dishes also abound under 300 baht, so I decided to start a thread about those meals.

 

 

 

 

 

But before we get going, I have to stress "mediocre" is not the same thing as "bad." Mediocre means "average or ordinary in quality; neither very good nor very bad." Generally speaking, a mediocre meal will be adequate, but not more. One more time, so everyone understands: mediocre does not mean bad.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Another point to stress is that a good restaurant can serve an undistinguished dish while the rest of its menu is much better. One mediocre dish does not a mediocre restaurant make, much less a bad restaurant.

 

 

So with the notes of explanation out of the way, feel free to share the details of meals in Pattaya that were notable only for their mediocrity, no matter in which restaurant you had them. It doesn't necessarily have to be farang food. It can be Thai, Indian, Japanese, Chinese, whatever. Thanks!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The fixed plate roast chicken dinner at the Robin Hood Tavern for 199 baht rates a "C," with one component on the plate scoring an "A," two failing miserably and the rest average.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I give the roast chicken an "A" because it was a generous portion of juicy and tasty chicken.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Yorkshire pudding and bacon-wrapped sausage were inedible, so they get "Fs." The Robin Hood also has a carvery buffet for 299 baht and I believe the Yorkshire and the sausage had stood on heating trays for a long time and the plate had been rewarmed in a microwave or oven before serving. The Yorkshire was burnt on the outside, tough as leather inside. The bacon around the sausage was so hard it couldn't be chewed. The vegetables and potatoes were OK, but nothing special, the definition of mediocre.

 

 

 

 

 

A possible upside for some diners is that there was a lot of food on the plate. The downside was that except for the chicken, it was mediocre or bad food. The Robin Hood Tavern is located on the first upper level of The Avenue on 2nd Road.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Take Away is an oddly named restaurant on Soi Bukhao, close to the subsoi that connects New Plaza with Bukhao. It's menu aims it clearly at visitors from the U.K. as it's heavy on what can be considered British comfort food.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Prices aren't exactly cheap, but they are reasonable and every item on the menu is under 300 baht, with most under 200 baht.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

You order at the counter and pay at the counter, but the food is carried to the tables by the waitress.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I tried the spaghetti Bolognese for 180 baht. Maybe that was a bad choice on my part. If I eat there again, I'll pick something more British.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Basically, it was a bland ground beef sauce dumped on top of overcooked pasta. There was no Italian seasoning and very little tomato in what was supposed to be a Bolognese sauce. Mediocre is the best I can rate it. The garlic bread was actually the tastiest part of the meal.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lee's Diner has been operating eight years in the Pattaya restaurant shark pool, which is a longer run than many get.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It's located on Soi Diana near the intersection with LK Metro and dishes up Thai and farang food 24/7.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It's clean and well-lit, which are definitely positive factors in my eyes. A serious downside factor is that there's no wall between Lee's and the neighboring bar that features a live band blaring the usual numbers at ear-splitting levels.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What the band lacks in quality it makes up in volume. There is no way I could ever eat a meal with that deafening racket in the background, but the band knocks off at 2 a.m. and that's when I tried Lee's recently. I had eaten at Lee's in years past, but hadn't gone back much because I found the food, well, ... mediocre.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There was nothing about the beef with oyster sauce I had at 160 baht that caused me to change that opinion.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It was bland and heavy on the vegetables but light on the beef, also a bit oily. On the positive side, the ingredients seemed fresh and the beef wasn't tough. Everything considered, it fit comfortably in the realm of mediocrity.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited January 15, 2020 by Evil Penevil

[teelack 9,640]

I really have little to add to the topic other than the following. Most Farangs that I know would say that perhaps the most mediocre eaterie in Pattaya is Kiss. For me when I want a substantial snack the club sandwich and chips at under 100 baht is fine. The strange thing is that in the last few months I have been asked on 3 occasions by Thai girls to take them there and have had no complaints. I would never have thought of talking someone there but this experience is changing my thinking. Perhaps mediocre has a different meaning to different people?

 

Sent from my GT-I9505 using Tapatalk

[Alphonse 109]

Have had Thai girls drag me to Kiss in the past. Usually, the fried fish can be OK (though even that sometimes fails) and most other dishes I have tried are mediocre at best. The Jomtien shop is no improvement yet often see Thais eating there. Best I can figure is that it is still relatively cheap though the portions are small.

[midlifecrisis 4,048]

I really have little to add to the topic other than the following. Most Farangs that I know would say that perhaps the most mediocre eaterie in Pattaya is Kiss. For me when I want a substantial snack the club sandwich and chips at under 100 baht is fine. The strange thing is that in the last few months I have been asked on 3 occasions by Thai girls to take them there and have had no complaints. I would never have thought of talking someone there but this experience is changing my thinking. Perhaps mediocre has a different meaning to different people?

 

Sent from my GT-I9505 using Tapatalk

 

Most of my trips I have had lodging within walking distance of Kiss. I have eaten there twice on my own and once because a Thai girl wanted to eat there, though I would have taken her to any eatery of her choice.

 

[jacko 8,814]

I tried the Sunday Carvery at The Robin Hood yesterday, and my sentiments echo EP's excellent reporting above.

 

Firstly it was the Sunday, all you can eat carvery, so 395 baht, and I arrived before 1pm, so the stuff had not been sitting out for long.

 

Mushroom soup for starter, OK but nothing extraordinary, a skin had formed on it.

 

Carvery had 5 choices, Chicken, Ham, Pork, Beef and Lamb.... I went for those I never get at home. lamb and beef, both okay but not special, they were not joints of meat but more pressed blocks, lamb is best from a nice leg or cutlets. Gravy boat needed for the dry stuffing and bacon wrapped sausage, but as it was help yourself I got a reasonable looking Yorkshire pudding. Choices of bland looking veggies but I went with cauliflower cheese, not very cheesy and a little undercooked, as were the roast potatoes. My second plate I tried mashed which was good.

 

My seat near the West side window was a little warm for such heavy food. Hence I substituted ice-cream for the flan/ egg custard that was on offer. Along with a pint of Heiny which was cool and refreshing the total was just over 500 baht. The place had filled up while I was there, which meant there weren't any available tables but the place didn't look crowded. Getting to and from food requires limber hips.

A plus, waitresses in short skirts they are always pulling at. They work hard but perhaps need one or two more, sometimes kept waiting... use the bell which I noticed late on!

 

A reasonable choice but I think there are better carveries around on a Sunday.

Edited July 30, 2018 by jacko

[teelack 9,640]

I tried the Sunday Carvery at The Robin Hood yesterday, and my sentiments echo EP's excellent reporting above.

 

Firstly it was the Sunday, all you can eat carvery, so 395 baht, and I arrived before 1pm, so the stuff had not been sitting out for long.

 

Mushroom soup for starter, OK but nothing extraordinary, a skin had formed on it.

 

Carvery had 5 choices, Chicken, Ham, Pork, Beef and Lamb.... I went for those I never get at home. lamb and beef, both okay but not special, they were not joints of meat but more pressed blocks, lamb is best from a nice leg or cutlets. Gravy boat needed for the dry stuffing and bacon wrapped sausage, but as it was help yourself I got a reasonably looking Yorkshire pudding. Choices of bland looking veggies but I went with cauliflower cheese, not very cheesy and a little undercooked, as were the roast potatoes. My second plate I tried mashed which was good.

 

My seat near the West side window was a little warm for such heavy food. Hence I substituted ice-cream for the flan/ egg custard that was on offer. Along with a pint of Heiny which was cool and refreshing the total was just over 500 baht. The place had filled up while I was there, which meant there weren't any available tables but the place didn't look crowded. Getting to and from food requires limber hips.

A plus, waitresses in short skirts they are always pulling at. They work hard but perhaps need one or two more, sometimes kept waiting... use the bell which I noticed late on!

 

A reasonable choice but I think there are better carveries around on a Sunday.

I usually have the 199 baht Sunday meal. It is more than enough for me and while not as good as the Queens Arms is still good value for money.

 

Sent from my GT-I9505 using Tapatalk

[Evil Penevil 7,628]

The all-you-can-eat international buffet at the Atlantis Restaurant at the Centara Azure on Soi 15 falls squarely in the mediocre column. It runs Monday through Thursday, 6.30 p.m. to 10.30 p.m, and costs 299 baht.

There isn't much variety- about eight main dishes ( four each of Asian and farang food), a measly salad bar and a few side dishes, appetizers and desserts to choose from. It's not a bountiful buffet. The food is undistinguished and dining can be hassle due to Chinese and other tour groups. We got there at 7.00 p.m. but the serving trays had already been heavily plundered and the staff was slow to refill them.

 

It's a rather off-putting experience to see Chinese tourists hit a buffet and much worse if you have to compete with them. I'm not going to say more, but I think you get the idea.

 

The best thing about the Atlantis is the decor and huge aquarium. Kids love it, but it's sad when watching fish in a restaurant is more enjoyable than eating fish.

 

I haven't tried the BBQ buffet and never will, but a friend who did try it thought it was not just mediocre but bad considering the price.

 

Evil

Edited July 31, 2018 by Evil Penevil

[tallguy 1,475]

If the roasts and carvery at Robin Hood are mediocre what does that say about other offerings around town? I think it ranks amongst the best options available and compares favourably to the much vaunted Sportsman carvery.

In the past I have tried the carveries at Jolly's and Robin's Nest and came to the conclusion that there was something wrong with a carvery where the best parts of the meal are the soup and the ice cream.

The main positives on the Robin Hood Sunday Carvery are the quality of the meats and the inclusion of lamb, (this forced the Sportsman to start including lamb in their carvery price again). I like the fact that they include a proper cooked dessert, although this varies from week to week, rather than just a couple of dollops of ice cream. Some of the soups, like Jacko's mushroom soup and the pumpkin soup maybe a bit bland, but the carrot and ginger soup was better than expected, and the tomato and basil soup is very good.

The daily carvery offered during the week is a welcome improvement on reheated roasts offered by other places.

Edited August 2, 2018 by tallguy

[jacko 8,814]

If the roasts and carvery at Robin Hood are mediocre what does that say about other offerings around town? I think it ranks amongst the best options available and compares favourably to the much vaunted Sportsman carvery.

In the past I have tried the carveries at Jolly's and Robin's Nest and came to the conclusion that there was something wrong with a carvery where the best parts of the meal are the soup and the ice cream.

The main positives on the Robin Hood Sunday Carvery are the quality of the meats and the inclusion of lamb, (this forced the Sportsman to start including lamb in their carvery price again). I like the fact that they include a proper cooked dessert, although this varies from week to week, rather than just a couple of dollops of ice cream. Some of the soups, like Jacko's mushroom soup and the pumpkin soup maybe a bit bland, but the carrot and ginger soup was better than expected, and the tomato and basil soup is very good.

The daily carvery offered during the week is a welcome improvement on reheated roasts offered by other places.

Like me, you are an old timer of Pattaya. Did you ever have the carvery at the old Shenanigans, when it was approximately where Dicey Reilly's is now? It was pretty expensive but very very good.

Edited August 2, 2018 by jacko

[tallguy 1,475]

Like me, you are an old timer of Pattaya. Did you ever have the carvery at the old Shenanigans, when it was approximately where Dicey Reilly's is now? It was pretty expensive but very very good.

As a two week holiday maker I didn't spend much time in that area. By the time I started staying around the Buakhau / Dianna area on longer trips Shenanigans had moved to The Avenue. I did enjoy the carvery there as an occasional treat, I especially enjoyed the prawns on the salad bar. Unfortunately it did go downhill a bit during the year or so before Shenanigans closed.

[Evil Penevil 7,628]

 

A lot of people favor the Sailor Restaurant on Soi 7, mainly because it is cheap, but I've never had much luck. I've eaten there five times in the past six years Three meals were bad (one totally inedible), one was good and the most recent (last night) was mediocre.

 

 

I tried one of the more expensive items on the menu, the T-bone steak for 150 baht. It came with a choice of potatoes, boiled vegetables and a smattering of cabbage salad.I'm fully aware that for 150 baht you're not going to get imported beef, so my expectations weren't too high. I asked for the steak to be done medium and that's how it came.As soon as I had a piece of it in my mouth, I was reminded of the children's story "The Little Engine That Could." Chew, chew, chew and me tell myself, "I think I can, I think I can." It wasn't impossibly tough, but tough enough to place it in the mediocre category. The mashed potatoes tasted weird and the veggies had been boiled way too soft for me, but some like them that way.

 

 

I knew before I stepped into the Sailor I was entering the heart of Cheap Charlie darkness, where price and portion size are much more important than taste. I figured I'd get a mediocre meal and that's exactly what happened. But whatever its culinary faults, the Sailor has been in operation for many years and remains popular. I sat down at the last available table about 8.00 p.m. At least 30 people were dining, including three groups of eight. It thinned out a bit as I ate my meal, but still had plenty of customers when I finished.

 

The day the zombie apocalypse comes to Pattaya, the Sailor Restaurant will be one of the last outlying bastions of Cheap Charliedom to fall before the final stand at New Plaza. I'll check back in 2019 to see if the Sailor has changed.

 

Evil

Edited August 10, 2018 by Evil Penevil

[sinbinjack 251]

I dont in general subscribe to food threads as I have no kind of special palate and am generally happy with most things put in front of me, well those things I chose because I like them. But I do love the food at the Golf Club in LK metro . I love the green curry and they do a great barbecue 3 nights a week . Now some of their meals are over the 300 but those meals I have seen big guys with big appetites take home doggie bags . The place cant be all that bad as I am sure most of its trade is from patrons of other bars who order their food at the golf club and delivered to other bars all over LK Metro by the very hard working girls and the BBQ guys is really good. Even as an admitted cheap charlie I find the food in the golf club to be wholesome tasty and economic if not the cheapest it is for me the best all round place to eat in fun town and I eat there 5 or 6 days a week when in town. Mind you I eat mainly their green Curry , which I think IS the best in town their burgers which are tasty and the BBQ chicken breasts and baked potatoes .

[sinbinjack 251]

The post above was posted in the wrong thread , sorry about that but the Golf club I MK Metro is a great place to eat .

[Evil Penevil 7,628]

Early this week I tried the daily special (roast chicken dinner, 139 baht) at Malee Restaurant on Soi Honey. I've had several meals at Malee 3 off Soi Buakhao and the Malee branch on Soi Lengkee and they had been pretty good.

Unfortunately, the meal at Male Soi Honey wasn't. It was merely mediocre. It consisted of a quarter chicken (thigh and leg), mashed potatoes, mixed vegetables and packet gravy.

The chicken was dry and the skin had a weird texture, as though it had been cooked, left to stand and reheated. The potatoes were crudely mashed with a fork. The veggies were OK and not overcooked.

On the positive side, portion size was fine and the service was friendly. The restaurant was clean and well-lit.

Bottom line: a mediocre meal at a cheap price.

Evil

Edited September 9, 2018 by Evil Penevil

[Evil Penevil 7,628]

I used the Eatigo discount (50% at 1.30 p.m.) to have lunch the other day at the Garden Cafe at the Avani Hotel on 2nd Road. I had been tempted by the "Recommended Menu" selections on Eatigo, but none of the dishes I wanted to try were available on the limited lunch menu. I chose Lamb Rogan Josh at 350 baht as the best option. it came with basmati rice; tiny pieces of naan bread; a tiny dish of chutney, unknown flavor; and an equally small dish of a super-salty pickled vegetable.

I'm not a portion fanatic, but the serving of lamb rogan josh was small even by my standards, You can use the fork in the pic for a sense of scale. It was a large plat, but it didn't have much food on it. It wasn't value-for-money even with a 50% discount.

The aromatic sauce was great, but a couple of the chunks of lamb hadn't had the fat trimmed properly and were gristly. To me, unrendered lamb fat is gamy and inedible. On the whole, it was a mediocre dish, despite the sauce. The menu price doesn't include VAT and service, so the real cost was 205 baht. The cheapest bottle of mineral water was 80 baht, bringing the total cost of the meal to 299 baht. To be fair, Eatigo makes clear the menu prices are ++.

The interior of the Garden Cafe is very nice, but I was the only person eating there.

There's also an extensive outdoor eating area and its own herb garden. I saw one of the cooks snipping fresh herbs. Service was friendly and attentive.

Bottom line: You have the potential for an excellent dining experience at the Garden Cafe, but the Lamb Rogan Josh was only mediocre. I expected better at the Garden Cafe.

Evil

[Evil Penevil 7,628]

I had the American Breakfast at Retox Game On at the beginning of the week. The normal price was 179 baht, but I got it on the Eatigo 50% discount for 90 baht at 7.30 a.m. Sadly, it wasn't a very cheerful start to the day.

Things turned negative as soon as I showed the waitress my cell phone screen with the Eatigo confirmation code. She claimed it wasn't valid because it didn't include the date. I tried to explain that the confirmation code indicated "Today," as it always does when you make a reservation the same day you eat. She insisted the Eatigo confirmation message had to show the date in numerical form.

I kept my voice calm and my tone polite, yet nothing I said had any effect on her. I showed her the app and how it worked, even offered to make a new reservation in front of her eyes, but she just shook her head "no." I was about to ask for the manager when she grabbed my phone and scurried off with it. I was NOT pleased she'd done that, but I figured she was taking it to show someone for a final decision. She came back in a few minutes, returned my phone and asked what I wanted to eat like nothing had happened. Weird and unprofessional behavior, but I let it ride. It's one more example of failure to communicate and nothing to harp on with her after the fact, although I did have a few frustrating minutes.

Retox' American breakfast consisted of two fried eggs; two small pancakes; two slices of streaky bacon; a mystery meat sausage; and what the menu called maple syrup and hash browns. It also came with two slices of toast; two pats of butter; a small glass of orange drink; and a choice of coffee or tea.

The pancakes and streaky bacon were the two best items on the plate. The bacon had a strong smoky and salty flavor that's typical for the U.S., while the pancakes were light and fluffy if a bit thick. The coffee was good, too.

On the other hand, the eggs were overcooked for my taste and the formed-meat sausage and fried potatoes were inedible. The sausage had a horrid hot-dog-like smooth texture and the potatoes were greasy and mushy. The pancake syrup was about as far from the sap of the sugar maple tree as the forests of Vermont are from the cane fields of Chonburi province.

Bottom line: It was a mediocre breakfast and that's being generous considering the hassle with the waitress. It reminded me why I seldom bother with a Western breakfast in Pattaya. I'm not expecting heaven on a plate for 90 baht, but I do expect better than I got.

One point for which I give Retox kudos is that the menu prices are not ++. Service and VAT were included the 179-baht price and the Eatigo discount reflected this.

Evil

[Saddic 31]

 

I had the American Breakfast at Retox Game On at the beginning of the week. The normal price was 179 baht, but I got it on the Eatigo 50% discount for 90 baht at 7.30 a.m. Sadly, it wasn't a very cheerful start to the day.

Things turned negative as soon as I showed the waitress my cell phone screen with the Eatigo confirmation code. She claimed it wasn't valid because it didn't include the date. I tried to explain that the confirmation code indicated "Today," as it always does when you make a reservation the same day you eat. She insisted the Eatigo confirmation message had to show the date in numerical form.

I kept my voice calm and my tone polite, yet nothing I said had any effect on her. I showed her the app and how it worked, even offered to make a new reservation in front of her eyes, but she just shook her head "no." I was about to ask for the manager when she grabbed my phone and scurried off with it. I was NOT pleased she'd done that, but I figured she was taking it to show someone for a final decision. She came back in a few minutes, returned my phone and asked what I wanted to eat like nothing had happened. Weird and unprofessional behavior, but I let it ride. It's one more example of failure to communicate and nothing to harp on with her after the fact, although I did have a few frustrating minutes.

Retox' American breakfast consisted of two fried eggs; two small pancakes; two slices of streaky bacon; a mystery meat sausage; and what the menu called maple syrup and hash browns. It also came with two slices of toast; two pats of butter; a small glass of orange drink; and a choice of coffee or tea.

The pancakes and streaky bacon were the two best items on the plate. The bacon had a strong smoky and salty flavor that's typical for the U.S., while the pancakes were light and fluffy if a bit thick. The coffee was good, too.

On the other hand, the eggs were overcooked for my taste and the formed-meat sausage and fried potatoes were inedible. The sausage had a horrid hot-dog-like smooth texture and the potatoes were greasy and mushy. The pancake syrup was about as far from the sap of the sugar maple tree as the forests of Vermont are from the cane fields of Chonburi province.

Bottom line: It was a mediocre breakfast and that's being generous considering the hassle with the waitress. It reminded me why I seldom bother with a Western breakfast in Pattaya. I'm not expecting heaven on a plate for 90 baht, but I do expect better than I got.

One point for which I give Retox kudos is that the menu prices are not ++. Service and VAT were included the 179-baht price and the Eatigo discount reflected this.

Evil

 

This is why I go to iRovers for their 119b American Bkfast... no hassle... and the sausages are better than Retox's... no potatoes though...

 

.. oops, I guess this belongs in the other thread... 555

Edited September 30, 2018 by Saddic

[Evil Penevil 7,628]

I wish I could have included the Chunky Monkey's 99-baht spaghetti bolognese special of the day in the "Under 300 Baht ... And Good!" thread, but it just didn't make the grade.

What I got was tasteless sauteed ground beef dumped on top of a plate of spaghetti. There was no real sauce and no seasoning at all, Italian or otherwise.

Some pieces of onion and garlic and maybe a spoonful of tomato puree had been added to the beef, but in such a small quantity and cooked for such a short time they didn't add any flavor. The watery liquid wasn't a sauce. Even the little dish of grated Parmesan cheese from a package was flavorless.

If there were an Olympics of Blandness for restaurant food, this would be a gold medal winner. But as standard restaurant fare, it ranks no higher than mediocre. For 99 baht, I'm not expecting the best spaghetti in town, but it should at least have a proper sauce with an Italian flavor.

The Chunky Monkey (on Soi Buakhao across from Tree Town) ...

has been open about three weeks and has already established itself as one of the more popular eateries in the area. I certainly wish it well, but I hope the spaghetti bolognese will improve. I've only eaten there twice and so far the Chunky Monkey is batting 50-50 with me: one good meal, one mediocre. You can read about the good meal here (post #259).

Bottom line: The mediocre spaghetti special won't deter me from returning to the Chunky Monkey.

Evil

[capdagde 1,954]

It wasn't value-for-money even with a 50% discount.

The aromatic sauce was great, but a couple of the chunks of lamb hadn't had the fat trimmed properly and were gristly. To me, unrendered lamb fat is gamy and inedible. On the whole, it was a mediocre dish, despite the sauce. The menu price doesn't include VAT and service, so the real cost was 205 baht. The cheapest bottle of mineral water was 80 baht, bringing the total cost of the meal to 299 baht.

 

 

At least the pesticides were free....!

Edited November 7, 2018 by capdagde

[Saddic 31]

 

I wish I could have included the Chunky Monkey's 99-baht spaghetti bolognese special of the day in the "Under 300 Baht ... And Good!" thread, but it just didn't make the grade.

What I got was tasteless sauteed ground beef dumped on top of a plate of spaghetti. There was no real sauce and no seasoning at all, Italian or otherwise.

IMG_0094.jpg

Some pieces of onion and garlic and maybe a spoonful of tomato puree had been added to the beef, but in such a small quantity and cooked for such a short time they didn't add any flavor. The watery liquid wasn't a sauce. Even the little dish of grated Parmesan cheese from a package was flavorless.

IMG_0099.jpg

If there were an Olympics of Blandness for restaurant food, this would be a gold medal winner. But as standard restaurant fare, it ranks no higher than mediocre. For 99 baht, I'm not expecting the best spaghetti in town, but it should at least have a proper sauce with an Italian flavor.

IMG_0098.jpg

The Chunky Monkey (on Soi Buakhao across from Tree Town) ...

IMG_00693.jpg

has been open about three weeks and has already established itself as one of the more popular eateries in the area. I certainly wish it well, but I hope the spaghetti bolognese will improve. I've only eaten there twice and so far the Chunky Monkey is batting 50-50 with me: one good meal, one mediocre. You can read about the good meal here (post #259).

Bottom line: The mediocre spaghetti special won't deter me from returning to the Chunky Monkey.

Evil

 

I had the full priced spaghetti and it wasn't to my taste either... back to the Soi Diana spaghetti cart...

[Evil Penevil 7,628]

I haven't had much luck at the Chunky Monkey. I tried the 99-baht daily special yesterday- chicken rissoles with onion gravy and mashed potatoes- and it was as bland as, well, unseasoned chicken.

 The only flavor came from the thick, glutenous package gravy to which a few bits of onion had been added. The chicken patty itself was totally lacking in any sort of seasoning and consequently, no taste either.

 

On the plus side, the mash was good and the patty had been cooked properly. It wasn't dry inside, but it had an extremely smooth texture, though, which gave it a weird mouth feel. The rissoles would have been much helped by the addition of diced onion, garlic, carrot, green pepper, whatever, but most of all it needed herbs or spices.

 

There are dozens of variations to Australian-style rissoles. There's no one right recipe, but there is a wrong way. I scraped off the icky gravy and gave the rissoles a few splashes of HP Sauce from the condiment basket. That improved them, but it didn't make them good.

 

Bottom line: The Chunky Monkey now has two strikes against it in my book. In the near future, I'll try either the Sunday roast or the meatloaf dinner. A third strike will put it out for me as a dining option for quite awhile.

That's unfortunate, as it has a convenient location and an enclosed air-conditioned dining area. It's well-lit, clean and spacious, with the background music played at a blessedly low volume and friendly service. Not many budget restaurants in Pattaya tick all those boxes.

The prices for bottled beer are very low (55 baht for Leo and Chang, 65 baht for SML) and big bottles cost 79 baht. Perhaps that will be enough to attract customers who aren't concerned about bland food. However, the cocktail van across the street could give it a run for the money.

 

 

 

[izzyg 37]

The Chunky Monkey spaghetti bolognese looks exactly like what I used to eat at least three times a week when at university.

[Evil Penevil 7,628]

I went to Steak 9 Rai on Third Road last night at about 9.30 p.m. to have a steak. Unfortunately, the beef steak for 139 baht and the T-bone steak (300 g) for 229 baht were both finished. Considering the restaurant is open between 4 p.m. and 1.00 a.m., it seemed a bit early to run out of beef, but maybe they were busy earlier in the evening. There were six other diners when I arrived.

Anyway, the waitress recommended I take the chicken steak for 85 baht.

I wasn't thrilled but I went ahead with the chicken. This is what I got: a good-sized piece of chicken breast fillet; a handful of industrial crinkle-cut fries; a mound of salad, mostly lettuce; and a tiny bowl of stone-cold generic gravy from a packet.

The fries were hard, dry and room temperature. They had obviously been sitting for awhile. The gravy was straight from the refrigerator. The salad was fresh, but had been covered with bottled Thousand Island dressing, much I dislike.

The chicken was tender, but overcooked and totally lacked any sort of seasoning. even salt or pepper. The liquid on the plate in the photo below is from the Maggi sauce bottle in the condiment basket. I had doused the fillet to give it some taste.

A bland grilled chicken fillet is good as a low-calorie source of lean protein, but not much of an eating experience. I finished the fillet and left the fries and most of the salad.

The worst part of the meal was crossing Third Road. Even at that hour it was busy and I had to wait a long time for a break in the traffic both coming and going to Steak 9 Rai. Crossing Second Road is bad enough, but Third Road is a nightmare due to cars, motorcycles, trucks and buses zooming along at a higher rate of speed.

Bottom line: Steak 9 Rai is regarded fondly by resident ex-pats for its inexpensive but good quality beef. I've also had good pork chops and fish fillets there and have written positive reviews of them. That said, last night's chicken steak was a disappointment.

Once I summon sufficient courage to attempt to cross Third Road again, I will go back to Steak 9 Rai for the beef. But it's a bit of a Catch-22 situation for me. The best chance of getting a steak is between 4 p.m. and 6 p.m., but that's also when Third Road is busiest.

Evil

Trivia: In one of those unintentionally humorous transcription errors, Steak 9 Rai has become Steak 9 Rat in the blurb for free WiFi on the cover of the menu.

And in case anyone is unfamiliar with the location, here's a map:

 

Edited November 27, 2018 by Evil Penevil

[jacko 8,814]

Perhaps the Cairo solution is required, use a taxi to get across the road!

Thanks for the report.

[chippendalesam 37]

Comical and very enjoyable read Evil. It was such a great read that I felt bad for you emphatically.