Dining at Terminal21

[Evil Penevil 7,628]

Love it or hate it, Terminal21 has bolstered the Pattaya food scene with new dining options, some which didn't exist before or had been difficult to find.

The brand-spanking new mall boasts an impressive 95 food and beverage outlets spread across five of its six

levels. About two-thirds of them offer Asian food (Thai, Chinese, Japanese and Korean), while one-third are farang-oriented.

Nearly all the food outlets, Western and Asian, are branches of international chains.

However, the farang places are mostly fast food, pizza, coffee or dessert outlets, with only a handful of full-menu Western restaurants.

Terminal21 also has a food court on the San Francisco level.

It's truly Asian, with displays of plastic food.

I haven't tried the food court yet because other food outlets tempted me more.

I was happy to see Marugame Seimen Udon & Tempura had a branch in Terminal21.

It's a big Japanese chain with 1,100 branches worldwide.

I had a big bowl the niku udon pork for 139 baht, which included three fried gyoza as a special offer. I also took a piece of prawn tempura and a tempura corn fritter, 39 baht each.

The entire meal, with a bottle of water, cost 236 baht.

The udon soup was tasty and filling, with a lot of pork. I'll definitely be back to try more of Marugame Seimen's menu.

I have also eaten at Jiao Zi Guan, a 20-seat restaurant centered on Chinese-style dumplings. The name Jiao Zi Guan means "dumpling place" in Chinese. Jiaozi have long been a personal favorite of mine, but they have been difficult to find in Pattaya other than frozen. There's no lack of gyoza, the Japanese equivalent, but they are not the same thing.

I had the Shanghai beef noodle soup for 89 baht and ...

pork and leek dumplings for 109 baht. The meal, with a bottle of water, cost 218 baht.

The beef noodles had a real Chinese taste, which is a rarity in Pattaya. Most of what is called Chinese food on menus is actually Thai-style Chinese. That's not a bad thing and I eat a lot of it, but there are differences in flavor compared to traditional Chinese cuisine.

The dumplings were freshly steamed and had the proper taste and texture, again hard to find in Pattaya.

Jiao Zi Guan also offers xiaolongbao, another specialty from the Shanghai region. They are small, pinched buns that have been filled with meat aspic that melts into soup during the steaming process. That will be my next meal at Jiao Zi Guan.

On my third outing to Terminal21 I tried the pig's trotter noodles (99 baht) at Hong Kong Noodle,

which has a number of noodle dishes and dim sum on its menu. I also had a Golden Bun (45 baht), which I hadn't eaten in 20 years.

The noodles had a generous amount of braised meat with vegetables in a great broth. I had a glass of roselle drink for 19 baht.

The Golden Bun was filled with a rich and thick duck-egg custard, but was too sweet for my taste.

The restaurant is well-lit and decorated in bright colors, especially red which symbolizes good fortune, success and happiness in Chinese culture.

I'm impressed so far by the meals I've had at Terminal21 and will be back again and again to try more. Whether you want a hamburger, pizza, a cup of coffee or Tai, Chinese and Japanese specialties, you'll find what you want on one of the floors at Terminal21. Durian pizza, anyone?

Now that's what I call fusion! And there are also reminders of how you might end up if you indulge too heavily in culinary delights, particularly the sweet stuff that abounds at Terminal21.

And this is what happens when you try to take photos while a lot of people are in motion.

Still more food reviews and comments to come. I have barely scratched the surface of dining at Terminal21.

Evil

 

[Evil Penevil 7,628]

Before I continue with the reviews, here's a note of explanation on the set-up at Terminal21.

It has six levels, five named after cities (Paris, London, Tokyo, San Francisco and Hollywood) and one named Italy.

All but Hollywood (the cinema level) have food or beverage outlets.

The Pier21 Food Court and many restaurants are concentrated on the 3rd Floor San Franciso level.

There is also a "food hall" on the M(ezzanie) London level, which includes the 24-hour Foodland supermarket.

It's ironic, but I don't think you'll find fish and chips on the menu of any outlet on the London level, except maybe Foodland's Took Lae Dee.

I wonder if Hawker Chan will succeed in attracting more customers than it did on Beach Road? The Hawker Chan branch at Terminal21 is said to be very popular, even crowded at times.

More reminders of London:

The restaurants aren't always tied to the level's national cuisine, but are spread hodge-podge throughout Terminal21.

The girl below asked me to take her photo and therein lies the start of a story, but not one for a food thread on this level. This is Pattaya and anything can happen any time, anywhere.

I do think, though, that a lot of women in Pattaya are burdened with excess baggage.

The reviews and comments will continue.

Evil

[BigusDicus 9,881]

Nice report EP. Interesting mall, international themes.

[Butch 3,456]

Epic post EP, great pics and thanks for sharing.

[yorta2 694]

Wow! Great report and great photos, Evil. Can't wait to have a real look.

[KOJO 96]

I'll bet you are like a kid in a candy store, with ALL the new eateries to try and give us the review's, I look forward to them, ALTHOUGH, if you eat at everyone, you'll gain so much weight, you'll need help gettin your pant's on ! HA! HA! HA!

I have gone to dozen's of the restaurant's you have reviewed over the years, and find your pallet to be quite accurate, I will continue to follow your tastebud's !

[texasfarang 202]

Nice pics thanks for the post.

 

Similar almost identical to the one in BKK along with the service charge i'm sure.

[chippendalesam 37]

Evil thanks for that SUPER post. All three of the rest. that you ate at looked great and the prices and presentation were extremely attractive. Oh yeah, the girl you took a pic of and for was attractive. Was she desert???

[capdagde 1,954]

Hopefully wetter than the desert - what happens in Vegas Pattaya...... (etc.)

 

Great review and photos EP ! Looking forward to a food adventure there with your expert guidance of Chinese regional culinary differences.

Edited November 18, 2018 by capdagde

[atlas2 4,329]

It seems like a large proportion of the square meterage is devoted to food.

 

Should be re-named, '21 Stop Eatery...........'

 

A friend's friend stayed at the hotel......Reports it being full of Chinese guests. North Pattaya in general seems to be a Chinese hub. Even, it's whispered...(and it's not Chinese whispers), Chinese only sex shows.

 

I'm planning to pop along today after the gym for a late breakfast and mooch around. See it albeit belatedly for myself.

[chippendalesam 37]

Atlas, you have a way with words. I enjoy you writings. Thanks for the entertaining read. And Cappy let me know if you find out anything about the chinese sex shows.

[capdagde 1,954]

To be honest Chip, I'm not a great seeker-out of the extraordinary in Pattaya - the ordinary is already extraordinary!

 

Flo and I will definitely have a mooch-aboot but only in August

 

Waiting for atlas2's (aka Lord Whore Whore of Chonburi) deliberations (and other in-situ BMs').

 

Slowly emptying the freezer at home - wish we wuz there.

 

Andy Cap

(aka The Europhile Grammarnazi)

[fufu308 0]

thanks for the pictures and information, I was gutted on my last trip as I missed the opening of this new mall by a week due to my schedule.  So its definately somewhere i'd like to visit on my next trip ?

[frostfire 1,279]

32 minutes ago, fufu308 said:

thanks for the pictures and information, I was gutted on my last trip as I missed the opening of this new mall by a week due to my schedule.  So its definately somewhere i'd like to visit on my next trip ?

Read here: 

 

[short 215]

I found grapes imported from the US for sale in Terminal 21 at a price of about $5/lb.

[4wheels 119]

I wish the pics from the original post were still available. I'm spoiled by your meal pics.

[RhinoTusk 4,901]

Crab and Chanthaburi noodles at Savoey Seafood