It dawned on me just this week that for all the blogs and vlogs I have put together over the years that I never shared the places I love to go and eat in Pattaya. This kind of local expat insight is actually invaluable to those new to an area.

Sure you have sites like Trip Advisor as reference but too many business are fudging the system these days to improve their rankings.

I will certainly miss other good venues from my list and I apologise for that and I am also aware of what’s great for me may not be for others. But given my dozen or so years of living in Pattaya it’s a good starter for ten for most.

I hate it when I go to a new area and dine in a lousy restaurant – and would love to know from a local expat their favourite locations.

Jomtien

I am loving this area more and more, to me this is a great retiree location as, to quote a fellow expat I heard recently, “It is away from the hullabaloo!”.

My favourite every day type venues are Frasers Sports Bar and Hemingways Pub. Good decent pub grub, nicely priced, clean venues with a good atmosphere and, of course, a great selection of draft beer.

image above: Friendly atmosphere at Frasers

If you want quick and easy Thai food then Rompho night market offers a good selection of food stalls and a very pleasant atmosphere.

A surprise hit for me is The Cove pub, it has been recently refurbished and has an awesome selection of draft beer from around the world starting at 150 baht per pint. I was very impressed!

Da Nicola pizzeria located along the main road has a lovely beer garden out back and I was very impressed by the quality of the pizza here. Previously on the same location it was Pizza Art and that, for me, was my favourite pizza in all of town. Da Nicola is a worthy replacement to this.

Pratamanak

If I want to treat the wife there can be only one location, Cafe Des Amis and I recommend the Beef Wellington! This place is magical and, for me, a top 3 restaurant in town.

image above: Cafe des Amis is a world beater

O’Garas Irish Pub at Tara Court has a good menu, authentic Irish bar feel and selection of draft beers.

Doms Pizza on Pratamanak Soi 5 looks like it lends itself to tourists but expats love it too for good quality pizza and terrific prices.

Pattaya

In Pattaya you are spoiled for choice. Whatever you want to eat, you will find it here.

Palace Restaurant serves very tasty Lebanese food and I highly recommend this place. You will find it in Central Festival Shopping centre where there must be another 50 restaurants you can choose from.

The Sportsman pub and restaurant is for those wanting a proper pub experience – and you must check out their Sunday carvery.

I have my favourite places and right up there is Trattoria Toscana along Beach Road, the venue even has its own farm in East Pattaya to ensure the highest quality of meat. Its just an amazing restaurant.

image above: Trattoria Toscana will not disappoint

Hops Restaurant, also on Beach road, brews its own lager and white beer. This is a diner of the highest quality. If you love pizza and German food then you just must visit this place.

Naklua

Located beach front is the superb Surf and Turf (seen in main image above). Specialising in Thai cuisine for me the draw of this place is in its location.

For value and amazing views, the Siam@Siam daily evening seafood buffet is certainly worth checking out. You can get all you can eat and drink (choice of wine or beer) for not much more than 1,000 baht (please do check before you go!).

Dusit Thani do a decent seafood buffet every Saturday, it is priced around 1,500 ++. Great views of Pattaya bay!

…My favourite Restaurant?

I am not going to try and split the two as I like both so much. It has to be, for me, Cafe des Amis or Trattoria Toscana. I would have to class both as fine dining, although Trattoria Toscana has a much more laid back feel and choice of dining areas. If you love Italian food then Trattoria Toscana is an absolute must to try whilst in Pattaya and if you want to treat a loved one then the more romantic Cafe des Amis would get my nod.

By the way, if you are planning a trip to Hua Hin here are my favourite places to eat in Hua Hin!