Best Italian Restaurant In Pattaya?

[Guest Astrrro]

A friend was asking what's the best Italian restauarnt in Pattaya.

 

Since I'm not a high end diner I figured I'd poll the audience.

 

I see Bruno's has plenty of pasta dishes but it does not seem to be a pure Italian restaurant.

 

I'm happy with the 99 baht all u can eat pasta at LK Ren, but my friend wants something better.

[Guest OfficeMax]

For <consistently> good food I like Little Italy (across street from Royal Garden). This was the site of the old Little Italy, but now under new management and new staff.

It is not posh but clean and decent price.

[Guest Hedda]

I don't think any place in Pattaya can compare to Pan Pan on Thapraya Road near Theprassit for consistently good Italian cuisine. It's stood the test of time for well over 15 years now.

 

A table by the pool at La Luna on Third Road near Pattaya Nua can also make for a great Italian meal, but with a more limited menu and higher prices.

 

Needless to say, a meal at both restaurants is going to cost you a lot more than a plate of 99 Baht pasta, but my guess is that a can of Chef Boyaredee ravioli probably costs more than that at Villa market these days.

[Guest lvdkeyes]

I have eaten at Pan Pan, Valentino's, Volterra, Gino's, among others, but for my money, I have to agree that Little Italy is the best for consistently good at moderate prices. It is small and cozy with friendly, efficient staff. It is conveniently located for baht bus users and if you can't find a place to park on the street Royal Garden Plaza's parking garage is right across the street.

[Gaybutton]

Another Italian restaurant that I like is on a very narrow soi on Jomtien Beach Road. If you're coming down Thappraya, as soon as you make that left turn onto Jomtien Beach Road, the restaurant (I can't think of the name) is on the first soi you come to. The owner is Italian and he will also make off-menu items upon request.

 

In Bangkok I haven't tried many Italian restaurants, but I do like the Lido restaurant very much. That restaurant is on the soi in front of the Malaysia Hotel, the soi the starts at the 7-Eleven on the corner and goes up past the Oh Ho restaurant. That restaurant has a web site at http://www.lidobangkok.com , but oddly enough they don't include their menu on the site.

[Guest Astrrro]

Pan Pan on Thapraya Road near Theprassit

 

Has anyone eaten at one of the Pan Pan's in Pattaya? Is the ambiance the same as in Jomtien or is a tourist nightmare?

[Guest fountainhall]

I do like the Lido restaurant very much. That restaurant is on the soi in front of the Malaysia Hotel, the soi the starts at the 7-Eleven on the corner and goes up past the Oh Ho restaurant

 

This is Soi Sribumphen

[Guest taylorsquare]

Well.I use to like that italian cafe joint on the baht bus way to Jomtiem on the corner.

 

i think at one stage pasta was 99baht but its now 129baht.

 

i went there last month with american bob from jomtiem and to tell you the truth the service sucked.

[Guest lvdkeyes]

Taylor, are you talking about Buondi da Noong, the open air place? If so, I agree with you about the service. The waitresses are very apathetic, sitting around rather than walking around to see if customers need anything. The food is good with decent portion for a reasonable price though.

[Gaybutton]

Has anyone eaten at one of the Pan Pan's in Pattaya?

The only two Pan Pans I know about are the one in Jomtien and the one in the new Central shopping plaza. I haven't eaten there, but I've passed by the one in Central several times. I don't see any problems with it. It's smaller than the one in Jomtien, but I did notice they have a brick pizza oven, just as they do in Jomtien. They also have a dessert bar, but it's outside the restaurant in the main hallway. It doesn't have much of a selection and doesn't compare well at all with the one in Jomtien.

[Gaybutton]

Taylor, are you talking about Buondi da Noong, the open air place?

That sounds like the same one to me. I agree with you. The service isn't anything to get excited about. It never was. But the food is very good and the portions are large enough that you have to be very hungry to finish it all.

[Guest lvdkeyes]

There are 3 Pan Pan's in Pattaya, the one in Jomtien, the newest on in Central Festival and one on Beach Road. I think it is just south of Royal Garden. (Toward Jomtien)

[Guest Astrrro]

Went to Pan Pan in Jomtien last night. The food, wine, and atmosphere was excellent.

If your budget permits, I reccomend it.

 

A friend was treating who wanted a big night out so it was quite a feast.

 

For me, even the 99 baht pasta night with a mandatory drink at the LK is a minor splurge, so it was a real pleasure to have a rare New York type dining experience.

[Guest]

Volterra was very poor on a recent visit. The service was very grumpy and unprofessional. A colleague received a ham pizza which consisted of big strips of virtually raw bacon hiding some pale cheese. He tried one mouthful.

The pasta was a better effort, but could have benefited from more cooking. We left with one uneaten meal and 3 partially eaten ones.

 

About a week earlier, we had vastly superior food at the second Italian up second road from Boyztown.

[Guest timmberty]

there is a small italian place between pattaya and jomtien .. it is on a corner and sort of down below the main road .. its a couple of roads before the turning for sansuk sauna heading out of pattaya.. ive no idea what its called but ive eaten in there a couple of times and it was marvellous ... as i say ive no idea of the name of it ... but its well worth a try.

[kokopelli]

Have eaten there also and is was good; and decent wine at a decent price. Can't recall the name.

[kokopelli]

Have eaten there also and is was good; and decent wine at a decent price. Can't recall the name.

[kokopelli]

Have eaten there also and is was good; and decent wine at a decent price. Can't recall the name.

[kokopelli]

The multiple replies are because there is something amiss with this forum.

[kokopelli]

I noticed an earlier response a couple of years ago that praised Pan Pan. I have heard similar praise on other forums. My recent experience there was quite the opposite. It got a 0 rating in all categories based on my experience.

[Rogie]

. . . ive no idea of the name of it ... but its well worth a try.

 

Have eaten there also and is was good; and decent wine at a decent price. Can't recall the name.

 

Me too. Memory fails me. Not sure if they do pizzas, never had one there. The pasta is good and so are the salads. I often see Med-types in there and assume they are Italian. It's a popular place. The waitresses are very efficient. If you are a smoker there are 3 or 4 small tables just outside perfect for you, but that does mean that if you are seated just the other side you may have second-hand smoke as an hors d'oeuvres.

 

I doubt very much whether it's the 'best' in Pattaya, but cheap and cheerful would describe it well I think.

[firecat69]

I noticed an earlier response a couple of years ago that praised Pan Pan. I have heard similar praise on other forums. My recent experience there was quite the opposite. It got a 0 rating in all categories based on my experience.

I am in total agreement for the 2 in South Pattaya. It has been awhile since I ate at the one in Jomtien.

 

Best Italian restaurant I have found in Pattaya is Don Joe Ristorante on Walking street. On bay side of the street about 1/2 way down. 

 

Truly excellent food and service at moderate and fair prices. Chef owned and managed every night

[Gaybutton]

I haven't tried Don Joe yet, but most people I know who have been there gave it excellent reviews.

 

One Italian restaurant that the local media has given rave reviews is Pasta Pasta at the Ambassador Hotel.  Several of us tried it.  We won't be back.  We all agreed that while the restaurant has nice atmosphere and very good service, the food was not good at all and very overpriced.

 

I can't think of the name of it, but one we do like is the Italian restaurant across from Pan Pan in the little shopping center where Food Mart and the buses to Suvarnabhumi Airport are located.  The owner is Italian and we like the food there and the prices are inexpensive.  I would not say it's the best in Pattaya at all, but it's the best we've so far found in the Jomtien area.

[Guest timmberty]

[quote name="Rogie" post="62713" timestamp="1357086023"

 

I doubt very much whether it's the 'best' in Pattaya, but cheap and cheerful would describe it well I think.

does this then move us onto the next question ? what makes a great resturant ...

is it the building, the staff, or the food ? does eating in a grand building make the food taste better than if you ate it somewhere less fancy .. would the food be better in a less fancy place if served by pleasant waiters, rather than in a posh place where you have to wait for ages then have the food served with a snarl ...

bad food in a posh place .. does it taste better than nice food in a not so posh place ??

im sure you can have posh nice food and good staff all in one place .. but do you then lose the family atmosphere ... its all a matter of taste in more ways than one.

[Rogie]

My word, enough questions to last a lifetime!

 

I rarely visit top-end restaurants - the sort where the waiter brings your food to the table on a silverplatter with a huge dome on top, then hey presto, whips it off to expose the naked quivering wreck of a goose, or duck or souffle - enjoy!

 

On the subject of service, more particularly pleasantness versus snarl, the cult of the 'rude waiter' is fascinating I think. Here is an interesting comment (see link below for the Guardian article):

 

. . . it's true that the French are capable of a kind of deliberate, in-your-face rudeness that would be shocking in any language. That's because they think it's fun

 

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/mar/23/debunking-stereotypes-french-impossibly-rude