Dinner Buffet at the Centara Azure on Soi 15

[Evil Penevil]

In a word, it was disappointing, even at 299 baht.  There  was nothing wrong with the food except the lack of variety.  Only three "main courses" were offered: roast pork; roast chicken; and chicken with cashew nuts. The other four warm dishes in the chafing platters were all sides:  fried rice; steamed rice; sauteed potatoes; and mixed vegetables.

 

 

 

The salad table was measly ...

 

 

and the small dishes and starters were almost non-existence: mini spring rolls, deep fished fish and a couple of other bits and bobs.  

 

 

There was one type of soup (minced pork with tofu) and dessert was sliced watermelon and papaya.

 

 

That's it.  No cheese, bread or cold cuts.  It's not the type of buffet you usually see in the restaurants of big hotels, but then again, they cost more than 299 baht.  My SML was 120 baht. No doubt you can eat yourself full, but one of the pleasures of a buffet is having a lot of choice, particularly when it comes to the starters. The dinner buffet at the Atlantis Restaurant in the Centara Azure fell well short in that respect.

 

Here's what I had:

 

 

 

The roast pork and chicken were both good, tender and juicy.  The pork was especially flavorful through the addition of a green peppercorn sauce, but it's not a meal I'd go out of my way to have again.  I got there at 7.15 p.m. and the dishes of pork and chicken were already pretty empty, but the staff seemed to partially re-fill them after diners helped themselves. It may have to do with keeping the food fresh, but perhaps also a psychological ploy to prevent diners from taking too much.

 

The ad for the buffet was hype, albeit a mild form.  The pictures in no way correspond to the food that is actually offered on the buffet tables.

 

 

However, the Atlantis is a visually impressive restaurant, inside and out.

 

 

 

 

The  eye-catching floor-to-ceiling aquarium is the main feature.

 

 

 

 The chairs are very comfortable, which would make it easy to sit for hours in the Atlantis. The restaurant has a capacity of about 100 diners, but I didn't see more than 10.

 

 

 

 

Even the ceiling is quite striking.

 

 

 

It's a sad comment, though, when watching fish, rather than eating them, is the high point of the meal.

 

 

 

I watched the stingray swim round and round in an endless circle.  

 

 

It reminded me of some posters on the punter boards, although the stingray did change course occasionally.  

 

 

And just like a few of the most combative posters, it was a true bottom feeder.

 

 

I'll go back to the Atlantis to try the a la carte menu.  It's a very attractive place in which to have  meal, just not the buffet.

 

The Centara Azure has only been open a couple of weeks.  It is located about halfway down the stretch of Soi 15 that runs between Soi Bukhao and The Avenue.  While the hotel really stands outs, its surroundings are bleak: construction on one side and an empty lot directly across.

 

 

Evil

 

[KittenKong]

One day in the week (Wednesday?) the buffet costs 100B more and is a little better. Soft drinks are included in the price (or were). I looked at it that evening but wasnt tempted to sit down and eat it. Looking at the food is often enough, I find.

 

They also do breakfast for 199B but it stops at 10.30 and I've not yet managed to get there in time to see it.

[iron]

anybody try the breakfast yet?good value for 199thb

[Evil Penevil]

anybody try the breakfast yet?good value for 199thb

 

I will try it in a couple of hours.  But it's only good value if the food is good.

 

Evil

[Evil Penevil]

I had breakfast there this morning.  Review and pics coming up, but short version is, "Don't bother, much better elsewhere."

 

 

Late for this week, but Centara Azure has a Saturday Grill Buffet (399 baht), also a lunch buffet Saturday-Sunday for 299 baht.

 

Fror what I've seen and tasted so far, I wouldn't be too optimistic about The Grill or lunch buffets.

 

Evil

[Evil Penevil]

 

Saturday morning, I had the breakfast buffet at the Atlantis in the Centara Azure.  Bottom line: You can have as much mediocre-to-poor food as you want for 199 baht.  But the surroundings are striking and comfortable.  There's better available nearby at a comparable price, namely the buffet at Casa Pascal, and numerous restaurants that offer breakfast specials at 100 to 200 baht.

 

 

I got there at 9.00 a.m. (the buffet runs from 6.30 a.m. to 10.30 a.m.) and there were about 20 customers, or roughly 20% full.  Most of the other customers seemed to be Russian families and Asian tourists.

 

 

The set-up was similar to the dinner buffet:  seven chafing platters for warm dishes and a separate table for fruit, cold cuts and salad.

 

 

 In addition, there were "stations" for eggs and Asian soup.  The eggs were cooked to order and ingredients were added to the soup at the customer's request.

 

 

Breakfast juices/beverages were also on offer, as were cold cereals, yogurt, bread and pastries.

 

 

 

Of the seven warm dishes,  four related to Western breakfast:  streaky bacon, ham, sauteed potatoes and those horrible little cocktail sausages.  But some people like them  I saw a Russian teenager load a dozen (yes, I counted them) onto his plate, along with three fried eggs, an omelet and a heaping pile of potatoes.  The other warm dishes were rice and Asian cooked vegetables.

 

Small, silver-dollar pancakes were also on offer.  I tried one; it was thick, heavy and not cooked all the way through.  Yuck!  But at least maple syrup was available.  That's not offer the case.

 

Anyway, this is the plate of food I got:

 

 

As said, better breakfast plates can be had for 100 baht.  Thing is, I don't want baked beans, stewed tomatoes or black pudding for breakfast, so my options are limited.  That's the big advantage of a buffet- you can fill up on the things you like and skip the ones you don't.  The streaky bacon was low quality- not much flavor other than salt- and not crispy at all.  It seemed to have been fried in a clump rather than in individual strips.   I didn't try the ham; it was of the processed kind and in slices so thin they looked micro-planed. Again, yuck!  But the bread was very fresh and tasty.

 

Also note:  there was no cheese of any sort and no beans, black pudding, mushrooms or stewed tomatoes.

 

I guess I got value-for-money by having a couple of salami sandwiches and a plate of fresh fruit, but overall, the buffet at Atlantis is eminently skippable.  Not good, not too bad (although some low points, the bacon, ham and pancakes),  mediocre in sum total.

 

The sting ray in the aquarium tank fascinates me.  It was swimming much closer to the surface than it had been the night I had the dinner buffet.

 

Evil

 

 

 

 

 

[Ohyesuare]

That bacon looks awful. Thanks for the review, place to avoid seems like.

[Evil Penevil]

That bacon looks awful. Thanks for the review, place to avoid seems like.

 

There are much better options available, especially for the fans of English breakfast.

 

Evil

[akamai4u2]

it's less than US$9. what do you expect? it's not like you're in Las Vegas and paying $50.

[just hanging]

Evil, you need to do a review of the 300 baht breakfast buffet at Rabbit resort.  nice buffet, big selection and all the coffee you want.  The cleanest beach in Pattaya right out front, he cleans it daily

[striderman]

[KittenKong]

it's less than US$9. what do you expect? it's not like you're in Las Vegas and paying $50.

 

Go to hotel Denmark in Jomtien and see what you can get for 190B. Or the Casa Pascal for just over 200B, as mentioned. Thankfully we're not in Vegas here.

[davidge]

it's less than US$9. what do you expect? it's not like you're in Las Vegas and paying $50.

Entirely vacuous comment.

[ChiFlyer]

Evil, you need to do a review of the 300 baht breakfast buffet at Rabbit resort.  nice buffet, big selection and all the coffee you want.  The cleanest beach in Pattaya right out front, he cleans it daily

 

I agree. I stayed at the Rabbit last March for about 10 days. It's definitely pricey at 5500 baht for the Gold Cottage room. This was my retirement celebration getaway, so I splurged. 

 

I could walk out the front door and it was about a 15 foot walk to a nicely decorated pool area. It's an adults only pool. Some guy came parading into the adults pool area with about 4 hyped up kids. A few of us quickly informed him that he had made a wrong turn and that the family pool was on the other side of the resort area. 

 

http://www.rabbitresort.com/

 

oh yeah - the breakfast. It was very good. Nothing too amazing, but everything was fresh and well prepared. Pretty cool sitting outside looking at the ocean and beach. Coffee was good as well. Staff were attentive without being pesty.  

[Evil Penevil]

it's less than US$9. what do you expect? it's not like you're in Las Vegas and paying $50.

 

I expect it to provide a standard Western breakfast that tastes good.  It doesn't have to be fancy, but it should hold a minimum level of quality.  Mediocre-to-poor food isn't really a bargain even if you can eat as much of it as you want.  Thing is, I didn't want to eat much at the Centara Azure.

 

Evil, you need to do a review of the 300 baht breakfast buffet at Rabbit resort.  nice buffet, big selection and all the coffee you want. 

 

I don't eat farang breakfast very often, but I'll keep the Rabbit Resort in mind. Thank you for the suggestion. 

 

Evil

[ChiFlyer]

I don't eat farang breakfast very often, but I'll keep the Rabbit Resort in mind. Thank you for the suggestion. 

 

Evil

 

EP - I appreciate your reviews. One word of caution about the Rabbit.

 

It can be difficult to get to. There are two ways in. 

 

https://www.google.com/maps/place/Rabbit+Resort/@12.90213,100.864,15z/data=!4m5!3m4!1s0x0:0x7a928168171ab091!8m2!3d12.90213!4d100.864

 

One is from Thepprasit. There is a security gate there and I do not know how you can get a pass just for breakfast. The other is to walk up the beach road from the Thappraya Road turn to Jomtien road at the seven-11. Both walks are about 600 M. Helps to burn the calories, but not fun on a hot day. I believe they serve Asian food as well as Farang. The main draw is the view and ambiance.

 

I'd post some pics, but I am still a little confused as to how to do so on this site. I'll take that over to the tech thread.

[davidge]

EP - I appreciate your reviews. One word of caution about the Rabbit.

 

It can be difficult to get to. There are two ways in.

 

https://www.google.com/maps/place/Rabbit+Resort/@12.90213,100.864,15z/data=!4m5!3m4!1s0x0:0x7a928168171ab091!8m2!3d12.90213!4d100.864

 

One is from Thepprasit. There is a security gate there and I do not know how you can get a pass just for breakfast. The other is to walk up the beach road from the Thappraya Road turn to Jomtien road at the seven-11. Both walks are about 600 M. Helps to burn the calories, but not fun on a hot day. I believe they serve Asian food as well as Farang. The main draw is the view and ambiance.

 

I'd post some pics, but I am still a little confused as to how to do so on this site. I'll take that over to the tech thread.

Easiest way is to get off the baht bus at the corner by the police box and walk along the footpath.

Agree, it can feel like a very long walk on a hot day :-)

 

 

Police box:

 

Start of footpath:

 

Outside Rabbit:

[just hanging]

Easiest way is to get off the baht bus at the corner by the police box and walk along the footpath.

Agree, it can feel like a very long walk on a hot day :-)

 

the buffet is quite extensive and has some of everything, thai included

[davidge]

Easiest way is to get off the baht bus at the corner by the police box and walk along the footpath.

Agree, it can feel like a very long walk on a hot day :-)

Police box:

IMG_4836.JPG

Start of footpath:

IMG_4841.JPG

Outside Rabbit:

IMG_6187.JPG

Two out of three ain't bad!

 

;-)

[ChiFlyer]

Adding a picture of the Rabbit Breakfast area, just to see that I know how to add a pic.

 

 

That seems to have worked. Here's one of the adult pool, just for grins.

 

 

 

[iron]

great review on

Centara Azure on Soi 15

i usually eat at the sportsman on soi13,i will definitely try casa pascal next trip, and will put a review here,

thanks for that review,i will give it a miss

evil penevil

[akamai4u2]

Entirely vacuous comment.

about as vacuous as yours. i had an opinion and stated it, just as you did.

[akamai4u2]

Go to Hotel Denmark in Jomtien and see what you can get for 190B. Or the Casa Pascal for just over 200B, as mentioned. Thankfully we're not in Vegas here.

if i have a choice, i don't do buffets or fast food.

[akamai4u2]

I expect it to provide a standard Western breakfast that tastes good.  It doesn't have to be fancy, but it should hold a minimum level of quality.  Mediocre-to-poor food isn't really a bargain even if you can eat as much of it as you want.  Thing is, I didn't want to eat much at the Centara Azure.

i agree that there should be a minimum level of quality. but you're not in America. their standards are not the same as Americas. standards are different. tastes are different. and there is no mandate that hotels have to provide a Western breakfast, let alone one that meets US standards.

 

whenever you travel to another country, any country, your expectations should not be that of your home country. i made the mistake of complaining to a manager in Japan (i'm from America) about signing the back of my credit card. the mistake i made was i said "in America, it's ok." to which he responded, "you're not in America." he was absolutely right. i shut up, and paid with cash. i learned that i should not expect people in another country to do things the same as they do in my country.

 

and while that isn't food related, i think the lesson is still the same. we can't expect people in another country to do things the way we are accustomed to back home. we need to be more flexible and more tolerant of differences in culture, quality standards, tastes and the way things are done.

[davidge]

about as vacuous as yours. i had an opinion and stated it, just as you did.

Given you were referring to a Vegas Buffet in response to a review of a Pattaya hotel buffet, I though I was very kind in my choice of words.