Well obviously there are stacks of places to eat good cheap food both Thai and farang. As I get older I find the food gaining in importance maybe because like the girls there are so many good ones though obviously I prefer bad girls and good restaurants.

Now there are many threads about good and cheap places to eat but I occasionally like to splurge trying upmarket food which would cost me hundreds at home. Even if I end up not impressed at least I tried it.

Now one of my mainstays when I was finally convinced to try it was Mantra brilliant food not cheap an 2k plus but if you went there and chilled out for the full 4 hours nibbling away it was great value for money and although you could see the quality did decline a little towards the end I used to treat myself every couple of weeks.

Is there any high end Buffets left in Pattaya ? I have tried the Myatt and although i was alright I was not that impressed. Plus more and more chinese seem to be going. I have heard it has gone up from 2k inc of a lobster to 2500 though there used to be an option of 1500 without lobster. TBH I cannot tell the difference in taste between rock and king lobster in fact I prefer rock lobster as it is less fussy extracting the meat.

The edge though a great view I was not impressed with as they lack seafood choice even on their seafood buffet days. I think the price was 800 or so when I went but did not take much notice.

 

So what "all you can eat high end buffets" remain?? I particularly like Foie gras Scallops and Lamb Chops plus obviously Rock Lobster and Prawns etc.

 

I am visiting Pattaya soon as I am a young handsome man or will be as soon as high season ends and all the girls miss me and are even offering freebies lol but as I mention food is definitely part of my holiday in fact I am even considering adding an extra week just to sample more restaurants. 

Mantra's buffet was in a class by itself and there's no current buffet to match it in Pattaya.  The bigger hotels, like the Royal Cliff, Dusit Thani, Hilton, etc. have decent buffets but they can't match what Mantra offered.  The Hard Rock also has a good Charcoal BBQ buffet every night and not just Saturdays.  Elements at the Intercontinental has a nice buffet with a great view.

One idea is to look at the dining section of the Web sites of the five-star hotels.  Give them a call if you have specific questions about what they offer, but it's best if you enlist the help of a Thai speaker for this.

Here's an ad from the Royal Cliff.  Note the price is ++, so add 17%.

Edited January 19, 20206 yr by Evil Penevil

Hard Rock couldn’t even serve me up a competent chicken strips and a hamburger when I was the only patron in the entire restaurant, I’d hate to think how bad their buffet was.  

2 hours ago, nzwolfgang said:

Hard Rock couldn’t even serve me up a competent chicken strips and a hamburger when I was the only patron in the entire restaurant, I’d hate to think how bad their buffet was.  

Inconsistency  is always a problem for Pattaya restaurants.  The Christmas buffet at Starz at the Hard Rock was excellent (I've had it several years) and the "ordinary" Charcoal Buffet was also good.  But it's certainly possible it has deteriorated.

Evil

Hard rock hotel or hard rock café??

7 minutes ago, jimboh said:

Hard rock hotel or hard rock café??

The Great Charcoal BBQ Buffet is served in Starz Diner in the Hard Rock Hotel.  The Hard Rock Cafe is a separate restaurant in the Hard Rock Hotel.

Evil

Warren. Very expensive Buffet. 

Up to you, but BGs prefer street food, not your expensive buffets. I have seen many ankward moments, when there is a customer and BG eating in some expensive eshtablishments. They are not favored by BGs. 

1 hour ago, jpmelville said:

Up to you, but BGs prefer street food, not your expensive buffets. I have seen many ankward moments, when there is a customer and BG eating in some expensive eshtablishments. They are not favored by BGs. 

Yes I remember seeing a BG chowing down on some Pizza at Mantra and all I could think was that the 2000 baht for some Pizza LOL

However a nice meal is for me or sometimes I go with some friends.  Bar Girls are for other things than being your dining companion.  So why shell out all that extra money on them?

 

22 hours ago, Evil Penevil said:

 

Definitely worth checking out it has made my list

19 hours ago, Evil Penevil said:

The Great Charcoal BBQ Buffet is served in Starz Diner in the Hard Rock hotel.  The Hard Rock Cafe is a separate restaurant in the Hard Rock hotel.

Evil

I tried this on a Saturday night with a TGF. Honestly I am not much of a chain/theme type of guy but I found it absolutely phenomenal. 
 It was the one time in my life I wished I was a glutton. Besides the items we picked they where bringing plates of lobster tails and endless huge skewers of meat to the table. Impossible to even finish.  Huge variety of choices. Well worth the price. 

I would just like to clarify here that I am not trying to lord it over people who either choose to or have to use cheaper options. Though not a balloon chaser I enjoy a bargain as much as the next man and I do not eat at these high end restaurants as a matter of course.

I just see nothing wrong with enjoying my money and if I drop £50 or £60 quid on a meal which I really enjoy and would cost a lot more in my country why not. It is the same as paying extra for that gogo stunner rather than a Beer Bar girl an occasional treat. However like the GG Girl price is sometimes not a guarantee of quality.

I love this thread. Thanks all! I am going to try the Hard Rock! If anyone has a list of must eat locations I would a PM with that... or just list them off here. 

On 19/01/2020 at 17:32, GlennUK said:

I would just like to clarify here that I am not trying to lord it over people who either choose to or have to use cheaper options. Though not a balloon chaser I enjoy a bargain as much as the next man and I do not eat at these high end restaurants as a matter of course.

I just see nothing wrong with enjoying my money and if I drop £50 or £60 quid on a meal which I really enjoy and would cost a lot more in my country why not. It is the same as paying extra for that gogo stunner rather than a Beer Bar girl an occasional treat. However like the GG Girl price is sometimes not a guarantee of quality.

Yep it's not just the beers and the girls that are cheaper in Thailand but you can lap it up in luxury for cheaper too. Percentage wise you probably save even more! It's quite easy to get your moneys worth at these eating establishments at the prices they offer, especially the buffets. 

Even the Thai girls I take with me can easily chow down enough sushi and other seafood to make it worth the money.

On 20/01/2020 at 19:59, robdizzle said:

Even the Thai girls I take with me can easily chow down enough sushi and other seafood to make it worth the money.

Thai girls will absolutely love the buffet at the Oishi Eaterium in Central Festival.  I don't know how it was possible for a 45-kilo girl to eat as much salmon sashimi as one did who I took to the former Oishi buffet  at The Avenue.  She had about 20 pieces, then other Japanese food on top of it.  

Evil

 

On 18/01/2020 at 15:34, Evil Penevil said:

Oishi has an all-you-can-eat option at the Oishi Eaterium at Central Festival.  I haven't tried it yet, but it sounds similar to the Oishi buffet that used to be on the second floor of The Avenue.

It's not cheap at about  ฿800 (including 7% VAT), but it is still value-for-money because it's not just sushu and sashimi, but a whole array of Japanese and "international" hot and cold dishes from soups and appetizers through main dishes and desserts.  I'm just not sure I can do justice to 800 baht's worth of food in one sitting.  You have 1 hour 45 minutes in which to eat all you want.

From the Oishi Website:

 

I always preferred Hilton over Mantra 

On 03/01/2020 at 09:11, Evil Penevil said:

Mantra's buffet was in a class by itself and there's no current buffet to match it in Pattaya.  The bigger hotels, like the Royal Cliff, Dusit Thani, Hilton, etc. have decent buffets but they can't match what Mantra offered.  The Hard Rock also has a good Charcoal BBQ buffet every night and not just Saturdays.  Elements at the Intercontinental has a nice buffet with a great view.

One idea is to look at the dining section of the Web sites of the five-star hotels.  Give them a call if you have specific questions about what they offer, but it's best if you enlist the help of a Thai speaker for this.

Here's an ad from the Royal Cliff.  Note the price is ++, so add 17%.

Bloody hell I wont pay 1700 for a buffet ever...I mean 100% like never ever as in never..

The Hilton buffet is perfectly fine for me and its only around 600? baht.... 

Great thread!

Oishii I see was gone from The Avenue.. it's in Central Festival now?  How much is the buffet ?

23 minutes ago, JamesFerris said:

Great thread!

Oishii I see was gone from The Avenue.. it's in Central Festival now?  How much is the buffet ?

on another forum was posted 800+

1 hour ago, JamesFerris said:

Great thread!

Oishii I see was gone from The Avenue.. it's in Central Festival now?  How much is the buffet ?

About 800 ฿.  See post #15 in this thread. 

Evil

I haven’t been to this buffet at the Siam Bayshore at the end of walking street for a few years, but I remember it being a fantastic outdoor seafood buffet overlooking the sea.

http://www.siambayshorepattaya.com/bali-hai-by-the-sea

And it gets 4 1/2 stars on trip advisor


https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g293919-d2562145-Reviews-Bali_Hai_Sunset-Pattaya_Chonburi_Province.html?m=19905

On 23/01/2020 at 09:02, fforest said:

Bloody hell I wont pay 1700 for a buffet ever...I mean 100% like never ever as in never..

The Hilton buffet is perfectly fine for me and its only around 600? baht.... 

Yes it's pricey.

The night I went the food was exceptional as were the staff.

A place like Royal Cliff will never be hit and miss.

On 23/01/2020 at 02:02, fforest said:

Bloody hell I wont pay 1700 for a buffet ever...I mean 100% like never ever as in never..

The Hilton buffet is perfectly fine for me and its only around 600? baht.... 

Well it was 2k plus drinks though there was an option for free flow wine I think that was 2500 on top though I stuck to water.

The thing is if you enjoy top quality food once you translate it to farang prices it was cheap and if you were smart you didn't go in there just to eat and scoot you went spent time with your friends grazed and grazed and grazed. Spending as much of those 4 hours in there as you could. You would spend extra on a quality girl so why not food and I am an old old man now I cannot shag a girl for 4 hours anymore.

I have eaten at the hilton as well but apart from the great view there is no comparison.

On 23/01/2020 at 02:29, Soi7 said:

on another forum was posted 800+

If you like Sushi the Tsunami Sushi buffet is excellent they prepare it all fresh and not expensive.

I think there is 2 maybe 3 I like the one on third road 90 minutes all you can eat.

 

On 03/01/2020 at 15:41, jpmelville said:

Up to you, but BGs prefer street food, not your expensive buffets. I have seen many ankward moments, when there is a customer and BG eating in some expensive eshtablishments. They are not favored by BGs. 

It varies from girl to girl (some certainly DO enjoy them, while others might not), but I agree that it's a good point to ask before going.

My former LLT and her friend took me to the lobster buffet at Kitch at the Mytt Beach Hotel.  It was pretty pricey, but, at that time, it was all you can eat lobsters.  I think they went through at least 4, if not 5, between them!  I think the restaurant learned its lesson and now limits you to one per customer.  555

That was a while ago, so the quality may have dropped, but I was pretty damn impressed by it back then.

I stay at the Hilton often (coming up on my 14th or 15th stay there), but I rarely do the lunch or dinner buffets.  I get free breakfast, so I take advantage of it most days.  I enjoy it, but wouldn't necessarily recommend it.  It's great for free, but I don't know what I would pay for it.  VERY similar from day-to-day, with only the daily Thai dish and some non-breakfast options changing most days.

The one time I did their lunch buffet, it was "sandwich day" and they were grilling hamburgers....it was one of the BEST that I have had in Pattaya!  It tasted like it came fresh off a charcoal grill in your backyard! 

I think they change the "theme" daily or at least 4 or 5 times a week.