Pattaya is internationally famous for its nightlife, and has a reputation as Thailand’s naughtiest city. Many flock to Pattaya for the party atmosphere where the nightlife characterizes the city and self gratification is on the menu wherever you go.
Whatever you are looking for, Pattaya nightlife has it all, from pub restaurants with sedate music to go-go bars and from trendy packed discos to world famous transsexual cabaret shows. Pattaya is also a great place for a pub crawl with very little distance between them, and many different bar types located closely.
Probably the most famous nightlife area of Pattaya is Walking Street in South Pattaya. From the evening until the next morning this road is closed to vehicles. The street itself and its adjoining lanes, known as sois, are all packed with go-go bars, massage parlours, beer bars and restaurants. It is crowded daily and the noisy bustle attracts those from all over. A walk down the street gives a visitor an eye opening experience of what Pattaya nightlife is all about. Apart from ubiquitous girly bars, Walking Street also has an Irish style pub and several discos which are usually packed and loud. Most of the action continues until two in the morning in this area.
Central Pattaya around sois 7 and 8 down to the beach is not as raucous as South Pattaya, but there are still a mass of beer bars, restaurants and other bars to contribute to the nightlife in Pattaya. This is an area frequented by many of the foreign residents of the city, and is more suited to a combination of drinking and chatting. As with all bars in the town, girls will happily sit with men if provided with a drink.
For the gay nightlife scene Pattaya has Boyz Town centered round Soi Pattayaland 1 and 3. This noisy and popular area has many gay go-go bars and beer bars. The adjacent Sunee Plaza is similar but both quieter and more private. Gay bars can also be found in other parts of Pattaya that cater for a more mixed crowd in usually quieter settings. Jomtien Beach is another gay meeting area.
Apart from the raucous side, Pattaya also has a number of other night time venues. Thai kick boxing known as Muay Thai can be seen at a number of bars scattered around Pattaya. These do not host events every night, so it’s best to ask at your hotel for information on where to go on a particular night. Pattaya also has two cinemas featuring English soundtrack movies. These can be found at Big C in North Pattaya and Royal Garden Plaza in Central Pattaya. The three bowling alleys can be found at Jomtien, on Second Road and in South Pattaya. Ripley’s Believe It or Not also opens fairly late with a number of entertaining attractions in addition to its bizarre exhibitions.
Pattaya restaurants and food
Life often revolves solely around food in Thailand, with work and duty merely filling the time in between. Pattaya restaurants offer plenty of choice. Thai cuisine has a worldwide fashion-food appeal these days, and in Pattaya there are a huge selection of vendors and restaurants which allow you to try everything the country's street stalls and kitchens have to offer. Pattaya's international popularity is reflected in its vast selection of international restaurants serving food from all around the globe at prices to suit all palates.
In Pattaya, restaurants and food vendors are everywhere. Local cuisine is catered for at a range of budgets and restaurants serving French, Japanese, Italian, German, Scandinavian, and Korean food are commonplace. There are also a large amount of hamburger joints, steak places, and curry houses while in the centre of town there is a whole street serving Arabic cuisine. Visitors from the U.K. wont be disappointed to know there is also a local 'chippy' serving a host of deep-fried delights.
There are also a number of delis and coffee shops serving food in Pattaya while most guest houses will have their own restaurant, as will all the hotels. What all this amounts to is something of a dining extravaganza which is one of the main attractions of visiting Pattaya.
Tom Yum Goong seems to win the tussle with Somtam (green papaya spicy salad) to be the Thai signature dish. This delicious hot and sour soup is a fragrant blend of spices, herbs, mushrooms, lemongrass, lime leaves and galangal (a sweet-sour, salty and bitter blended soup curry), usually served with prawn (goong) but also available with your choice of meat, or cooked vegetarian. A good phrase for willing foreigners not too keen on spicy food is mai pet which means not spicy .Most Thai people deem westerners somewhat allergic to chilies anyhow, but if you feel daring, reverse the phrase and just say pet. There is an enormous variety of Thai dishes and ingredients and we have dedicated a whole section to this.
$ dishes 50 - 100 baht; quart of beer 80 baht; whiskey shot 100 baht; cocktails 120 baht
$$ dishes 100 - 200 baht; quart of beer 100 baht; whiskey shot 120 baht; cocktails 140 baht
$$$ dishes 200 - 500 baht; quart of beer 120 baht; whiskey shot 140 baht; cocktails 160 baht
Street vendors in Thailand operate under cramped but pretty hygienic conditions, and this is where you'll find the cheapest food. Grilled and fried chicken, corn-on-the-cob, and kebabs are among the favourites.
Pattaya doesn't exactly offer the most authentic Thai dining experience, where steakhouses and international menus cater to the foreign crowd instead of the charming Thai eating houses with their live music, water features and whiskey girls.
It would be almost impossible to list all the restaurants in Pattaya for there are so many, but below, you'll find a selection of recommendations.
Recommended Restaurants in Pattaya
Sugar Hut: attached to up-market hotel of the same name, set in topical gardens, expensive, but worth the money. 391/18 Moo 10, Tabphaya Road, Pattaya, +66 (0) 38 364 186, $$$.
Bruno's: renowned restaurant serving classy reasonably expensive French cuisine, over 150 wines available. 306/63 Chateau Dale Plaza, Thappraya Road, Pattaya. +66 (0)38 364, $$$.
Queen Victoria Inn: authentic traditional English pub, with excellent international menu and a good selection of imported beers on tap. Live music and carvery on Sundays. 437/137-8 Soi Yodsak (Soi 6), Pattaya, +66 (0)38 425 418, $$.
Lobster Pot: huge restaurant serving all things seafood, specializing in lobster and tiger prawns. Walking Street (opposite Soi 14), South Pattaya, +66 (0)38 426 083, $$.
Rice Mill: popular Cantonese restaurant which offers an all-you-can-eat buffet on weekends for 249 baht. Royal Garden Plaza, Beach Rd., Pattaya, +66 (0)38 421 120, $$.
Royal Cliff Beach Hotel: huge complex containing ten restaurants, including the delicious Maharani Indian restaurant. 353 Phra Tamnuk Road, Pattaya, +66 (0) 38 250 421, $$$.
Vientiane: Laotian influenced cuisine serving South East Asian food from Indonesia and Thailand. 485/18, Moo 10, 2nd Road, South Pattaya, +66 (0) 38 411 298, $$.
Shenanigans: big bar and restaurant serving traditional pub-style fayre, and appropriate drinks. The Avenue Pattaya, 399/9 Moo 10, Pattaya 2nd Road, Nongprue, +66 (0) 38 723 939, $$$.
Tips: over twelve set breakfasts served in this popular inexpensive restaurant. 0/10 M.10 Pattaya Beach Road, South Pattaya, +66 (0) 38 423 418, $.
Pig and Whistle: British pub grub served in ample portions from well-trained staff. 217/34 M.10, Soi 7, Pattaya Beach Road, Central Pattaya, +66 (0) 38 361 315, $$.
Ali Baba: good quality Indian restaurant with a fine selection of authentic dishes. 4 Pattaya Klang Road, Pattaya, +66 (0) 38 429 262, $$.
Ciao: decent pizza and pasta in this established Italian restaurant in the centre of town. 4 Pattaya Klang Road, Pattaya, +66 (0) 38 710 614, $$.
Alt Heidelberg: variety of German sausages and imported sauerkraut dominate the menu, good location. 273 M.10, Pattaya Beach Road, South Pattaya, +66 (0) 38 421 258, $$.
PIC Kitchen: for classy Thai food in a traditional atmosphere with floor seating and subtle decoration. Soi 5, Pattaya 2 Road, Pattaya, +66 (0) 38 428 374, $$.
JJ Pizza Bar: decent authentic Italian pizza cooked in wood fire ovens, reasonably priced. 325/85 M.10, Soi Pattayaland 2 (Soi 13/4), Pattaya Beach Road, South Pattaya, +66 (0) 38 424 128, $$.
Pectopah: one of several Russian restaurants in Pattaya, with good soups and pies. 205/8-9 M.10, Pattaya 2nd Road, South Pattaya, +66 (0) 38- 429 662, $$.
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