Chillax on A One Fine Day at Chon Buri - ตะล๊อกต๊อกแต๊ก ณ เมืองชล กับวันสบาย ๆ

It was towards the end of January 2015 and we had a quick opportunity to visit a friend at Chon Buri. We, hence, popped by a cafe for chitchatting and a restaurant for lunch: Teaory Tea and Dessert Cafe and Peak Mun Talay respectively.

Cuisine: Cafe

Map: Teaory Tea and Dessert Cafe @ Bangsaen, Chon Buri, Thailand

Price: THB150 per person without alcohol (what we paid for)

Visited: 24 January 2015

Food: 2/10

Atmosphere: 5/10

Value for money: 2/10

Services: 4/10
Scale: [1=poor ---- 5=average/standard ---- 10=outstanding/exceptional]

Teaory Tea and Dessert Cafe is a coffee shop in Bangsean area with a rather large space in relax ambient. Just like those typical cafe here in Thailand, they serve a range of coffee and tea beverage, soda, smoothies, and pastry.

We had Cafe Latte and Iced Cafe Latte (3/10) for drink. Honestly, I think they were not any better than cafe latte that I personally make. There was no distinct aroma. The body was light and after-taste was flat. The go-along sweet was Choco Banana Waffle (2/10). It was a shock. Just by looking at the texture of waffle and ice-cream, it was just not persuasive at all. The vanilla ice-cream was just sweet and not creamy: not even sure whether it was bought-in ice-cream. The waffle did not have the somewhat combination of chewiness, dense, and softness: it was just fluffy. The aroma was not there too. The best part on the plate was banana perhaps.

Come on, you need more than just a big relaxing venue for a cafe. At least your coffee needs to work.

Teaory Tea and Dessert Cafe @ Bangsaen, Chon Buri, Thailand

atmosphere

Iced Cafe Latte (THB85)

Cafe Latte (THB75)

Choco Banana Waffle (THB195)

Teaory Tea and Dessert Cafe @ Bangsaen, Chon Buri, Thailand
1/7 Bangsaen Sai 4 Nuea
Saen Suk, Mueang
Chon Buri 20130

Thailand

Open Hours: daily from 10:00am - 10:00pm

Tel: +66 (0) 92 637 6665
FB: https://www.facebook.com/teaorybangsaen/

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Cuisine: Seafood (Thai)

Map: Peak Mun Talay @ Chon Buri, Thailand - เปี๊ยกมันทะเล @ ชลบุรี

Price: THB500 per person without alcohol (what we paid for)

Visited: 24 January 2015

Food: 6/10

Atmosphere: 5/10

Value for money: 5/10

Services: 4/10
Scale: [1=poor ---- 5=average/standard ---- 10=outstanding/exceptional]

I always fancy a seafood meal many times when I visit seaside destination like Chon Buri. Peak Mun Talay is another destination in Ang Sila area of Chon Buri. It is a local ambient seafood restaurant with really large space: more than 100 seats easily. Peak Mun Talay shall be a good destination for family meal indeed. An average kind of seafood restaurant in Thailand for me.

In brief, this was an enjoyable place at a moderately pricing. The first dish was Fried Grouper with Spicy Chilli Sauce - ผัดฉ่าเนื้อปลาเก๋า (6/10). Nice and hot dish with fresh grouper. It was really hot in fact (at least for me). Even I had asked for not so spicy, it turned out to be hot and spicy still. So watch out when ordering. Next was a dish with my favourite ingredient: Fried Squid and Roe with Fish Sauce - หมึกไข่คั่วน้ำปลา (6/10). It had nice and fulfilling flavour: rich and full. However, the texture of squid was a little too chewy. Lastly, it was Fried Shrimp with Fish Sauce - กุ้งคั่วน้ำปลา (4/10). It was somewhat disappointed for this dish. Though the ingredient was fresh, it was overcooked for me. In term of flavour, strong scent of fish sauce was well balanced with sweetness. This dish was priced at THB900. Too expensive in my opinion for this kind of place.

Peak Mun Talay @ Chon Buri, Thailand

large and spacious venue

Fried Grouper with Spicy Chilli Sauce - ผัดฉ่าเนื้อปลาเก๋า (THB250)

Fried Squid and Roe with Fish Sauce - หมึกไข่คั่วน้ำปลา (THB200)

Fried Shrimp with Fish Sauce - กุ้งคั่วน้ำปลา (THB900)

Peak Mun Talay @ Chon Buri, Thailand - เปี๊ยกมันทะเล @ ชลบุรี
73 Rop Khao Sam Muk Soi 1
Saen Suk, Mueang
Chon Buri 20130

Thailand

Open Hours: daily from 10:00am - 10:00pm

Tel: +66 (0) 86 845 5080, +66 (0) 89  750 4916
FB: https://www.facebook.com/kookbangsaen

Paris Mikki @ Metha Wattana Building, Sukhumvit 19, Bangkok - ปารีส มิกกิ @ อาคารเมธาวัฒนา ซอยสุขุมวิท 19 กรุงเทพฯ

Cuisine: Pastry / French Dessert / Cafe

Map: Paris Mikki @ Metha Wattana Building, Sukhumvit 19, Bangkok - ปารีส มิกกิ @ อาคารเมธาวัฒนา ซอยสุขุมวิท 19 กรุงเทพฯ

Price: THB350 per person without alcohol (what we paid for)

Visited: 22 February 2015

Food: 7/10

Atmosphere: 5/10

Value for money: 4/10

Services: 4/10
Scale: [1=poor ---- 5=average/standard ---- 10=outstanding/exceptional]

Do you like French pastry? If so and if you live in Bangkok, you are sure aware that it is so flicking difficult to find one good patisserie here. Here is one for you. Paris Mikki is located right on the ground floor of Metha Wattana Building in Soi Sukhumvit 19, which is around Asoke area, and was launched just in December 2014. Simply, travelling here is not a problem at all. All sorts of transportation that you could find Bangkok are just nearby: i.e. BTS, MRT, and bus (if you wish to use the service). There are also parking space at Metha Wattana Building.

Paris Mikki bakes authentic French pastry daily: viennoiserie, tart, choux, eclair, and etc. I promise many of them are delicious but they do come at some price tag. I would even suggest calling in to reserve your favourite choice in order to avoid disappointment. In term of venue, it is a tiny place for eating in. I really mean tiny. There are only a few small tables indoor and a few more outdoor. Forget the outdoor thing in Bangkok if it is not December and January. It would be really hot most of the time and rain in monsoon. The ambient in the shop, however, is rather relax and decorated beautifully.

Paris Mikki @ Sukhumvit 19, Bangkok

Little charming place

Elegant layout of pastry

As mentioned earlier, the gorgeous sweet stuff here is rather dearly priced. Nevertheless, it is at least good to say that it is inclusive of VAT and service charge which is rare for the modern day dining in Thailand. Many restaurants' owners seem to take advantage out of customers regardless how terrible their service is. Anyway, as for the service here at Paris Mikki, it might not be the so fantastic, I would say there seemed to be some care for customers.

Well, we did order a few choices to try here. The first one was Caramel Luxembourg (8/10). Ok, I gotta say I do like this caramel choux quite a lot. The choux dough was nicely made with thin crust. The filling comprised of vanilla based cream and caramel cream or should I say dulce de leche as the French say (O.o)". I found the texture was nice and dense whilst sweetness was there but not overwhelming. With a nice pot of non-cream based tea, it would be really enjoyable. Just a minor detail that annoyed me a little which is the small golden nameplate with store name. It is made of paper and it would be greatly appreciated if it would be made of something edible, such as chocolate, instead. But minor detail really.

Caramel Luxembourg (THB135)

Fabulous filling of cream and caramel

I want all these four caramel choux

The next one was Tart aux Fraise (4/10) or simply strawberry tart. Most of the time, I do enjoy tart based dessert considerable: chocolate tart, lemon tart, strawberry tart, and etc. For this strawberry tart, it did not quite match my expectation. The tart base was thick which gave a little harsh texture mouth feel. The pastry cream in the middle was too mild in terms of both palate texture and taste. Lastly, strawberry was fresh but not entirely qualitatively sweet. I wouldn't re-order this tart definitely. For THB205, I do expect to see something much better than this.

Tart aux Fraise (THB205)

Tart aux Fraise does look lovely on the shelf

As a lover of viennoiserie, I could not resist not to order one to taste. I went for Pain au Chocolat (7/10). This croissant based chocolate puff was delicious. The best part was texture: nice layers of puff with soft palate touch whilst maintaining crispiness. The con was chocolate filling: more please I would say. As you can see from the picture below, the chocolate filling was too little for the size of the pain au chocolat. I would suspect the classic croissant to be as good. If you like viennoiserie, here is one good thing for you.

Pain au Chocolat (THB95)

Gorgeous layers of Pain au Chocolate but too little chocolate

I promise Viennoiseries are great here

Lastly, I did also order a cup of Cafe Latte (3/10) and I found that it was not really cafe latte in my opinion. With that much milk foam on top, I would categorise this as cappuccino instead. At the time, I did not hesitate to let one of the staff aware straight away. The response was a bit lack of customer handling experience. Instead of offering a new cup of what it had been expected or something else for substitution, I was informed that it was machine brewed, not made by a barista, so this was how it's served. Well, that was not good enough in my opinion. However, the staff at least did promise to take note and will try to make adjustment. I will see how it goes during my following visit. For this time, THB120 for a not-really cafe latte and average quality after taste of coffee note, it was a rip off in my opinion.

In overall, this is a nice little place with delicious range of French pastry. Though not really so much of value for money, it is still difficult to find this kind of quality of pastry in Bangkok. I wouldn't mind paying for it as long as the standard is kept as-is and I dine in; this pricing is too ridiculous for take away in my perspective.

Cafe Latte (THB120)

Beverage Menu

Paris Mikki @ Metha Wattana Building, Sukhumvit 19, Bangkok - ปารีส มิกกิ @ อาคารเมธาวัฒนา ซอยสุขุมวิท 19 กรุงเทพฯ
Floor G, Metha Wattana Building
27 Soi Sukhumvit 19
Sukhumvit Road
Khlong Toei Nuea, Watthana
Bangkok 10110

Thailand

Open Hours: Tuesday - Sunday from 11:00am - 08:00pm

Tel: +66 (0) 88 870 0020
Web: http://www.parismikki.com/
FB: https://www.facebook.com/ParisMikki

Sora City @ Sukhumvit 26, Bangkok - โซระ ซิตี้ @ ซอยสุขุมวิท 26 กรุงเทพฯ

Cuisine: Cafe

Map: Sora City @ Sukhumvit 26, Bangkok - โซระ ซิตี้ @ ซอยสุขุมวิท 26 กรุงเทพฯ

Price: THB225 per person without alcohol (what we paid for)

Visited: 25 January 2015

Food: 5/10

Atmosphere: 7/10

Value for money: 6/10

Services: 6/10
Scale: [1=poor ---- 5=average/standard ---- 10=outstanding/exceptional]

There may be coffee shops almost every corner nowadays in Bangkok city centre. Here is no exception. Sora City in Soi Sukhumvit 26 was established not long ago: just at the beginning of 2015. It is just a small cafe with simple but comfortable ambient: those wooden furniture in Japanese minimalist style. In addition, the owner also opens a bike shop at the rear of the cafe. It is a small and unique bike shop in fact.

At the time of our visit, Sora City was just launched. The lady owner and staffs were friendly. Menu is kept simple as in cafe style ranging from simple scrambled egg to omelette rice for savoury, pancake for dessert, and cafe beverage. As mentioned, the place is tucked in Soi Sukhumvit 26 which is more or less convenient for many mean of transport. Nevertheless, driving might cause you a little problem if you are thinking of stopping by this little cafe for a good cup of cafe latte. The thing is there is one park lot at the back of the cafe. More than that you will have to find parking space yourself somewhere along the street. But if you live in the area, walking or biking to Sora City may give you some pleasure during weekend.

Sora City @ Sukhumvit 26

simple but relax

tiny cafe and bike shop

"The Real Alaska" exhibition (happened to be at the time of visit)

name card and reindeer

This is just a cafe, an ordinary cafe really. So there is nothing much for me to review except saying that coffee here is not bad at all. It was carefully brewed though. Savoury dishes were enjoyable too. As we often drive through Soi Sukhumvit 26, Sora City will be another destination for our coffee break. The followings are what we had:

Creamy Omelette with Shrimp on Rice - ข้าวไข่ข้นกุ้ง (6/10)
Bacon, Scrambled Egg, and Homemade Buttermilk Pancakes - เบคอน ไข่กวน และแพนเค้ก (5/10)
Caffe Latte - กาแฟลาเต้ร้อน (7/10)
Signature Bitter Chocolate Frappe - ช๊อคโกแลตปั่น (6/10)

Creamy Omelette with Shrimp on Rice (THB100)

Bacon, Scrambled Egg, and Homemade Buttermilk Pancakes (THB125)

Caffe Latte (THB85)

Signature Bitter Chocolate Frappe (THB140)

Sora City @ Sukhumvit 26, Bangkok - โซระ ซิตี้ @ ซอยสุขุมวิท 26 กรุงเทพฯ
61/52 Soi Sukhumvit 26
Sukhumvit Road
Khlong Tan, Khlong Toey
Bangkok 10110

Thailand

Open Hours: daily from 09:00am - 08:00pm

Tel: +66 (0) 2001 6600
FB: https://www.facebook.com/soracity

Pacamara Boutique Coffee Roasters @ Rain Hill, Bangkok - ร้านกาแฟพาคามาร่า @ เรนฮิลล์ กรุงเทพฯ

Cuisine: Coffee Shop

Map: Pacamara Boutique Coffee Roasters @ Rain Hill, Bangkok - ร้านกาแฟพาคามาร่า @ เรนฮิลล์ กรุงเทพฯ

Price: THB100 per person without alcohol (what we paid for)

Visited: 10 August 2014

Coffee: 7/10

Atmosphere: 6/10

Value for money: 8/10

Services: 5/10
Scale: [1=poor ---- 5=average/standard ---- 10=outstanding/exceptional]

Boutique coffee shops are sure to be spreading all over the place in Bangkok nowadays. Some seem to come and go pretty fast. Pacamara is another boutique coffee shop that has not long been established in Bangkok. In fact, it is originally from Chiang Mai. I have not been to the one in Chiang Mai personally but have heard about Pacamara in Chiang Mai from time to time. When I had heard about its establishment at Rain Hill, I thought I might opt for a try.

Pacamara is on the 2nd floor of Rain Hill. If you are not sure where Rain Hill is, it is right at the entrance to Soi Sukhumvit 47. Hence, taking BTS to Phrom Phong Station or Thonglor Station may be the easiest routes and you can reach Rain Hill on foot within a few minutes. The place is rather small, tiny actually. Just a small room with a few tables. I am not really sure whether this is really a place opened to do commercial or just to let people aware of its name. They do serve some nice coffee beverage. But such a small place like this, not really sure about its customer turnover and takeaway order. However, Pacamara is not just a coffee corner, it is as well a coffee bean roaster and seller (both retail and wholesale level). Personally, I did buy back some coffee beans back to try: House Blend and Roaster Blend. They both are not bad and of some decent quality.

Pacamara Boutique Coffee Roasters @ Rain Hill

small coffee corner

We did pop by for a really quick shot of coffee. If you are an expert, you might as well go for espresso shot to taste. But we cannot really take that though. We instead went for Caffe Latte and Piccolo Latte. At the price of THB85 a cup, I think it is rather good for these days. Caffe Latte is usually smooth and creamy and this one was as well rather well made and smooth. For Piccolo Latte, it is not much different from Caffe Latte but with reduced milk portion which gives a more intense coffee flavour and aroma. I do like both type of latte, just the former one that is easier to consume.

Though Pacamara does brew good cup of coffee, it is still not a destination that you might want to specifically drop by for just a cup of coffee. In case you are already at Rain Hill, this is not a bad place to stop by.

smooth vs. intense

Caffe Latte (THB85)

Piccolo Latte (THB85)

Pacamara Boutique Coffee Roasters @ Rain Hill, Bangkok - ร้านกาแฟพาคามาร่า @ เรนฮิลล์ กรุงเทพฯ
Floor 2, Rain Hill Community Mall
777 Sukhumvit 47 Road
Khlong Tan Nuea, Wattana
Bangkok 10110

Thailand

Open Hours: for lunch Thu-Mon 11:30am - 01:30pm and for dinner Wed-Mon 05:30pm - 11:00pm

Tel: +66 (0) 2261 7830
FB: https://www.facebook.com/pacamaracoffee

Casa Lapin X49 @ Soi Sukhumvit 49, Bangkok

Cuisine: Cafe / Coffee Shop

Map: Casa Lapin X49 @ Soi Sukhumvit 49, Bangkok

Price: THB190 per person without alcohol (what we paid for)

Visited: 3 November 2013

Food: 6/10

Atmosphere: 7/10

Value for money: 6/10

Services: 5/10

Commercial coffee shops, such as Starbucks, are everywhere nowadays. For us, it can be difficult to find a place where we can sit and relax with good cups of coffee these days. We, a few months back, mentioned about Bar Storia del Caffe at Eight Thonglor which is a relaxing coffee shop in fact. This time we would like to introduce Casa Lain X49 which is becoming talk of the town currently.

There are a few branches of Casa Lapin. All of which represents with the concept of a cafe where anyone can enjoy a cup of coffee and work/relax at the same time. The one at Soi Sukhumvit 49, which is in the small alley just opposite Samitivej Hospital, is pretty cool and relax. It was our first time here and we admittedly like this place. Casa Lapin X49 was somewhat quiet, cosy, and relax. If this place is near you and you are looking for a place for chit chat or changing work atmosphere out of office, here is one for you.

Casa Lapin X49 @ Soi Sukhumvit 49, Bangkok

here we are, Casa Lapin X49

alfresco can also be relaxing

view of interior

range of goods

more comfy zone on the 1st floor

lapin - bunny

The place of Casa Lapin X49 is put together rather simply but in style. The 1-block building cafe has a few tables outdoor which can be comfortable during non Summer days. Inside, there is one long table laying across the hall. I guess 10 customers can fit in but around 6 people should be comfortable. The rest on the ground floors are a few tiny table with stools. On the first floor, seats are more indeed comfortable with sofa and couch. If you are to be here with friends, we would recommend upper level, else try the alfresco. As for the menu, it is kept simply. There is no long list of choices here. All are on a single brick wall with some food/pastry to be chosen depending of the day. One thing is Casa Lapin is kind of half self-service. Hence, you will order and pay at the counter immediately. Staff may bring some of your orders to your table but some you will have to pick up yourself.

wall menu

barista grinding coffee beans

drip brew from the slow bar

our espresso was dripping out (^^)

This time, we simply went for a cup of cafe latte and drip brew coffee. The cafe latte was surely good: smooth, creamy, and aromatic. The other one we tried was drip brew coffee. For the drip brew coffee, we were asked to choose a choice of coffee beans. Well, we are the expert and the barista recommended us to try coffee beans from Jomthong, Chiang Mai and we did not hesistate to do so. It actually turned out to be great with aromatic fruity flavours with rather low acidity. We kind of like it. To go with coffee, we did also order one Almond Croissant and one Pain au Chocolate. Both were rather nice. Anyway, we did expect to eat here but just the coffee.

All in all, we like Casa Lapin X49 and will sure return. By the way, parking here can be difficult so just walk if you are nearby.

Cafe Latte (THB85)

Drip Brew Coffee (THB140)

selection of coffee beans

Pain au Chocolate (THB75)

Almond Croissant (THB85)

Casa Lapin X49 @ Soi Sukhumvit 49, Bangkok
Soi Sukhumvit 49 (the alley opposite Samitivej Hospital)

Sukhumvit Road

Wattana

Bangkok 10110

Thailand

Open Hours: Mon-Fri from 07:30am - 08:30pm and Sat-Sun from 10:30am - 08:30pm

Tel: +66 (0) 81 257 7920, +66 (0) 81 261 2040
FB: https://www.facebook.com/CasaLapin