33 Seafood @ Sri Racha, Chon Buri - 33 ซีฟู้ด @ ศรีราชา ชลบุรี

Cuisine: Seafood / Thai

Map: 33 Seafood @ Sri Racha, Chon Buri - 33 ซีฟู้ด @ ศรีราชา ชลบุรี

Charged Price: THB300 per person without alcohol

Visited: 30 April 2016

Food: 4/10

Atmosphere: 6/10

Value for money: 4/10

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

Another overrated seafood restaurant in Chon Buri in my humble opinion, this is. There are so many seafood restaurants, most of which are pretty similar, in Chon Buri but hardly any of them keeps up with the standard like in the past. 33 Seafood in Sri Racha is no exception. The atmosphere is certainly great during non-public vacation days. However, during public vacation I believe this place can be totally opposite despite its large area. On a cool evening, al fresco at this restaurant can be lovely. Arriving this place is easy enough. It is only a few kilometers from Nong Mon Market and is near Thanon Sukhumvit.

33 Seafood @ Sri Racha, Chon Buri

seaside dining (not during Summer for me)

The menu at this place is as aforementioned not different from other seafood places around. As for pricing wise, it is not very expensive nor valuable. The first one for us was Fried Salted Squid - หมึกอาบแดด (2/10). Ways too salty in my view. It was as well over-fried. Portion was small too. Next was Oyster Omelette - ออส่วนหอยนางรม (7/10). I kind of like this one: crisp and flavourful. The overall picture of this oyster omelette was delicious. If there were more of bean sprout, it would even be better.

Then Hot and Spicy Sea Clam - หอยตลับผัดฉ่า (5/10) arrived. Usually this is a dish that everyone likes. However, it was so-so here. It seemed to be lack of spices. Lastly, Baked White Prawn with Salt - กุ้งแชบ๊วยอบเกลือ (5/10) was the choice. Good but not great. Too expensive in fact. THB500 for half a kilo which came around 6-7 prawns. Anyway, 33 Seafood is not at all a bad place to visit. Just bear in mind that you are not visiting for food but overall picture instead: seaside view on a good day with ok food.

Fried Salted Squid - หมึกอาบแดด (THB180)

Oyster Omelette - ออส่วนหอยนางรม (THB200)

Hot and Spicy Sea Clam - หอยตลับผัดฉ่า (THB180)

Baked White Prawn with Salt - กุ้งแชบ๊วยอบเกลือ (THB1,000 / kg.)

33 Seafood @ Sri Racha, Chon Buri - 33 ซีฟู้ด @ ศรีราชา ชลบุรี

340 Thanon Sukhumvit
Moo 2
Bang Phra, Sri Racha
Chon Buri 20110
Thailand

Open Hours: daily from 11:00am - 11:00pm

Tel: +66 (0) 38 776 228
FB: https://www.facebook.com/33seafoodrestaurant

A Hot Day in Brighton with Fabulous Tea and Gelato

Here are two little places in Brighton in which they were never there when I was living in Brighton. It was a hot day when I paid a visit to this little beach town. As I was strolling from Brighton Pier through Pool Valley, I popped by a gelato shop called Boho Gelato in Pool Valley before stopped by Blackbird Tea Rooms for afternoon tea chitchat with my cousin. But hey, these two places were awesome, especially, Boho Gelato. What a delicious ice-cream.

Blackbird Tea Rooms @ Brighton

Map: Blackbird Tea Rooms @ Brighton

Charged Price: GBP7.00 per person

Visited: 1 July 2015

Food: 8/10

Atmosphere: 8/10

Value for money: 8/10

Services: 7/10
Scale: [1=poor ---- 5=average/standard ---- 10=outstanding/exceptional]

Blackbird Tea Rooms is located in the famous shopping area of Brighton, The Lanes. It is rather small. The atmosphere is lovely which would bring you back to the rustic old time of England. It was a fine summer day when we paid a visit to Blackbird and we were fortunate to be able to grab a table in the backyard. There were on a few tables there in the backyard. Believe me it could be great sipping tea in the old fashion atmosphere here but it was fantastic, in my view, in the backyard on a fine day.

Blackbird Tea Rooms store front

getting more rustic inside

old fashion counter

a perfect day for courtyard afternoon tea

Typical and classic afternoon tea here. We had Cream Tea and Banana, Pecan & Date Cake and we did not disappoint. Scone came in a big chunk. It was not just about the size of scone here. It was delicious too. Soft on the touch and delicate. Wonderful scone indeed. The cake was as well in par with scone. Large slice and yummy. Perfect with its frosting. As for tea, there were around 10+ choices ranging from something classic to more exotic choices: English Breakfast, Earl Grey, Rose Congou, Rooibos, and etc.

In short, this is an excellent place to stop by for tea, snack, and dessert. A must return for me (if I have a chance).

our afternoon break treat

Cream Tea (GBP6.00)

delicious scone with jam and clotted cream

Banana, Pecan & Date Cake (GBP3.90)

Blackbird Tea Rooms @ Brighton

30 Ship Street
Brighton
BN1 1AD
United Kingdom

Open Hours: daily from 08:30am - 05:30pm
Tel: +44 (0) 1273 249 454
Web: http://www.blackbirdtearooms.com/
FB: https://www.facebook.com/BlackbirdTeaRooms

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Boho Gelato @ Brighton

Map: Boho Gelato @ Brighton

Charged Price: GBP2.40 per person

Visited: 1 July 2015

Food: 9/10

Atmosphere: n.m.

Value for money: 8/10

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

Needless to say much about Boho Gelato. It is just a tiny shop with all about ice-cream. There are somewhat 24 flavours daily here. Again flavour ranges from something classic to exotic ice-cream. So so delicious ice-cream here. It was smooth, it was creamy, it was delicate, and yet flavourful. I had Cucumber and Rose on a cone on such a hot day and it was wowwww. Cucumber and Rose, what a combination. It somehow support each other pretty well. Freshness of cucumber seems to go unexpectedly well with aroma of rose. I miss it already as I am typing now. In two words, "MUST VISIT".

Cucumber and Rose on Cone (GBP2.40)

mini store of Boho

the menu board

Boho Gelato @ Brighton

6 Pool Valley
Brighton
BN1 1NJ
United Kingdom

Open Hours: daily from 11:00am - 06:00pm

Tel: +44 (0) 1273 727 205
Web: http://www.bohogelato.co.uk/
FB: https://www.facebook.com/bohogelato

Tea Time at Lords of the Manor @ Upper Slaughter and Sally Lunn's @ Bath

It was 2 very fine days in the area of West England and in fact it was very hot and unusual for UK. What else could be better than chillaxing with nice cups of tea in the afternoon. One of the day we headed for an al fresco low tea at Lords of the Manor and the other day when we were in Bath we chose to revisited Sally Lunn's after almost a full decade.

Lords of the Manor @ Upper Slaughter, Gloucestershire

Map: Lords of the Manor @ Upper Slaughter, Gloucestershire

Charged Price: GBP25.00 per person + 10% service charge for afternoon tea set

Visited: 29 June 2015

Food: 7/10

Atmosphere: 8/10

Value for money: 2/10

Services: 7/10
Scale: [1=poor ---- 5=average/standard ---- 10=outstanding/exceptional]

Lords of the Manor is a rather prestigious hotel in the area of Upper Slaughter in Gloucestershire. A beautiful hotel indeed. The restaurant of Lords of the Manor also comes with 1 Michelin Star price tag.

As mentioned, it was a beautiful day and why would ones choose to have their tea in the living as usual. Al fresco was without doubt our choice. The front lawn was gorgeous and spacious looking towards the old building of Lords of the Manor.

beautiful Lords of the Manor at Upper Slaughter

al fresco afternoon tea

hotel entrance in monochrome

Afternoon Tea Set (7/10) at Lords of the Manor comes in rather unusual format than other places. I have seen many places that offer free flow format but it is not the case here. The set comprised of finger sandwiches, 2 scones (plain and fruit), and small bites pastries. You may well go for a fancier set with an addition of GBP10 for a glass of Champagne Laurent Perrier Brut.

Sandwiches came in 4 styles: egg mayonnaise and cress, Gloucester cheddar, cucumber, and smoked salmon, cream cheese and dill. Nice but not great in my opinion. Scones were as well in the similar line. Delicious enough but not to die for. It was not as smooth as expected and the clotted cream was lighter than my liking. I am one of those who love thick kind of cream.

For selection of tea, there are about ten kinds to be chosen from. Ranging from classic black tea for consumption with milk to aromatic kind of range to Chinese tea. Delicious selection. To me, this is a beautiful place and it is good for a relaxing afternoon chitchatting with friends or even business talk. But on a nice Summer day only. Otherwise, it would not worth a detour. The afternoon tea set was good but the price tag was ways too high for what you get if without beautiful day and view.

Afternoon Tea Set (GBP25.00)

finger sandwiches

scones with clotted cream and jam

clotted cream and jam on scones is almost the best afternoon treat

small dessert bites

Lords of the Manor @ Upper Slaughter, Gloucestershire

Upper Slaughter
Gloucestershire
GL54 2JD
United Kingdom

Open Hours: Mon - Sat from 12:00pm - 05:30pm and Sun from 03:30pm - 05:30pm
Tel: +44 (0) 1451 820 696
Web: http://www.lordsofthemanor.com/
FB: https://www.facebook.com/LordsOfTheManorHotel

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Sally Lunn's @ Bath

Map: Sally Lunn's @ Bath

Charged Price: GBP9.00 per person without alcohol

Visited: 27 June 2015

Food: 6/10

Atmosphere: 4/10

Value for money: 4/10

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

Let me skip the history and legacy of Sally Lunn's and go straight to the point here. For those who have not heard about Sally Lunn's, this is a very very famous tea house that serves its own special bun with tea instead of scone. It is located right in the centre of Bath. You won't miss it. Ask anyone there and they should be able to guide to the direction.

Recalling our previous visit to Sally Lunn's almost a decade ago, I sort of remember that it was one fine Saturday and the place was busy with visitors. Yes, I mean busy and only busy. In contrast, Sally Lunn's now gets super famous amongst tourists and I have to say that it is crowded and packed. The queue was long when we arrived around early afternoon. No, I cannot waste my time with the queue. I decided to do some other things before returning towards late afternoon. By the time, we were seating within 10 minutes but the place was still packed.

The famouse Sally Lunn's at Bath

crowded dining hall

The bun was still as tasty as before. Its half-blood kind of texture was unique. In one sense it feels like brioche and on the other hand, it also contains some touch like scones. If you have not tried, perhaps you wanna give it a go when you are in Bath. I would say that forget about tea here. It was ok, standard quality in small pot. What I would recommend is that trying both savoury and sweet is a good experience. As in our case, we had Sally Lunn Cream Tea, which of course came with clotted cream and jam, and Sally Lunn's Bun with Salt Beef. They both were lovely. The portion can be small and you may expect one to have both savoury and sweet in a meal.

The service here was not so touchy as thought. When a place gets really busy, staffs usually cannot perform at their best capability. In overall, I believe Sally Lunn's has kept its delicacy rather well but it was just the place that was ways too crowded. If I have a chance to revisit Bath, I would not perhaps waste my time visiting Sally Lunn's but go searching some other experience. But this is an opinion of one who had visited the place though.

Sally Lunn Cream Tea (GBP6.98)

Sally Lunn's Bun with Salt Beef (GBP7.68)

Sally Lunn's @ Bath

4 North Parade Passage
Bath
BA1 1NX
United Kingdom

Open Hours: daily from 10:00am - 09:30pm (09:00pm for Sunday and 10:00pm for Friday and Saturday)

Tel: +44 (0) 1225 461 634
Web: http://www.sallylunns.co.uk/
FB: https://www.facebook.com/Sallylunnsbath

Ristorante Puny @ Portofino, Italy

Cuisine: Italian

Map: Ristorante Puny @ Portofino, Italy

Price: EUR30 per person without alcohol (what we paid for)

Visited: 11 October 2014

Food: 7/10

Atmosphere: 9/10

Value for money: 5/10

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

Portofino, at Liguria region of Italy, is indeed a dream destination for many travellers. It sure is a busy little village and harbour but can be beautiful and breathtaking during nice weather days. During our trip, we drove to Portofino from Piedmont just to stop by this famous destination. It was only a few hours that we were there but surely enough to get the feel of this place.

During lunch hour, we popped by one of the restaurant that seems to be well-known in the cyber world: Ristorante Puny. We did some research before going and this little does seem to get praised a lot and we did not hesitate to give a try. For location wise, it is sure a guarantee for fantastic spot and view. I believe it would be really romantic for a date night out dinner. Seats are organised at store front to face the harbour. We were lucky to be seated right at the front row as we were the very first to arrive. It was not really a bright weather day but nice enough to dine there. Staffs were rather cold as we felt. Nevertheless, the old man owner did take thing very actively, advising from the back row himself.

Ristorante Puny @ Portofino, Italy

al fresco seats

waterfront view of Portofino

simple basket of bread

For the dish, we had Pappardelle Portofino (8/10) and Pesce al Sale (7/10). Pappardelle Portofino was definitely a very nice tomato based pasta. A really simple looking dish but tasted wonderfully. The creamy texture and rich flavour sauce went fabulously with large pappardelle. Next was Pesce al Sale which is basically baked sea bass with salt. Nothing much fancy here but fresh sea bass baked with salt served with olive oil. Satisfaction was there for me. Fresh fish baked just right with tender texture. The rest was just salty taste on the palate and aroma of olive oil. I do like it.

Well, Ristorante Puny is not a cheap place at all but a good experience al fresco, especially when visiting with your love one. The view is remarkable. Not cheap but I would still say recommendation to anyone who is going to visit Portofino.

Pappardelle Portofino (EUR20)

Pesce al Sale (EUR30)

a lady staff dissembling the fish

Ristorante Puny @ Portofino, Italy
5 Piazza Martiri dell'Olivetta
Portofino 16034
Genoa
Italy

Open Hours: daily except Thursday 12:30pm - 02:30pm for lunch and 07:30pm - 10:30pm for dinner

Tel: +39 0185 268 037

Loca Vore and Takieng @ Renaissance Phuket Resort and Spa, Mai Khao, Phuket - โลคา โวเล และ ตะเกียง @ โรงแรมเรเนซองส์ ภูเก็ต รีสอร์ทแอนด์สปา หาดไม้ขาว จังหวัดภูเก็ต

Almost half a year has gone by and here is the last topic from the Phuket trip during December 2013. As we chose Renaissance Phuket Resort and Spa at Mai Khao to stay over the vacation, we, thus had some chances to try restaurants within the hotel. The two we would like to present this time are Loca Vore and Takieng.

Cuisine: International / Buffet

Map: Loca Vore @ Renaissance Phuket Resort and Spa, Mai Khao, Phuket - โลคา โวเล @ โรงแรมเรเนซองส์ ภูเก็ต รีสอร์ทแอนด์สปา หาดไม้ขาว จังหวัดภูเก็ต

Price: ~ THB700 per person without alcohol

Visited: 18 December 2013

Food: 6/10

Atmosphere: 8/10

Value for money: 7/10

Services: 8/10
Scale: [ 1=poor ----- 5=average/standard ----- 10=outstanding/exceptional ]

Loca Vore is the destination in the hotel where food are served all day. In the morning, this is where hotel clients have a beautiful breakfast. The atmosphere is tremendous and we really love it. If the weather is not too hot nor to humid, al fresco is a must must thing (at least we would recommend it). What can be more relaxing than a breakfast with a nice view and good food. The place is rather big in fact. Thus, 30 guests all at the same for breakfast is sure not a problem here. The service is also great here. Staffs are friendly and helpful.

At the price of THB700 per head for buffet breakfast, we would not say it is cheap. But this is not as well so expensive for the range of food you get. Choices vary from pastry and bread counter to the counter of typical breakfast like sausages and bacon to the healthy fruit juice station. The favourite part for kids may get the ice-cream corner where there are around 10 choices of ice-cream to be chosen from. For us, the egg station has always been the must go destination. We had egg benedict which was enjoyable.

Well, this is sure another top hotel breakfast in Thailand. Still the one we like the most is the breakfast at Evason Hua Hin but Loca Vore is indeed in a comparable standard.

Open Hours: daily for breakfast, lunch, and dinner from around 6am to 9pm

_________________________________________________

Cuisine: Thai

Map: Takieng @ Renaissance Phuket Resort and Spa, Mai Khao, Phuket - ตะเกียง @ โรงแรมเรเนซองส์ ภูเก็ต รีสอร์ทแอนด์สปา หาดไม้ขาว จังหวัดภูเก็ต

Price: THB850 per person without alcohol (what we paid for)

Visited: 18 December 2013

Food: 7/10

Atmosphere: 8/10

Value for money: 7/10

Services: 7/10
Scale: [ 1=poor ----- 5=average/standard ----- 10=outstanding/exceptional ]

Takieng is the Thai restaurant of Renaissance Phuket Resort and Spa. It operates during dinner period only. The style of this place is kind of chill and relax. There are also outdoor seats with good view of the beach. During high season, I would recommend anyone who is going to visit Takieng to make reservation as the place can be full. Hotel guests seem to like this place a lot. To be honest, the ambient is clam and relax, service is friendly, food tastes nice, and pricing is in the acceptable range. These are why Takieng can be popular amongst hotel guests though local Phuket food is very famous.

Thai food at Takieng comprises of both typical Thai food and local Southern Thai food. All of which came at moderate taste, meaning taste of herbs and spices was presented well but each dish was not too hot nor too spicy. For us, we had 3 dishes here: 1 Southern dish and 2 ordinary. The first one was phad meang goong sieb - ผัดเหมียงกุ้งเสียบ (7/10). Meang is a local Phuket vegetable that is similar to spinach but a little crispier texture and with unique aroma. When stir-fried with smoked shrimp, it can be pretty delicious. Takieng also made this pretty nicely as in those local stores.

Next was choo chee ped krob - ฉู่ฉี่เป็ดกรอบ (6/10). This dish was enjoyable. The curry paste was full of spices but not really spicy which suits my liking but might be the case for other locals. The dish came with tomato and lychee, similar to gang phed ped yang (grilled duck in red curry sauce), which helped balancing the hot flavour. Lastly, it was pla krapong with takieng sauce - ปลากะพงซอสตะเกียง (7/10). This tasted pretty much like tom kha. Instead of using chicken, sea bass was deep-fried and served with herbal coconut milk sauce. I like this one a lot.

For us, Takieng is a decent Thai restaurant that we would not mind dining every evening if we were to stay at Renaissance Phuket Resort and Spa during a vacation. Driving into Phuket town from Mai Khao can take half an hour and this can be tiring, so why not at all to have decent food in the hotel.

complimentary crackers

phad meang goong sieb - ผัดเหมียงกุ้งเสียบ (THB250)

choo chee ped krob - ฉู่ฉี่เป็ดกรอบ (THB420)

zoom up to duck curry

pla krapong with takieng sauce - ปลากะพงซอสตะเกียง (THB840)

zoom up to sea bass

Open Hours: daily for dinner from around 05:30pm

555 Moo 3
Mai Khao, Talang

Phuket 83110

Thailand

Tel: +66 (0) 76 363 999
Web: http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/hktbr-renaissance-phuket-resort-and-spa/
FB: https://www.facebook.com/renphuket