Pattaya Fish and Chip Shop Review

My origins lie in the North East of England where in my youth Fish and Chips were a staple food. Although I spent most of my early years living in Kuwait we returned at intervals to Durham and a regular once or twice weekly meal of Fish and Chips. I loved them then and I love them now. I consider myself an expert, perhaps the worlds expert (who knows?) on Fish and Chips.

The best I have tasted in the UK outside of the North East were in Rhos on Sea in North Wales and at a chippy close to Donna Nook in Lincolnshire. The best I have eaten outside of the UK were in Luang Prabang in Laos. In fact those Fish and Chips came very close to being the best I have eaten anywhere. Perhaps my taste buds were homesick.

I prefer cod for the fish and chips should be from real potatoes and not some chewed up reconstituted mush. The batter is all important too. Extras like mushy peas or scraps are all very nice in their way but should not deflect away from the two essential items.

I decided on a Pattaya Fish and Chip Shop Review in light of the fact that there are three different Fish and Chip Shops advertising their wares with regularity on Pattaya TV and Radio. They each make various claims which I thought important to follow up.

Most restaurants in Pattaya will serve Fish and Chips in any case and some of them are really quite good but for the purposes I am concentrating here on those establishments which specialise in the combination.

'The Jolly Friar' is a fairly new Fish and Chip restaurant located on Soi Chayapoon. It is a neat clean and tidy establishment and very 'English' in appearance. There is both outside and inside dining. Most of the 12 tables will seat four people. The tables are all covered in clean blue and white tablecloths and the solid cuttlery is wrapped in matching blue napkins. A large flat screen TV showed the BBC news.

There was a choice of five different fish including Parrot Fish and these could all be had in either beer batter or bread crumbs. There was also fish cakes, scampi and a range of other English dishes and a good range of Thai dishes too.

As I aim to have consistency for comparison in the Fish and Chip restaurants I review I chose:

Cod in beer batter 250 grammes for 140 baht

Chips were sold separate which I think is a bit daft in a restaurant situation but as they came in three different portion sizes then perhaps not. There was small at 40 Baht, Medium at 50 Baht and 60 Baht for large.

I chose a medium portion and a pot of tea which was 40 Baht.

Service was surprisingly quick. The fish was well cooked in a nice crunchy batter. The chips were well cooked, perhaps a little too chunky for my tastes but there was plenty of them. Too many really because I left several on my plate. The dish was accompanied by a small dish of tartar sauce. There was a good range of other condiments on the table.

The bill came to 220 Baht.

Would I eat here again? Yes and I would recommend the establishment to others. This is an upper class English Fish and Chip restaurant uprooted and transplanted in Pattaya. It is the real thing. When I left each table had one or two people sitting at it which gives an indication that this place is quickly becoming popular.

Gooses Fish and Chips on Second Road between Soi 7 and 8 gives the appearance of coming out of the same fish and chip shop store as the Jolly Friar. It is different in appearance but only slightly so. There are 10 tables including those outside offering seating for perhaps 40 people.

Goose's is set a little back from the road and is quite easy to miss unless you are specifically looking for it. It needs something striking in the way of signage to draw attention. A goose perhaps.

Again a very clean establishment with nice crockery and tablecloths. Here though there were paper napkins as against the cloth ones in the Jolly Friar. The place did have a very 'seasidey' feel to it and I thought that the saucy postcards on the table were an amusing and original touch. There was no TV but the music was a nice mix.

Again there was a good range of fish on offer. Apart from the Cod these included Haddock, Pacific Dory and Turbot. There were a range of other dishes on offer too including Thai food.

My brief was to choose a meal as near as possible equivalent to that eaten in the Jolly Friar. There were two choices on the Cod. Cod Fillet at 295 or Cod Loin* at 270 Baht for a 200 gramme portion.

The difference here though was that chips were included in the meal and were not an extra. Plus there was a choice of two types of peas or beans included in the price. I ordered Tetley Tea for 40 Baht to wash the meal down. Again a small dish of Tartar sauce was included.

With my 40 Baht Tetley tea the whole deal cost 310 Baht. I consider this very expensive.

*Just what exactly is cod loin? I appreciate the term has crept into common usage these past few years but to me it fits into my 'leg of liver and cows wings' category. It just makes no real sense. Quadruped mammals and man have loins. Fish do not.

'The Village Chippy' is located just off 3rd Road in central Pattaya It is easily found. Head up from Soi Bukhao by way of either Soi Lengkee or Soi Chaiyapoon. Cross over the road and walk right. Shortly you will pass the Buffalo Bar. A lttle after this is the turning for the Village Chippy.

The Village Chippy is a much smaller establishment than the other two and a very much quieter location too. It is a very attractive little restaurant and much different in appearance to the other two. It is simpler but spotlessly clean. There is no inside seating so it is limited to ten people on four tables on the outside.

Again a range of different meals is available. For the purposes of this review I once again made a choice of the nearest equivalent. Here it was a medium Cod at 130 Baht. Once again the chips were an extra and there was a choice of two sizes. I went for the medium at 40 Baht.
Tetley tea for one was just 25 Baht here. Total cost then was 195 Baht and considerably cheaper than the other two.

All three Fish and Chip restaurants were good and I would have no hesitation in recommending any of them. Price does however play a big part today and I thought that these were pricey.

The Fish in Jolly Friar was excellent as was the batter but the Chips were better at Goose's Fish and Chip Shop. The Village was ahead of Goose's battered Cod and better than the Jolly Friars Chips. 

Costs:

The Jolly Friar 220 Baht

Goose's 310 Baht

The Village Chippy 195 Baht

So they were all good but my first choice would be The Village Chippy because the meal was tasty, the price was right but mainly for one thing. Location! The Village is like being in another world. It as if Pattaya does not exist. Here all is calm relaxed and atmospheric. A great place to sit and eat.

Read more about Pattaya in THE PATTAYA HUBS