The Krabi restaurant guide - November 2005

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This month, treat yourself to a fish feast at one of Krabi’s top seafood eateries

YOU may be forgiven for thinking that, as Krabi is next to the sea, it must be easy to find great seafood. True, there are any number of establishments in the tourist areas of Saladan and Ao Nang with the ubiquitous snapper and jumbo prawns (usually from a farm) laid out on ice. They all serve quite good food that tastes pretty nice - especially if you’re not used to eating fresh fish regularly.

But for true seafood addicts, dedicated fish restaurants that have both a wide range of produce and a turnover high enough to guarantee prime freshness, are few and far between.

Below, we list some we think are worth seeking out. All of them offer live seafood, essential for shellfish and crabs, although (if you’re really picky) the flavour of fish can be compromised by keeping them for long periods in tanks. All are also frequented by locals, which ensures high turnaround as well as reasonable prices.

Laem Sak Seafood
LAEM SAK Seafood is at the end of a very long road, starting from Ao Luk and ending at the sea. Yet people from all over the province will happily make the 30km detour to sample the delights of this unassuming restaurant.

Why? For a start, Laem Sak has access to one of the region’s best fishing ports. Daily local catches include huge oysters (available year round, 20B each), the southern Thai speciality of pu dam (mud crabs, with enormous, juicy claws) as well as glistening squid and wonderfully tender soft-shelled crabs (pu nim). All fish can be simply steamed or grilled, or else served Thai-style in a spicy salad or curry.

Need more reasons? It’s cheap and the view is amazing. Turn left onto Route 4039 at the Ao Luk crossroads and go straight until you hit Laem Sak school. The restaurant is 20m on the left. Make a day of it by visiting the caves at Pee Hua To on the way.

Laem Sak Pier, Ao Luk. Open daily 10am - 9pm

Thara Kitchen
THARA KITCHEN has perhaps the best selection of seafood in Ao Nang, with a particularly large range of local shellfish. Cooked Thai style, stir-fried with basil and chilli, or in a salad, these are sublime. If you like plain steamed shellfish, try the delicious Krabi native hawy chakteen.

Most days, there are also good crabs and sometimes even lobster available - look in the tanks at the front of the restaurant.

Thara Kitchen is part of a seafood strip catering mainly to Thai tourists on Nopparat Thara Beach, with no English sign. You can locate it as it is the second from the end, with brightly coloured murals on the wall.

Next to National Park HQ, Nopparat Thara. Open daily 11am - 9pm

Krabi Fishing Park
IT’S a great gimmick: catch your own supper. The beautiful surroundings of Krabi Fishing Park make an ideal place to while away a few hours in your own private pagoda. Simply hire a rod and line (60-100 Baht for the day, depending on how fancy you want it) and take your chances.

The odds are in your favour: the lake is teeming with catfish, tilapia and carp and the park restaurant will cook whatever you catch (price per kilo). Those too hungry to wait, or who prefer saltwater fish, can pick directly from the wide-ranging menu and be served lakeside by charming staff on bicycles.

Take Route 4 out of Krabi Town in the direction of Phuket. At the golf driving range, turn right and follow the signs to the park, about 1km back from the main road.

Off Route 4, about 6km out of town. Open daily till 10pm

As a matter of principle, please do not eat in any restaurants that serve shark. These creatures are endangered in local waters and should not be being served up in soup. Restaurants in Ao Nang, particularly along the seafood strip at the end of the beach are common culprits. If you do see a shark on ice, do voice your concern. Only if consumers protest, will the restaurants stop.

Fresh Restaurant
TUCKED far away from the tourist crowds down in the sleepy Old Town in Ko Lanta, Fresh Restaurant serves perhaps the best seafood on the island.

The restaurant itself is housed in one of the beautiful old wooden shophouses that line the main road and extend backwards over the shoreline. The views from the open dining room are stunning.

If you’re renting a car or motorbike to explore the island, this is an ideal stop for lunch. Fat, juicy sea prawns can be grilled or baked with salt; fresh squid is excellent in a spicy Thai salad and a whole fish (ask what is available that day) can be steamed, fried or served in red curry sauce (chu chi).

Prices are surprisingly low, even for a local Thai restaurant, so there’s no need to skimp on your order - the only problem will be if you’re too stuffed to drive back.

In Lanta Old Town, on the main road. Open daily 9am - 9pm

Wang Sai Seafood
WANG SAI's location, directly on the beach, means it is on the pricey side, compared to our other picks: however, it is probably the best seafood restaurant in Ao Nang and is not more expensive than any of the other places in the tourist centre.

Tanks at the entrance to the restaurant are filled with four or five varieties of fish, as well as crabs and clams. Unfortunately, the English menu is only a partial translation of the much wider Thai menu and so does not include some great salads such as yam thaleh makheua pao (seafood with chargrilled aubergine) or catfish red curry (pad phet pla duuk). However, you are welcome to ask for whatever you want.

For a special night out, walk from Ao Nang in the direction of Nopparat Thara. Wang Sai is located just across the bridge.

Nopparat Thara Beach. Open daily 10am - 10pm

Tha Sai Seafood
TECHNICALLY in Phang Nga province (just over the border with Krabi), this charming riverside restaurant makes a good stop on the way to or from Phuket.

Arranged over several levels on the river bank, all tables overlook the wide, mangrove-lined waterway and the hlls of Phang Nga; and a ‘waterfall wall’ adds to the peaceful ambience. The seafood, of course, is excellent - the place is always packed with Thai people at the weekend - and comes in a good variety of dishes, such as the southern Thai curry kaeng som; some spicy salads; and delicous stir-fried crab claws.

If you prefer your seafood simply prepared, they are also able to grill, steam or bake without spices. The restaurant has a big signboard on the main road or take a left turn to Ban Tha Sai.

On the road from Krabi to Phuket, turn left at Ban Tha Sai. Open daily till 7pm

Best of the rest
Lanta Seafood in Ban Saladan is considered to be the best of the bunch along the seafront road - probably because the fishing boats stop there first every day, giving them the pick of the catch. Sala Thai, at the very end of the seafood strip in Ao Nang is the oldest and best of this crowd, while Aree Seafood near the PP Family pier in Krabi Town is the place local Thai people go to eat. Had Sai Seafood in Neua Klong is also worth a stop if you are driving down to Long Beach or Ko Jum.

Seafood picks
pu : crab
pla krabawk : mullet
pla kapong : snapper
pla insee : kingfish
pla dook : catfish
hawy maeng pu : mussels
hawy chakteen : Krabi shellfish
hawy nang rom : oysters
hawy waan : clams