One of the best remembered theme buffets is arranged at
the Montien Hotel on Second Road (just before the Hard Rock Hotel). During
the low season, some of these buffets go into recess, but the International
and BBQ Seafood Buffet Dinner is back!
Now there was talk a couple of years ago that the Montien was going to be
knocked down and relocated. Plans may still exist, but I can assure you that
right now the Montien is very much alive and well! Don’t worry, Pattaya’s
‘icon’ is still there. Actually I have a soft spot for the Montien, having
stayed there in 1975 when it was the Regent of Pattaya, and the pool and
gardens are still every bit as good as they were back then.
We
were met in the marble lobby by Pornpimon Geybui, the Montien’s PR lady, who
is always so happy to see the Dining Out team.
The buffet is in the Verandah Coffee Shop, which overlooks the free-form
pool. The outer section is covered and supplied by the bay breezes, while
the rear section behind glass is air-conditioned. Interestingly, the
tourists all went for sea breezes, while the residents go for the air-con!
The ambience is one of being very relaxed, with the attentive staff in
floral outfits and gentle background music. We joined the relaxed movement
with a glass of well-chilled white wine, before we went outside the air-con
area to take in the buffet items. I do recommend you spend time to
familiarize yourselves with what is on offer, rather than rushing in and
finding no more room left for something else you really enjoy.
There had been a change of executive chef since our last
visit, and the new chef had certainly risen to the occasion with the range
of food. We were pleased to see that the previously high standard of
presentation was still there.
After my initial ‘fact-finding’ foray I began with oysters natural on ice,
with lemon and a dash of Thai hot sauce. A great start to the buffet.
On the table are some small laminated numbers, which you
take to give to the chefs at the live cooking stations. I then went to the
flambé live cooking station and selected a couple of chicken breasts with a
curry sauce for a change. Our service lady said she would pick the dish up
for me when it was ready, so I sauntered over to the hot food section and
chose a pork medallion on mango salsa with some additional mashed potato
with roasted garlic.
I did not have to wait long for the curried chicken
breast, and it was delightful, but more on that later. After my chicken I
went for something from the Thai food selection and chose stir-fried pork
with garlic and peppercorn. What I do like with the Montien buffets is the
fact that the amount of food in the warmers is kept low, so that you are
getting freshly cooked food at all times, not something that has been
languishing there for the past couple of hours.
Meanwhile, Madame was making quick work on hot smoked duck breast with
orange cream as a starter, followed by some BBQ’d rock lobster and Thai
desserts. I indulged in ice cream and chocolate topping!
Montien’s International and BBQ Seafood Buffet is B. 995
net, with children B. 550 net. With over 100 items and several live cooking
stations, this represents excellent value in today’s crowded marketplace.
The previous high standard has been maintained and the choices almost
endless. For me, my favorite dish that evening was the curry sauce BBQ
chicken breasts. Not too spicy but best described as piquant. But there is
so much more, you will never get through all the choices in a month of
Saturdays! By the way, the items also change each week, so make that a year
of Saturdays!
Montien’s International and BBQ Seafood Buffet is on
Saturday evenings 6.30 p.m. to 10 p.m. Montien Hotel, Pattaya Second Road
(about 100 meters past Pattaya Klang intersection and before the Hard Rock
Hotel), telephone 038 428 155-6, email pattaya@montien .com, web
www.montien.com, secure parking in hotel grounds.
