We called in unannounced one night last week, and Joe was
his usual effusive self as we approached the narrow entrance, lined with
bottles of (Italian) wine. If you have not been there before, after the wine
“cellar” you go through a small wine bar, and then into the dining
areas. Joe claims he has “the largest selection of Italian wines in
Pattaya,” with house wines on tap and specials such as a most inexpensive
Sicilian Shiraz all the way through to Brunello Montalcino and Solaia at
25,000 baht. He also has a fine selection of different grappas.
From the wine bar, it is into the air-conditioned dining
section, decked out with salmon pink walls, Italian bric-a-brac and art (all
from Verona, Joe’s home town, he will be quick to tell you), and then
finally to the covered area out over the water. This seats around 50 diners
under overhead fans, to keep the cooling sea breezes circulating. The tables
are covered in red tablecloths with white throw-overs and the bench seating
is padded.
Along with the new name, Joe has printed new menus, all
very arty, but do remember your reading glasses as the type face is quite
small. Every item on Joe’s menu is home made, all from the original
Italian old style recipes. The menu covers antipasti, starters and salad,
ranging in price between B. 50-350, with many dedicated vegetarian items on
offer. Next up are pastas and soups (around B. 140-200), then seafood with
the majority B 150-300.
Mains cover the full Italian range with most between B.
200-350, pizzas (around B. 140-250) and finally desserts and coffees. There
is also a small Thai menu for anyone who has not understood this is an
Italian restaurant!
If you like Italian food keep these in mind. In the pasta
line-up, the vegetarian tortelloni alla ricotta e spinaci has a superb
flavour. For lovers of gorgonzola, the pan fried beef steak that comes
pocketed with gorgonzola, with a fresh gorgonzola sauce with red wine is an
aromatic delight. Another excellent meat dish is the pork medallions, with a
mushroom and Madeira sauce, wonderfully tender meat and a smooth sauce.
Joe’s pickles are home-made, the Don will proudly tell you, as are his
grilled aubergines and sun-dried tomatoes and cocktail onions.
The mixed antipasti platter with its various salami
selections is very pleasant and a great way to settle into an Italian
evening meal, and an opportunity to let the wine breathe a little.
However, despite all the menu choices, we have come to
learn that the best way to eat at Don Joe is to let “The Don” himself
suggest, and just agree, sit back and enjoy. In the meantime, his bevy of
young ladies, all fetchingly dressed in (some of the shortest) black skirts,
shirts and black caps will keep you in wine, and entertain your children.
Da Joe, and now called Don Joe, remains one of the Dining
Out Team’s favorite Italian restaurants. This is not haute cuisine, this
is very filling home made Italian repasts. No ceremony, just a great Italian
evening. Best with a group, in the true Italian family way. You will enjoy
it, and The Don will look after you. Highly recommended.
Don Joe, Ristorante Italiano, 112/2 Moo 10, Walking Street, South
Pattaya, telephone 038 710 733, open 4 p.m. until midnight (last orders 11
p.m. as Joe won’t be hurried). Visa, MasterCard and Diners Club cards
accepted. Park round the back of Marine Hotel for B. 20.
Six
years is a long time in the Pattaya restaurant business, and in “The
Strip” (Walking Street), six years is several lifetimes. But here he is,
Joe Parlati with his Italian English and his big smile, still at the upper
end of Walking Street (almost opposite Tony’s Nightclub) about 50 meters
past the Marine Bar, heading towards Nang Nual and the Siam Bayshore Hotel.
The restaurant used to be called Da Joe (Joe’s Place), but about a year
ago it became Don Joe (shortly after Joe had a painting done, with him
standing, like the Dons of old, with his hand on Marlon Brando’s shoulder,
as the Godfather!).