Looking for a Phuket restaurant with romantic views that impressed yet not burn a huge hole in the pockets is not mission impossible. A little sniffing around Phuket for romantic but affordable restaurants led us to the discovery of several quaint eateries. Here’s my list of romantic yet affordable Phuket restaurants:
Funky Dinner Date – Tamachart
Beginning our journey from Phuket Town, we were enticed into Tamachart Restaurant on Soi Phutorn by its eclectic decor – a mish mash of traditional Thai ornaments surrounded by random gadgets, including fish tanks made of disused television sets and hanging plants! The menu comprises more than 200 Chinatown style dishes (complete with photos) was a little overwhelming, but kept our taste buds busy with delicious offerings of chicken curry, sea bass in lemon sauce and crispy prawn pancakes. This restaurant is semi-outdoors: if you choose to sit upstairs and it rains, you’re likely to get wet.
Romantic Hilltop Sunset Dinner – Tung Ka Cafe
There are many sunset dinner locations in Phuket, but the one we tried came recommended for its hill top views: Tung Ka Cafe, a terraced restaurant nestled up on a hill from Khao Rang (Phuket Town), and hidden amongst leafy foliage whilst overlooking the glittering city lights below. As advised, we came way before sunset, so we were able to secure a table with an excellent view, which came in handy for the gorgeous sunset view thereafter.
Foodwise, this affordable Phuket restaurant offers more than a hundred Thai favourites: the seafood selection is pretty wide. What we liked about Tung Ka cafe was that the cafe menu entices you to stay, way after dinner is completed: there’s like 16 varieties of chilled coffee to choose from (or something from the dessert section). Relatively peaceful, and boasting an uncluttered view from the north to south bays of Phuket, Tung Ka is definitely a place for photography enthusiasts – picture perfect postcards.
Italian Restaurant with Stunning Views – La Gritta
Our meal at La Gritta was right next to the beach, overlooking the entire Patong Bay… need we say more? This affordable Phuket restaurant was surprisingly quiet, even though the area is well known for its sizzling nightlife. This Italian restaurant offers pizzas and pastas, but we liked the daily specials. The view here comes with a price, though… Appetizers start at around 250 baht; mains are around 300-600 baht, but are still affordable for a hotel-class restaurant. If it rains, there is an indoor seating area, but it is the outdoor seating area where the sea breeze and the view is stunning.
Phuket Seafood Restaurant – Kan [email protected]
Any Island Getaway is definitely not complete without a satisfying fresh seafood meal – and in Phuket, it should ideally be located right on the beach front, have a stylishly romantic feel, and it needed to be affordable! In the end, we settled for Kan [email protected] (Kan Eang means to ‘feel at ease’).
Located South East of Phuket Town, along Chalong Bay, we were welcomed by the wooden deck facade, and beautiful view of the bay and boats parked in the distance. Kan [email protected] is untainted by city sounds, and offers a large variety of seafood, including giant oysters and lobsters, as well as unusual and irresistible offerings such as the horse shoe crab.
