The next time you’re in Hua Hin and want a nice, relaxing sit-down restaurant with outdoor seating that overlooks the crashing ocean — well, this spot is great for that. Especially if it’s fresh, tasty, family-style Thai food you’re after.
Located a bit out of town near Hua Hin Soi 5, Baan Dum, which means “black house” in Thai, is housed in a pretty vintage black Thai stilt house that dates back more than a century.
The main seating area in the open-air restaurant is in the shaded area beneath the house, but seating extends across the lawn so you can get away from the throngs, take a seat in front of the band on the far side of the lawn, choose a table down by the water, or simply pull up a bean bag if you’ve only stopped in for a drink.
Take a walk down to the edge of the lawn to look down at the water, which will be crashing against a seawall five feet below — this is a waterfront restaurant, but not a beachfront one — or walk to the back to check out live tanks of live prawns and fish.
Since we were a big group and it was drizzling, we stayed in the main area, ordering several dishes to share.
We started with Yum Ta Krai Talay (THB255/US$7.8), a spicy lemongrass salad with seafood that included whole baby octopus. This fresh, chilled salad could easily make a healthy meal for one on its own.
Next up was a super savory Pu Phad Phong Karee (THB270/US$8.2), a yellow curry bursting with flavor and bits of stir-fried fresh Hua Hin crab. Just behind the curry was a festive-looking Khao Ob Subparod Talay (THB170/US$5.2), a festive half-pineapple stuffed with fruit and seafood fried rice. What wasn’t noted in the menu was that the rice would be covered with sweet pork floss, which it was, and which we weren’t into.
We tried the Goong Ob Woon Sen (THB250/US$7.6) too, a baked glass noodle and seafood dish with squid rings, fresh prawns, and slices of pork. The chewy, stretchy noodles were brought to life by generous dollops of soy sauce and fresh cilantro over the top.
After that, we tried Pla Tod Samoon Prai (market price), a whole deep-fried fish topped with a mix of Thai herbs. Among the tasty toppings were garlic, basil, galangal, chili, and cashews.
They were also accommodating to the one vegetarian member of our group. They were happy to make her a plate of Stir-Fried Vegetables (THB90/US$2.8) and Tofu Krapow (THB120/US$3.7), but the special dishes took quite some time.
A heads up to non-Thai speakers who visit this place: The staff does not really speak English, and don’t expect the kind of service that you’d get at a Western-style joint. We were having wines by both the bottle and glass, for instance, and it took a long time to get refills — it’s not a big deal when you know that wine service isn’t really built-in to the dining culture here. Just know that you might have to remind them once or twice to get that refill.
As it got dark, the globe lights on the lawn flicked on and a 2-piece Thai band took the stage, playing mostly Western covers. Considering that it was outdoors, acoustic, and they were across the lawn, the music was at a reasonable volume, meaning we could still talk at the table. This is often not the case at many similar Thai restaurants, where bands often bang out covers of Thai love songs at a volume that makes it impossible to talk and unpleasant to eat. So, we were very appreciative of the low-level music. The band was also very good.
This unpretentious restaurant is good for a family or romantic seafood dinner in the fresh air that won’t break the bank. And since it’s a bit removed from the town, it has a chill, relaxed vibe.
FIND IT:
Baan Dum
53 Phet Kasem Rd.
Hua Hun
Open daily, 12-11pm
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