Quick answer
Korean restaurants in Pattaya cluster along Second Road, Soi Buakhao and the central stretch of Beach Road. The densest group, known as Korean Town, is on Second Road beside Tiffany's Show in North Pattaya. A pork and chicken grill buffet costs about 330 to 400 THB per person with a 90 minute table limit, seafood and beef tiers 400 to 500 THB, and an à la carte barbecue dinner 500 to 900 THB per person. Supermarkets in the big malls stock kimchi, ramyeon, gochujang and soju.
Korea is one of Pattaya's largest visitor markets, and the city feeds it well. Tour groups, golfers and families staying a week or more all want the same thing at some point: a charcoal or gas grill in the middle of the table, a spread of side dishes and a pot of stew. Most Korean kitchens sit in central Pattaya, in the grid between Beach Road, Second Road and Soi Buakhao, with a few more near the hotels of North Pattaya. This guide covers where to look, what a meal costs and where to shop for Korean ingredients.
Where are the Korean restaurants in Pattaya?
The main cluster follows Pattaya Second Road (Pattaya Sai 2) from the Dolphin Roundabout in the north down to Central Pattaya Road. Its core is the block beside Tiffany's Show, which restaurant listings label Korean Town: several grill buffets and home-style kitchens stand side by side there, most of them open from 11:00 to 22:00. Signs in Hangul mark more barbecue houses along the road and in the sois that connect it to Beach Road. A second, cheaper group of grill buffets lines Soi Buakhao and Central Pattaya Road (Pattaya Klang), one block inland, where rents are lower and the customers are a mix of Korean long-stay residents and Thai families.
Jomtien and Naklua have a resident Korean community but far fewer restaurants. If you are staying there, plan on a 15 to 25 minute ride into the centre for a proper barbecue dinner.
The streets themselves are described in the Central Pattaya area guide, which helps if you want a hotel within walking distance of the grills.
What kinds of Korean restaurant will you find?
Korean kitchens in Pattaya fall into three types, and the sign outside usually tells you which one you are looking at.
Grill buffets
The all-you-can-eat grill is the most common format, concentrated in Korean Town on Second Road and along Soi Buakhao. You pay a fixed price per person, choose a tier (pork and chicken, or a dearer one that adds seafood or beef) and order raw meat in rounds to cook on the gas grill at your table. Soft drinks, water and ice cream are normally included, and the table is yours for 90 minutes.
À la carte barbecue houses
These are the places for better cuts: thick pork belly, marinated beef ribs and beef sets grilled over charcoal or gas, ordered by the portion with stews and noodles on the side. The larger ones face the sea on Beach Road or sit on Second Road, have private rooms for groups and take reservations. Friday and Saturday evenings fill up, so book a table by phone or message.
Home-style restaurants
Small family-run kitchens serve stews, bibimbap, kimbap, fried chicken and set lunches without a grill. They are the cheapest way to eat Korean food and the best choice for a quick lunch or a solo meal.
How much does a Korean meal cost in Pattaya?
| Meal | Price per person (THB) | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| Grill buffet, pork and chicken | 330 to 400 | Meat for the grill, side dishes, rice, soft drinks; 90 minutes |
| Grill buffet with seafood or beef | 400 to 500 | As above, plus prawns, squid or beef |
| À la carte barbecue dinner | 500 to 900 | Two meats to share, stew, rice, side dishes |
Buffets charge for waste: raw meat ordered and left uncooked is added to the bill, a rule printed on the table card. Buffets also run on a clock, usually 90 minutes, which is enough if you order as soon as you sit down.
To see how these prices compare with Thai restaurants and food courts, see Pattaya prices and daily budgets.
What should you order at a Korean restaurant?
Menus are printed in Korean, Thai and English, usually with photographs. The dishes that Korean visitors order most are these.
- Samgyeopsal: thick slices of pork belly grilled at the table, wrapped in lettuce with garlic, green chilli and ssamjang paste.
- Galbi: beef or pork ribs marinated in soy, pear and garlic. Sweeter than plain grilled meat and popular with children.
- Kimchi jjigae and doenjang jjigae: bubbling stews of fermented cabbage or soybean paste, eaten with rice at the end of a barbecue.
- Naengmyeon: cold buckwheat noodles in an iced broth, the classic way to finish in hot weather.
- Bibimbap and jeyuk bokkeum (spicy stir-fried pork): one-plate lunches for anyone who does not want a grill.
- Fried chicken with beer: sold in the evening, either plain or glazed in a sweet chilli sauce.
Side dishes (banchan) such as kimchi, bean sprouts, pickled radish and fish cake arrive automatically and are refilled on request at no charge. Staff will light the grill, cut the meat with scissors and change the grill plate when it blackens: ask if they do not.
Where can you buy Korean groceries?
You do not need a specialist shop for the basics. Instant ramyeon, cup tteokbokki, seaweed snacks, banana milk and green-bottle soju are sold in every 7-Eleven in the city. For kimchi in tubs, gochujang, doenjang, rice cakes, frozen dumplings and thin-sliced meat for grilling at your condo, go to a full supermarket.
- Foodland at Terminal 21 Pattaya, North Pattaya: handy if you are staying near the Dolphin Roundabout.
- Tops Food Hall in Central Pattaya, Beach Road: the widest imported range in the centre.
- Big C at Central Marina, Second Road: a hypermarket, so the place for bulk noodles, sauces, rice and a tabletop gas stove.
Supermarket kimchi is the factory kind, sold in sealed tubs and pouches in the chilled aisle. Check the label for the spice level and for fish sauce or shrimp paste if you avoid seafood.
Opening hours and locations of the malls are in the Pattaya shopping malls guide.
What do Korean visitors look for in Pattaya?
Three patterns shape the Korean dining scene. Golf groups play an early round on the courses east of the city and come back wanting a stew lunch and a barbecue dinner, which is why the restaurants open by late morning and stay open through the afternoon. Package tours eat at fixed times, so the large restaurants on Second Road fill in the early evening and empty again afterwards. Long-stay families in condos cook at home and shop for ingredients weekly.
If golf is the reason for your trip, the courses, green fees and caddie customs are covered in golf around Pattaya. For Thai seafood and street food between Korean meals, start with what to eat in Pattaya.
How do you get the most from a grill buffet?
- Arrive before 18:00 or after 20:00 to avoid the tour-group rush, and no later than 20:30, since most kitchens close at 22:00.
- Check the time limit and what the price includes (drinks, ice cream, service charge) before sitting down.
- Order meat in small rounds. Unfinished raw plates are charged.
- Ask for the sesame oil and salt dip: some buffets only bring the two standard sauces unless you request it.
- Carry cash for the buffets. The larger restaurants on Beach Road and Second Road accept cards.
Frequently asked
- Is Korean barbecue in Pattaya suitable for people who do not eat pork?
- Yes, with care. Every barbecue restaurant offers beef and chicken, and the dearer buffet tiers add prawns and squid. The grill plate, tongs and scissors are shared with pork at most tables, so ask for a clean plate and separate utensils when you sit down. Several stews use pork stock or anchovy stock. Restaurants in Pattaya's Korean cluster are not halal certified.
- Do Korean restaurants in Pattaya deliver?
- Most of the restaurants on Second Road and Soi Buakhao are listed on Grab and LINE MAN, the two delivery apps used across Pattaya. Stews, bibimbap, fried chicken and kimbap travel well. The apps show the menu with photographs and the delivery fee before you confirm, and riders reach most hotels and condos in central Pattaya, Pratumnak and Jomtien. Barbecue itself is better eaten at the restaurant, hot off the grill.
- Do you need to book a Korean restaurant in Pattaya?
- On weekdays you can walk in almost anywhere. Book on Friday and Saturday evenings, during Korean holiday periods such as Chuseok and Lunar New Year, and from December to February when golf groups fill the private rooms. Most restaurants take reservations by phone, KakaoTalk or LINE, and a group of eight or more should give a day's notice.
