Somboon Seafood, a Thai-Chinese Restaurant chain, boasts to-die-for fried curry crabs (Pu Pad Pong Gari) and a remarkably fresh seafood menu. Incredible taste and reasonably priced seafood meal is the name of the game here. It is a definite must-add to your list of restaurants to visit in Bangkok. Don’t leave Bangkok without dinner here at least once.
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Choosing a Somboon Seafood Outlet
There is no shortage of Somboon Seafood outlets. As a matter of fact, it has 8 outlets across Bangkok.
- Banthadthong (Nearest BTS Station: National Stadium)
- Surawong (Nearest BTS Station: Chong Nonsi)
- Ratchada (Nearest MRT Station: Huai Khwang)
- Udom Suk – Bangna (Recommended to take a Grab/Taxi)
- Samyan (Nearest MRT Station: Sam Yan)
- Central Embassy (Nearest BTS Station: Phloen Chit)
- Siam Square One – SQ1 (Nearest BTS Station: Siam Station)
- CentralWorld (Nearest BTS Station: Siam Station)
The famous outlet that won Somboon Seafood Michelin Guide acclaim is the Surawong outlet.
The most centrally located outlets are Central Embassy, Siam Square One, and CentralWorld. All these outlets are in the main Bangkok shopping district and within walking distance of each other.
I personally chose to visit the Ratchada outlet as it’s just at the doorstep of the Huai Khwang metro station. Along the same metro line, there are 2 popular night markets, The One Ratchada and Jodd Fairs Rama 9, reachable in 1 and 2 stops respectively.
Somboon Seafood @ Ratchada Address and Details
- 167/9-12 Ratchadaphisek Rd, Din Daeng, Bangkok 10400, Thailand
- Open Daily from 11 am to 10 pm (Open on Google Maps)
What We Ate at Somboon Seafood
You’ll have no issues ordering anything on the menu. They offer Thai, Chinese, and English versions of the menu. The quality of the seafood served at Somboon Seafood is seriously very good and is well worth the price.
Fried Curry Crabs
This is the main event and after eating this, I can see why. Expect soft, sweet crabs drenched in sinful eggy curry sauce. The curry sauce isn’t too spicy but is fragrant and chock full of Thai spices. Some may feel this is too oily, but I found it hard to resist drenching my bowl of Jasmine rice with this curry concoction.
Even though the curry sauce is rich and flavorful, the crabs are so sweet and succulent, you can still taste their natural flavor. The crab flesh is so fresh that it can be peeled in beautiful full chunks right off the shell.
Have problems with peeling and eating the crabs? Let a Somboon server know, and within minutes they’ll crack the crabs even more for you or if you need, they can also deshell it. That is truly remarkable top-notch service.
Tom Yum Goong
Tom Yum Goong is a hot and spicy soup with prawns. This is the mainstay dish in Thailand. Would any seafood dinner be complete without Tom Yum Goong?
Somboon Seafood does Tom Yum Goong so well. You can choose how spicy you’d like your Tom Yum Goong to be when you order and it is served piping hot on your table in a large metal pot.
The broth is tangy, just the right bit of sweet and spicy. The prawns are ridiculously fresh and plump, sliced into halves, and you can peel them cleanly off the shell without struggle.
Deep-fried Grouper with Crispy Basil
Another of my favorite dishes from Somboon Seafood is this Deep-Fried Grouper with Crispy Basil. The fish is fried Chinese style – super crisp right down to the bones. Fried chili, garlic, and basil cover the fish generously.
While most fried fish can taste dry, the deep-fried grouper has a wonderful texture. The flakey fish is still soft and juicy, and not the least bit dry.
Stir-Fried Vegetables
We had the stir-fried kai lan with pork belly and generous portions of pork lard. Very oily, but extremely good.
The Verdict
The total damage came up to less than S$100. While by no means cheap by Thai standards, this is a real treat for those of us who are used to paying for sub-standard seafood dinners in Singapore that easily cost double or even triple the cost of having dinner at Somboon Seafood.
It was an unforgettable dinner and is now on my list of places to revisit if I ever visit Bangkok again in the near future.
If you find this review useful, you can buy me pasta!
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