Baan Itsara, Hua Hin, Thailand

 Second day we off to the royal town of Hua Hin for a nice beach resort getaway! Not forgetting to stop by another popular Thai restaurant for more Thai food goodness. Once again checking my trusty guides ...

Lonely planet : #10 of 36 things to do in Hua Hin

                                   #4 of 23 seafood restaurants in Thailand

 Well I have no doubt in my mind that there are more than 23 seafood restaurants in Thailand ... so I doubt all these lists have much significance. Anyway! The place is located next to the sea so you do get a decent (albeit chilly) sea breeze during your meal. Definitely not recommended during monsoon however!

 Once again we stuck to our usual favourites, including - yes! - the deep fried fish with Thai fish sauce. Have to say the taste doesn't vary too much from place to place, and even the sauce tastes rather similar to ones we've had in Bangkok.

{ Deep Fried Snowfish with Fish Sauce}

 We saw this rather peculiar dish being served so we asked the waiter what it was - mixed seafood in sweet basil. And wowzers, while not looking too palatable, taste was simply spectacular! Imagine really deep flavoured, rich pesto (no nuts though, just basil) with mixed seafood. So liberal with the basil the fragrance and herbiness was unbelievable. And very generous with the seafood as well! 

{ Mixed Seafood with Sweet Basil }

 Some were big fans of the Thai style oyster omelette so we tried this rendition - have to say this was a little too awkward for me. While these omelettes have that pasty, gooey flour bits, this was a little wayyyy too gooey and it tasted raw and undercooked. The egg itself was slightly undercooked as well - most of us preferred it slightly crispy.

{Thai style Oyster Omelette }

 Ah, vermicelli with crab claw or prawn never fails to remind me of this classic. This is actually my first try in a long long long LONG time, and while it tastes great it's not quite my cup of tea! Cooked in pork fat and sacks of herbs in the bottom, it's important to mix it properly to get the fat and herb juices well coated before eating. Pre-mixing, the noodles will be dry; post-mixing, the noodles will be glazed with the fatty oily goodness but it was a little too much for me! Prawns were huge and fresh though.

{ Baked Prawn with Vermicelli }

 The signature sweet basil dish definitely left a long lasting impression in my mind! And if you're itching for dessert after a hearty seafood meal, across the road from Baan Itsara is a nice little "eighteen below ice cream" that serves great coconut ice cream :)