Jomtien has its fair share of restaurants, but there was
no Irish-themed pub. That was until six weeks ago, when Flannigans Jomtien
opened its doors. The pub is on the ground floor of the Jomtien Complex
Condotel (just before the Jomtien Beach archway, on the right).
Flannigans is outfitted in the archetypal Irish pub fashion. Lots of wood,
black and white tiles, a central bar, and three distinct eating sections.
There is the non-smoking area close to the entrance, with booths and
alcoves, then a ‘library’ area and finally an area at the rear with tables
and chairs. There is also a section with two pool tables. Finally there is a
small beer garden area at the side, looking over the road to Jomtien Beach.
There is certainly enough of a choice.
We chose the non-smoking area near the door, and despite it being a weekday
around noon, the pub was certainly quite busy, with both tourists and
locals. Landlord Chris Quinn, who has had 40 years experience in restaurants
and pubs (he was a chef himself), said that he was very heartened by the
numbers of the clientele after just six weeks. His chef is Thai, a man who
spent 20 years in the kitchens of the Royal Cliff Beach Resort, so comes
highly recommended.
The fare on offer is mainly British/European, but begins with Thai food.
“After all,” said Chris, “we are in Thailand.” The Thai menu has 23 Thai
favorites, with nothing over B. 130, and the majority around B. 100.
Next up in the menu is breakfasts (B. 110-230) but there is a host of extras
to allow you to build your own breakfast if you wish. There are even choices
in cereals, for those who have to have their ‘cornies’ at breakfast.
There is one page covering starters (B. 90-120) with the usual prawn
cocktails and pate included, then soups and salads (B. 60-130) and features,
amongst other favorites, a leek and potato soup.
Next are the British/Irish style main dishes (B. 260-375) with Irish stew
top of the list and made with imported New Zealand lamb. Other imported
items include the Icelandic cod used in the fish and chips, done in a light
beer batter.
International menu items follow (B. 200-280), with samples from France,
Mexico, Austria, Italy, America, China, Spain and Russia. This also covers a
quarter pounder burger, served with french-fries and you can also order
extras such as bacon, cheese, chilli and fried egg.
Flannigans is a family venue and children have not been forgotten with five
items for them (B. 130), including fish fingers, chicken nuggets and burger
and chips. There are also desserts such as lemon cheesecake and black forest
gateau, popular with children and the children’s minders!
By the way, there is a Sunday lunch with various roasts from B. 200 upwards
starting at 1 p.m. until 8 p.m.
Cocktails, coffee and beers as you would expect in an Irish pub.
Madame chose the Dublin Coddle (B. 280), an interesting Irish dish with
sausages, bacon, potatoes and carrots stewed in a cider stock. This came
with some French bread (Dublin bread?) and Madame thoroughly enjoyed it.
For myself, I decided upon the Chicken Kiev (B. 280) described as being a
tender breaded breast of chicken filled with a rich and creamy garlic
butter, pan-fried to perfection, accompanied with sautéed potatoes and
vegetables. This was well presented with salad as well as broccoli and peas
and some very tasty thinly sliced potato. The chicken itself was a little
overdone, making it somewhat dry, but it was still very pleasant.
Madame lined up again for desserts and a large plate of apple crumble with
custard (B. 120) was soon dispatched and declared delicious!
Our meals were adequate in size, satisfactorily cooked and well presented.
If you are looking for an ‘oasis’ in Jomtien, then the air-conditioned
comfort of this new Irish-themed pub will suit you well. Definitely worth a
visit when you are next down in Jomtien.
Flannigans Jomtien, Jomtien Complex Condotel, telephone 038 303 490 or 087
900 5190, open seven days, 9 a.m. until late but last orders for the kitchen
11 p.m. Secure parking in condotel.
Crab and herb omelette
This is an Indonesian dish known as ‘Telor dadar kepiting
dan bumbu kebun’, but crab and herb omelette is easier. The herb is the Thai
coriander and crab is easily found, and you can use tinned crab for this
dish.
Cooking Method:
Cut the crabmeat into small pieces, being careful to remove any
shell. Mix with the chopped coriander and sprinkle salt and pepper to taste.
Lightly whisk the eggs, and add salt and pepper, sugar, ginger root and
water.
In the wok, heat 2 tbspns of sunflower oil, and add half the egg mixture.
Spoon on half the crab and herb mixture and cook slowly until the top of the
omelette has cooked. Slide the ‘pancake’ off the wok.
Now cook the second half of the omelette mixture the same way.
Roll up the two flat omelettes and cut the roll diagonally into 2.5 cm
strips, and serve on a warmed plate.
Ingredients Serves 4
Crabmeat
225 gm
Eggs
5
Coriander, finely chopped 2 tbspns
Palm sugar
1 tspn
Ground ginger root
½ tspn
Sunflower oil
4 tbspns
Water
3 tbspns
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
