฿฿฿
Platong
Platong — its Thai name, ปลาทอง (Pla Thong), means 'golden fish' — is a long-running Thai seafood restaurant on Pattaya-Naklua Road in Naklua, the older, more local district north of central Pattaya where much of the city's best-value seafood is found. It's the kind of unpretentious, locally run place that draws regulars rather than tour groups: an open, airy dining room (no air-conditioning, but rarely stuffy), parking out front, and a reputation built over many years on freshness and fair prices rather than frills. Seafood is the whole point, and crab is the signature — reviewers repeatedly single out the crab dishes, from steamed crab to stir-fries, praising the sweet, fresh meat and the kitchen's skill with shellfish — alongside the usual Thai-seafood repertoire of whole fish, prawns, tom yum and stir-fries. The menu isn't huge, but what it does, it does well. Prices are mid-range for Pattaya seafood: more than a simple street stall, but well below hotel-restaurant rates, with the big-ticket items priced by weight. It's a genuine local seafood spot rather than a polished tourist restaurant, so expect straightforward service and a Thai-leaning crowd. Hours aren't reliably listed online, so it's worth confirming before a special trip.
