Sports Car Expo at Nong Nooch Tropical Gardens

Khun Kampon, the owner of the famed Nong Nooch Gardens, also happens to be an avid sports car collector. His collection is comprised of some of the rarest cars in the world, let alone Thailand. He shows them all at his multi level garage located on the Nong Nooch garden property.
34/1 Moo 7 Na Jomtien, Sattahip, Chonburi, 038-709-358-62. Open Daily 8-6pm. www.nongnoochgarden.com

Jesada Technik Museum

A lover of all things mechanical, airline mogul Jesada has amassed quite a collection of classic cars. He specializes in micro cars, and three wheeled cars of the 1960s. There are also a few airliners and boats on display as well. A great place for retro car lovers.
100 Moo 2, Tummason Rd., Nakhonpathom. www.jesadatechnikmusuem.com 02-819-4000. Open Tue-Sun 9-5pm.

Ratchada Night Market

This dek naew haunt is known for all things retro, including cars. Old hippie-themed VW “type 2” camper vans line Ratchada’s curbs and inside the market you’ll find restored motorcycles for sale. It’s a popular place for motorcycle clubs and vintage car clubs to meet up and grab a drink. You can be sure you’ll see some flower power from the 60s and brute muscle from the 70s.
Open every Saturday 6:30pm-2am, BTS Ladprao. Between Ladprao Criminal Court and MRT Underground Car Park.

What are the most important factors when making fried fish?
There are three important factors. One is using only wild-caught fish, preferably cold ocean species. Two is not to overuse the cooking oil; make sure you change it regularly. And third, cook for a short time at a high temperature, sealing in the juice (and blocking out the excess fats).

What is the biggest mistake bad fish and chips places make?
Using old dirty oil with cheap, fresh water fish that don’t have clean flavor, and sometimes even have a muddy taste.

Why do some recipes add ingredients like beer or milk? What’s the difference?
Beer is used for its carbonation rather than its flavor. It helps make a light batter. As for milk, people use it to remove the fishy flavor and help tenderize the fish. But it usually turns out soggy and bland. However, good fresh fish doesn’t need either.

Are there any fish that would be bad choices?
Intensely farmed fresh water fish which are grown using antibiotics, growth stimulants, antifungal agents, and food made with ingredients of dubious quality. You are what you eat, right?

What would you recommend drinking with fish and chips?
I would recommend eating fish & chips with any good lager beer or a Sauvignon Blanc, although the beauty of fish and chips is that it goes well with pretty much anything, even a glass of cold milk—my favorite when I was a kid.

“Dirty Girl isn’t. Sorry, but it’s just faux grime, a thin layer of bad behaviour that wipes clean with a two-ply tissue to reveal the real movie beneath—all shiny sentimentality.” Rick Groen, Globe and Mail

“Dirty Girl is much more fun when Danielle is behaving badly. Unfortunately, that only lasts about 20 minutes.” Jeffrey M. Anderson, Common Sense Media

“Social satire, heartbreaking family drama and a lot of toe-tapping 1980s music attempt to exist in the same space. Watching this movie is like eating a hot fudge sundae and lasagna in alternating bites.” Peter Hartlaub, San Francisco Chronicle

“Dirty Girl is a bad movie with no insights that is broadly drawn and genuinely plagued by filthy dialogue. You don’t laugh. You just wince, and wonder how the whole thing ever got financed.” Rex Reed, New York Observer

“With luck, Temple will be able to get this movie expunged from her filmography, like a juvenile offense that is wiped from one’s record when she comes of age.” Marshall Fine, Hollywood & Fine

“If you can’t quite get behind a defiant diva and her queer companion, you’ll find every moment of this motion picture a chore.” Bill Gibron, Filmcritic.com

Eat

Sabeinglae

438/82 Moo 1, Maret, 077-233-082, 081-538-7045. Open daily 10am-10pm. www.sabeinglae.9nha.com
Sabeinglae offers a long list of authentic local dishes like gaeng kua hed lhoob (mushroom curry), wai kua (squid simmered in coconut milk), and gang som pla grabog yod mapraw (sour curry with fish and young coconut). Also try the fresh oysters with deep-fried garlic (B40 each). The kluay buad shi (bananas in sweet coconut milk) can’t be missed for dessert. Unlike other seafood restaurants in Samui, the bill is affordable and might come in under B1,000 for two.

Janhom

7/3 Bang Por Beach, 077-236-458. Open daily 10am-10pm
If you want authentic, then test your tongue with Janhom’s fiery Southern dishes like the nam prik goong sod (vegetables with shrimp relish, B120) and wipe your tears away with the kua gling moo (stir fried pork with spicy herbs, B150) at this popular no-frills eatery.

Kanomjeen Pa Maitree

217/2, Maenam Beach Soi 4, 077-247-075. Open daily 8:30am-3:30pm
A not-to-be-missed spot for its local food. Situated close to Maenam Intersection, Kanomjeen Pa Maitree offers various soups from nam ya (coconut soups) to green curry, or gaeng tai pla (a spicy Southern soup) to eat with rice noodles. Prices start from just B30.

Namcha

Fisherman’s Village, Bophut Beach, 077-427-115. Open daily 9:30am-1 pm. www.namchasamui.com
Run by a Filipino family with a tea obsession, this teahouse sits just at the entrance of Fisherman’s Village and is one of the most charming buildings in the area. Like almost everywhere in Samui, the place offers an open-air vibe, but here there are four sections with Japanese, Chinese, African, and English tea room styles. Their offerings range from English breakfast and Jasmine, to chai tea imported from around the world. Prices start at B120 per pot.

Le Salon de Ti / Zazen Restaurant

Zazen Boutique Hotel and Spa, 177 Moo 1, Bophut, 077-425-085, www.samuizazen.com
Created by couple Alex and Ti, Le Salon de Ti serves desserts, cocktails and 23 kinds of Dilmah tea, served hot or cold. The open-air space on the 2/F of the teak building is decked out in vintage-style French furniture and is perfect for afternoon high tea (from B590 for two people). Downstairs, Zazen Restaurant is a casual oceanfront joint serving tapas and Thai cuisine by day, after which it turns into a candlelit, intimate outlet for French Executive Chef Cyrille Keyser’s fine Mediterranean cuisine. Zazen also has the only underground wine cellar on the island—it’s blissfully cool.

Drink

9 Gems

141/190 Moo 6, Bophut, 077-256-125, 080-692-0520. Open Tue-Thu 4pm-midnight, Fri-Sun 4pm-2am. www.9gemssamui.com
Hidden away on one of the island’s many hilltops, 9 Gems combines fine dining with breathtaking views of Pru Chaweng (Chaweng Lagoon) and Chaweng town center below. The menu offers fusion food, tapas, desserts, cocktails and bubbly. Request to be seated on one of their beds on the rooftop to enjoy the 360-degree view. Settling yourself in just before sunset is highly recommended.

Green Mango & Sweet Soul

Soi Green Mango, Chaweng Beach Rd. Open daily 9pm till late. www.thegreenmangoclub.com
This has long been one of the most popular nightclubs in Samui. With a gigantic open-air space that contains several bars, pool tables, and huge dance floors, all you need is a plastic bucket of Sangsom mixed with Red Bull and some straws. To warm up, stop by at Sweet Soul, the sister club of Green Mango (located right in front).

Sound Club

Soi Green Mango, Chaweng Beach Rd., Open daily 11pm-6am. www.soundclubsamui.com
Sound Club has both open-air and indoor spaces, and the DJs are usually the same ones who do the Full Moon parties on nearby Koh Pha Ngan.

TOP SUNDAY BRUNCHES

Beach Republic

Elegant and sexy with its red hot decor, Beach Republic boasts two infinity pools, regular DJs and live performances. The Ultimate Sunday Brunch Club features a buffet offering myriad international options like meat carving stations, seafood, Thai dishes, sushi, cold cuts, and crepes suzette. Outside those hours, entry into the club for outside guests is B500, but that does turn into F&B credits. There are also 39 rooms available from B3,900 per night.
176/34 Moo 4, Maret, 077-458-100. Sunday brunch B1,400, 11:30am-3:30pm. www.beachrepublic.com

Nikki Beach

Laze on their throw pillows, daybeds, plush champagne beds and Nikki’s signature teepees. The highlight of the week is the “Amazing Sunday Brunch,” offering over 40 dishes including seafood, sushi, meat carvings, and desserts. The brunch includes one free mimosa or bellini. Annual membership (approximately B7,500) gets you entry into the club for a year, but won’t include special events like Sunday brunch. Private bungalows available, starting from B4,600.
96/3 Moo 2, Lipa Noi, 077-914-500. Sunday brunch B950, 11am-4pm. www.nikkibeach.com

Going somewhere else? Check out Thailand's Best Restaurants and Bars.

Eat

MEE TON PAE

214/7-8 Phuket Rd., Phuket Town, 076-216-293. Open daily 10:30am-5pm. Closed every 29th of the month
Phuket Town takes great pride in its Hokkien traditions. The best place to get a taste of the city’s Chinese ancestry is at Mee Ton Poe, right on the Clock Tower Circle. Mixed in with big yellow or white noodles, slurp up seafood, fish balls, pak choi and fresh eggs at Phuket Town’s most famous Hokkien noodle stall. Like the locals, have it with a side of chicken satay straight from the grill. Come early, as it’s only open until 5pm.

Kan Eng@Pier

44/1 Moo 5, Viset Rd., Rawai, 076-381-212. Open daily 10:30am-10:30pm
Though the decor has been refurbished, the makeover of this decades-old eatery that sits overlooking Chalong Bay has left the menu untouched. That’s a good thing for its loyal following of upscale islanders and tourists addicted to their deep-fried seaweed and spicy yellow soup. The refurb does mean that the setting is now also perfect for romantic dinners and sunset cocktails.

Lim’s

Kalim Soi 7, Kalim Beach, 076-344-834. Open daily 6:30-10:30pm. www.limsphuket.com
Set on the outskirts of Patong, you reach Lim’s by climbing a long, potholed stretch of road that seems to shoot straight into the jungle on the hill above. Lim’s itself is a stark, bare, concrete box, but its garden and plants bring the luxuriant foliage right into the otherwise minimalist decor. The food is fusion, the mango daiquiris are to-die-for and the servers are cute and attentive.

Phuket 346

15 Soi Rommanee, Thalang Rd., 076-258-108. www.phuket346.com
Phuket’s coolest cafe-cum-hotel has just relocated, yet thankfully remains in an authentic Sino-Portuguese shophouse, in the colorful alley of Soi Rommanee. The cafe serves well-executed local dishes in a casual, but charming, atmosphere. We recommend the stuffed squid and shrimp cakes but almost every dish is a winner, thanks to the use of locally-sourced ingredients and free-range poultry. You can also stay there (only three rooms!) or see some art at the adjoining gallery.

Drink

Baba 88

Sri Panwa, 88 Moo 8, Sakdidej Rd., Panwa, 076-371-000. Open by appointment only. www.sripanwa.com
Though it’s hidden on the lower floor of a high-end resort at the southeastern tip of the island, Baba 88 is worth the visit. After stepping into the classic black space you will soon find yourself dancing on a Sino-Portuguese tile floor to funky electronic tunes as you’re dizzied by the lasers and the high-end cocktails. Note that it’s currently only open by appointment, making it an even more exclusive experience.

Ka jok See

26 Ta Kua Pa Rd., Phuket Town, 076-217-903. Open Tue-Sun 6pm-late
Kenzo, Kate Moss, Calvin Klein—when the fashion crowd descends upon high end retreat Amanpuri, their port of call in Phuket Town is always Ka Jok See. The charming old shophouse serves ho-hum Thai food (no frills, no fusion) but people come mostly for the atmosphere. Weekends see drag shows with a retro touch (the oversized Marylin Monroe is divine) and, after dinner, tables are usually pushed aside (or used as podiums) for some late night dancing.

Seduction

339/1 Bangla Rd., Patong, 076-340-215. Open daily 8pm-late. www.seductiondiscotheque.com
Not the classiest venue in town, Seduction continues to pull in the crowds thanks to its decent selection of danceable music. DJs play everything from classic 70-80s pop to recent chart hits. A must is the VIP room which boasts an admirably laissez-faire attitude and stays open until sunrise. Not everyone is invited but, then again, it is not too difficult to get on the VIP list.

Surin Beach

This slightly hidden beach—blink and you’ll miss the turn—was once a popular picnic destination for locals. Now, it’s easily the coolest nightlife spot on the island, home to a number of hip on-the-beach hangout venues like Catch Beach Club and Stereo Lab. Stereo Lab (14 Srisoonthorn Rd., Surin Beach, 089-218-0162. Open daily 11pm-2am. www.stereolabphuket.com) is great for those sunset moments: indulge in a cocktail while listening to chill-out beats and kicking back on their white and turquoise sofas on the beach. Catch Beach Club (Surin Beach, +66(0)-7631-6599. Open daily 9am-1am. Entry fee B1,500 with B1,500 credit to spend at the beach club. www.catchbeachclub.com) owned by the stylish Twin Palms Phuket hotel, offers a more Nikki Beach-like scene.

White Box

2475/7 Prabarame Rd., Patong, 076-346-271. Open daily 5pm-late. www.whiteboxphuket.com
At the far end of Patong, next to Kalim Beach, you’ll find this boxy all-white modern architectural offering perched above the sand. Big bay windows in the dining room offer sweeping views while the rooftop adds the pleasure of a light sea breeze. Live percussion and special DJs on weekends.

Yaowarat Road

Part of the old Yaowarat Road, from the fountain circle to Dibuk Road, is now the hot nightlife destination for Phuket hipsters. Young entrepreneurs have revamped the old Sino-Portuguese shophouses and turned them into chill bars where you can enjoy cheap booze together with local live music. Venues like Ploenchit (Dibuk Rd., Phuket Town, 076-218-515) and Sanaeha (Yaowarat Rd., Phuket Town, 081-536-1377) are currently hot spots if you want to blend in with the local nightlife scene.

Going somewhere else? Check out Thailand's Best Restaurants and Bars.