In Thailand, the food is amazing no matter where you go. In fact, I find Thai food to be some of the best in the world, with a virtually unlimited amount of healthy, tasty, and plenty spicy local grub in countless restaurants, street corner kiosks, markets. Unfortunately , I live in the Philippines currently, where the food leaves a whole lot to be desired. It’s such a stark difference in cuisines and culinary standards that I have other U.S friends from the Philippines who have asked me if it’s worth it to come over to Thailand JUST for the food! No joke – I’ve known people who have moved out of the Philippines – and to Thailand – permanently because the food is so much better over here.
Either way, if my buddy does make it over to Thailand, and to the Las Vegas-like city of Pattaya only an hour from Bangkok, I’d recommend that he goes to eat a meal (or one hundred) at Malamute , one of my favorite healthy cafes here that stands out as the best of the best.
Of course, there’s no shortage of places to get traditional Thai food in Pattaya, and there’s certainly no reason to reinvent the wheel. And while they certainly haven’t tried to do that, what they have done is taken the best of Thai food, western cuisine, and other international food and made it available in a clean, comfortable, and fun setting.
In fact, Malamute would be my go-to option for healthy meals here, except that it’s a 20 minute drive through heavy city traffic to reach. That’s bad for me, but good for most visitors to Pattaya, as I’m staying in the suburb of Jomtien while most tourists congregate in Central Pattaya, where Malamute is located.
Ok, now, let’s get to the good stuff: what they have on the menu. I’ll run down a few things I’ve seen on the menu, dishes my friends have ordered, or ones that I’ve had myself at Malamut e.
First off, their coffee is amazing, and you have to try their own custom-made Cold Brew. Just be careful, because it’s strong medicine!
If you’re coming in off a big night on the town (which seems to happen nightly in Pattaya), try their Cranberry boost smoothie. There are plenty of fruit smoothies at cafes in Thailand but, too often, they use syrups, not fresh fruit. But Malamute’s Cranberry smoothie is totally natural with no sugar and crammed with antioxidants .
Your hangover will also instantly go away if you try their coconut mango frozen bowl. It doesn’t look like much when its served, but it’s absolute heaven! They also have a killer Green Day frozen bowl.
They also bake several kinds of croissants and muffins right there.
Malamute features a good deal of international salads – which aren’t common in Asia – so try their Moza Cheese Salad or Avacado Salad!
You can’t go wrong with their various granola and yogurt/fruit concoctions , but my absolute favorite is the smoked salmon bagel with capers and crème cheese. A taste of New York City right here in Thailand! Ok, it’s not the healthiest with all of that crème cheese, but I’ll make up for it next meal at Malamute !
About Norm Schriever
Norm Schriever is a blogger, Amazon best-sellling author, cultural mad scientist, and enemy of the comfort zone. His work appears in the Huffington Post, Business.com, Good Morning America, The Anderson Cooper Show on CNN, NBC, MSN, Yahoo, Hotels.com, and media all around the world.
Norm grew up in Connecticut and graduated from the University of Connecticut, where he was never accused of overstudying. After expatriating to Costa Rica in 2011, he started traveling the world and documenting what he saw. He now lives in Southeast Asia, writing his heart out and working with local charities.
