Seafood Restaurants at the South End of Karon Beach
At the south end of Karon Beach, just before the road climbs the small hill toward Kata Beach, a row of small seafood restaurants lines the beach road. This is where Karon quietly ends, and Kata begins, with Beyond Karon resort on one side and the old football stadium on the other.
These restaurants all follow the same format. Fresh seafood is kept on ice in front of each place, and you can pick what you want and choose how it is cooked: grilled, steamed, deep-fried, or in a Thai-style sauce. They also serve standard Thai dishes from an illustrated menu displayed at the entrance. The setting is simple, with open-air seating, plastic chairs, and a view across the road to the beach. Nothing fancy, but that is part of the appeal.
The cluster includes around five or six restaurants side by side. Among them, Lamai Restaurant is one of the longest-running and is known for decent fried rice and reliable Thai dishes. Bounty Seafood and Lamit and Bounty are next to each other and popular with returning visitors for their grilled prawns and tom yam goong. Halle Hallo caters to a mixed crowd with both Thai and Western dishes. The Twin’s Restaurant rounds out the group with a similar menu and a loyal following.
Menus across all these places overlap considerably. Expect to find grilled tiger prawns, steamed or fried whole fish, seafood pad Thai, green curry, massaman curry, som tum, and fried rice. Lobster and crab are usually available but priced by weight, so ask before ordering. A meal for two with a couple of beers typically runs 500 to 900 baht, which is cheaper than the hotel restaurants nearby but slightly more than the restaurants by Karon Lake at the opposite end of the beach.
Most of these restaurants open around 10 am and stay open until 10 or 11 pm. Some also serve a basic Western breakfast with eggs, toast, and coffee, which is a decent option if you are staying at one of the nearby hotels. The evening is the best time to visit, when the seafood displays are fully stocked and the sunset lights up the sky behind the beach.
If you are staying in Karon and want a simple, affordable seafood dinner without going far, this row of restaurants is worth a walk. Pick the one with the freshest display and the busiest tables.
South Karon Roadside Restaurants Map
More Restaurants in Karon Beach
