Roma Pizzeria by Eddy — Restaurant in Prachuap Khiri Khan Province

I've been living in Hua Hin for almost eight months and this restaurant, New Roma, has always been on my radar. The problem is, there are so many fantastic restaurants in this city, coupled with the latest COVID shutdown, that I was not able to check it out until tonight. My wait was worth it. The food was really delicious and the staff was super friendly and attentive. We got there at about 5:30pm and the restaurant had opened at 4:30pm. We were told that we were the first customers of the evening, and no other customers arrived until I was paying the bill. The food arrived super fast, probably because of this fact. Good for us, but I feel sorry for shop owners during this trying time. We started out with an appetizer called Khung Yom Yom, which was shrimp sautéed in butter, olive oil, garlic, and chili. It came with a side of bread, which I would dip in the oil and then place one of the giant shrimp on it. Absolutely fantastic! We then ordered chicken piccata, which came with steamed vegetables and tagliatelle pasta. Gravy in a little boat came with it. I had never had this dish before, but I had always wanted to try it. I was in heaven! The gravy was a great complement. The tagliatelle looked like fettuccine, but was more al dente. I think I would have liked it softer, because it wouldn't roll up with my spoon/fork twirl like they do in the movies. Regardless, it was all good. The flavors were on point. Another dish we ordered was gnocchi alla gorgonzola. Again, I had never had gnocchi, but I had seen it cooked and served a lot on shows on the Food Network, which I watch all the time. Because of this, of course, I was very happy to try it. I must say that the gorgonzola sauce was super, duper fantastic. I even drizzled a bit on the tagliatelle, which really worked. I was not a fan of the gnocchi however. And maybe it's because I'm ignorant of how it is prepared. These gnocchi were very large; much larger than the ones I had seen served in many restaurants on the shows. It also was very doughy in my mouth like maybe it was undercooked. Again, I don't know if this is how it is supposed to be, because I've never had it. We also ordered a pizza to take home with us, because really, this is what I had been dying to try, but my girlfriend isn't a real pizza fan. I ordered a half pizza kebab and half pizza old roma. Very thin, crispy, expertly cooked. I only ate one slice, from the kebab side, and even though I was uncomfortably stuffed, it was the real deal. I can't wait to eat it tomorrow. It came with a side salad, which was finely-chopped cabbage tossed in olive oil. vinegar, and garlic. It was really good, but I couldn't eat much. That came home with me too! A nice complement to the rich pizza. New Roma is one of my favorite restaurants in Hua Hin now, and I will definitely be back. Oh, the bathrooms were clean and well-stocked, with a shared sink in between the men's and women's. Total bill for all of these dishes, including a tip, was 1300 baht. Of course, no alcohol to be had during this COVID lockdown, so that really lightened the bottom line. Very affordable for the quality of food and the experience. Lots of street side tables to sit and people watch as you wait for food and then as you dine. UPDATE: we had almost the whole pizza left for the next day. We heated it up slowly in a covered skillet on low heat, in order to crisp up the crust and gently melt the toppings. The pizza was perfection! I have to say, I am a huge fan of that kebab style. I will certainly be ordering that...

Had dinner last night at the New Roma restaurant. Ordered a glass of red wine and Greek salad for starter. When the wine arrived, it was ice cold in a glass and I asked the waitress that I did not want red wine cold, it should be at room temperature only. There was then talk back/forth with another person behind the bar and I heard the "farang" which is a derogatory word for foreigner and another waitress said if you wanted it not cold, you should of said so when you ordered. I said, I'm sorry but it's common knowledge that white wine is served chilled, red wine is never served cold a it cold temperature destroys the tanins in the wine and gives it a bittter taste. I then said that all the bottles of red wine they had sitting on customer's tables around me were at room temperature, not cold. So they opened a bottle of red at room temperature and poured me a glass. The "Greek" salad came. I was shocked as all it was was lettuce (iceberg) with 4 slices of cucumbers and about half an onion sliced..fact there was more onion in the salad than anything else. No feta cheese, nothing else and it sure wasn't any Greek salad. By the time I picked out all the thick onion slices, the only thing left was iceberg lettuce and cucumber slices. This is NOT a Greek salad. Was not impressed with the food I ordered which was sliced pork loin with caper tomato sauce and broccoli which was limp...

The "low season"150 Baht pizza deal with a first glass of wine at 95 Baht or a glass of beer at 65 Baht caught my attention - good sales promotion.

I wandered in on a Saturday night a little after 10:00 PM, so I was the last customer before the kitchen closed. I was very satisfied with my "Pizza Pepperoni" and the cheese and meat tortellini in cream sauce with ham. (Sorry that I forgot to take a picture of my order...).

The staff of New Roma were very friendly and professional. Still, I arrived a bit late and they really wanted to close at 11:00 PM, so I had to hustle out of there. But not before they gave me a coupon for 10% off on my next visit and another coupon for a free drink at the Booze Bar down the street. Somebody has really studied their sales promotions... hahaha... Well, it worked.

I will be back a bit earlier next time so I can enjoy my meal at a slower pace. Also, I noticed that regular customers get hugs. Hope I can get a free hug next time.

Note: The free drink at the Booze Bar is legitimate. I had a Gin Tonic and it appeared to be properly poured. I stuck around for a few more drinks too.

Net-Net: A nice "win-win" experience - thanks for...