Wine Connection Blueport — Restaurant in Prachuap Khiri Khan Province

Update May 2024:

Dang! Check out the inflation! The pick your pizza or pasta set lunch price is now 299 Baht! Scroll down below to see my comments from previous years.

Today, I ordered the Ham and Mushroom Pizza Set Lunch. It came with a Garden Salad and a soft drink.

Look at the "Shrinkflation" on that tiny can of Pepsi Max!

Still, in this day and age of Post-Covid Inflation and unstable Geopolitics, 299 Baht is still decent value, but 239 Baht just a few years ago was better!

To make my meal a bit more healthy, I also ordered a Beetroot & Kale Quinoa Salad for 290 Baht.

I remembered to take photos.

Service and atmosphere is still pretty good at Wine Connection BluPort.

Update December 2022:

The Wine Connection at BluPort Mall is still going strong. Today, my daughter and I ordered the Beetroot and Kale Quinoa Salad, Lasagna and the Sea Bass with Lemon Caper Sauce. For dessert, we had the Apple Tart with Ice Cream.

All of these dishes were pretty good. I noticed that the lunch set has gone up to 249 Baht from 239 Baht earlier this year. Still, the service and friendliness of the staff is at the same, professional level.

Oh, I almost forgot, I had a 15 CL glass of Casa Defra Veneto IGT Pinot Grigio from Italy for 140 Baht. Next time, maybe I'll take the bottle for 580 Baht as it paired nicely with the sea bass. Very refreshing!

Early 2022 Review:

Over the past few years, I have eaten at the Wine Connection at BluPort Mall a few times. I don't know why I haven't eaten here as frequently as I used to eat at other Wine Connection branches when I lived in Bangkok, but I am happy to say that I have ''rediscovered'' the Wine Connection at BluPort Mall in Hua Hin.

First, they are having a nice lunchtime promotion for 239 Baht. You can choose a pizza or pasta main dish and it comes with a garden salad and a soft drink.

I have visited Wine Connection two times in the past month and on my first visit, I had a ''ham and mushroom'' pizza with the garden salad and a Pepsi Max. On my second visit, I had Pappardelle Pasta with Salmon and Spinach Cream sauce along with the garden salad and Pepsi Max.

They also have a dessert special and for 149 Baht you can order a dessert and a coffee.

Second, I find this restaurant to be an excellent place to do some remote work/catch up on emails and other digital admin. There is outdoor seating and indoor seating and the tables are large and stable. The restaurant is not crowded in the early afternoon and I noticed several ''tablet warriors'' tapping and scrolling away while they enjoyed their meals. I think that this place has a much better atmosphere for chilling and responding to emails than the Starbucks that is located next door.

Third, the staff here are really attentive and professional. They are friendly and contribute to a pleasant atmosphere.

The BluPort Mall is just beginning to come back from the past two years of Covid lockdowns and I am happy to see that the Wine Connection has weathered the storm. I am also happy that this restaurant is such a good place to chill out and relax for a while.

I remembered to take some photos of my pizza,...

This is a quite remarkable place in the Bluport Shopping Mall in Hua Hin. I think it is fair to be suspicious about any restaurant in a shopping mall - practically without exception they are chain restaurants with fashionable but unspectacular fare, high gloss menus and are, in average, on the less expensive side. So normally not a place a real foodie would go to. Yet I did. Originally I was just curious to have a look at the wine list, which, surprisingly, they did not provide at the entrance of the restaurant. Then I discovered that they offer cheese platters of European cheeses to go with your plonk. I took a platter of five "premium" cheeses which I could select from a somewhat bigger list. I was pleasantly surprised that they had all the real stuff, and I indulged in Pont l'Evêque, Roquefort, Fourme d'Ambert, Camembert and a chèvre of which I don't remember the name. They were all just perfectly ripe and aromatic, and it was a real feast. The wine list was just a bit disappointing for a place that calls itself "Wine Connection". By the glass they serve only one red and one white wine from France and Italy each. I tried a Montepulciano d'Abruzzo about which I cannot complain though. The restaurant deserves special praise for keeping both cheese and red wine at low temperatures - my estimate is between eight and ten degrees. In Europe, where both should be served at room temperature, this would be cultural Bolshevism, but in Thailand, it's the only way to deal with the warm climate. Prices are high, for Hua Hin standards - all in all I paid 1300 Baht just for myself (including two glasses of wine). But when you are as starved for European cheese as I was, it is definitely worth it. There is one thing though that annoyed me, and quite a bit at that: The music was some kind of nondescript American teeny pop music blend which gave a stark, even painful contrast to the otherwise quite distinguished European atmosphere of the place, respectively its culinary delights. They should make an effort and find something adequate - if not Baroque, then at least a mixture of European chansons. But as it is, I can't give the fifth star which otherwise the place very much would...

Reasonably priced bistro dining with an extensive wine menu, strong Italian influences and familiar comfort food

Excellent variety of classic western dishes, including cheese and meat boards, various platters, grilled sandwiches, seafood dishes, pasta dishes, pizza, salads, burgers, and steaks.

Wines, beers, mocktails, coffees and soft drinks available.

Dessert dishes all looked excellent but we were unfortunately not able to try them this time around. Tarts, Cheesecakes, Tiramisu, Crème Brûlée and Ice Cream.

On this occasion we played it safe and went for the Pepperoni Pizza and Beef Brisket Sliders which we had been craving.

Food tasted great but I ended up getting the wrong drink, lime soda instead of fresh juice (close enough, same price so not with complaining I guess)

Good atmosphere, pretty “alive” but not loud or noisy. Very comfortable. Would come back if I’m in...