Ghadafi Restaurant

Ghadafi is next to Saveena, on the right. We went there on the day Saveena was closed. The restaurant has an al fresco dining area outside and an air-conditioned dining room inside. First impression, the interior cleanliness could be better.

The menu was a mixture of Thai, Indian and Western, and the choices were quite impressive. However, the dining experience unfortunately was far from satisfactory. Fried Rice with Chicken and Fried Rice with Squid was actually the same fried rice with squid/chicken put on top of the mound of rice. Fish Masala tasted/smelled of under-fried curry powder and was too salty, hence inedible.

We sat inside by the glass window and had a view of the prep area outside. While waiting for our food, we observed the staff and the owner preparing some of the dishes outside while flies were flying about. A shocker was when the owner started preparing a cheese naan without even washing his hands. In the midst of preparing it, he even took money from a customer who was sat outside and came back to continue with the naan without sanitizing first.

Needless to say, it was the first and the last visit.

Saveena Muslim Food

If you are traveling from Phuket Airport to Patong, as soon as you reach the Patong beach area, there will be an intersection where your vehicle will have to turn left, merging with traffic coming from Patong Beach Road on your right. The road you are entering is called Phra Baramee Road. About 100 meters or so, there will be a turning to the right. If your accommodation is in the Patong Beach area, your vehicle will most likely have to take that right turn into Rat-U-Thit 200 Years Road, which runs parallel to Patong Beach Road.

Mark this intersection in your mind. If you do not turn right and proceed straight on along Phra Baramee Road, you will eventually come to a mosque on your right. Further up about 10 meters from the mosque on the opposite (left hand) side, you will see the sign for Saveena Food restaurant.

Nurul Islamiyyah Mosque, Patong

Saveena Food shopfront

Pre-cooked food stall up front

 

Saveena Food entrance

It is flanked on either side by a couple of other Muslim restaurants, namely Ghadafi and Islander Steak.

From what I could gather, Saveena is a family business run by headscarf-clad Muslim Thai women. The chief cook is the elder sister. The place is simply furnished but clean. More importantly, they serve authentic halal Thai food. My party ate there several times during our stay. The food is by far the tastiest of all the places that we ate at throughout our stay.

Saveena serves pre-cooked food as well but we ordered ala carte. The first time we were there, we ordered Tom Yum Seafood, Whole Fish in Spicy Lime Sauce, Stuffed Egg and Saute Mix Vegetables.

The Tom Yum was delicious, the soup a nice balance of sweet, spicy and sour. Shrimp, squid, straw mushrooms and baby corn all present. The sauce accompanying the fish was a surprise. It was swimming with pounded Thai chilli. It had a sweet initial taste and a sour aftertaste. The fish was topped with a generous amount of sliced limes, tomatoes and coriander sprigs. It is a must try! The omelette had sauteed minced chicken stuffing and was tasty enough to entice the taste buds of the non-egg lover among us.

Overall, it as a truly satisfying meal. Cost: All the dishes I mentioned plus a take-away order of two fried rice dishes came to about 960 baht.

Our other orders over the next few visits were: Curry Fried Rice, Fried Rice with Sweet Basil, Fried Rice with Sweet Chilli Oil, Stir Fry Shrimp with Cashew Nuts, Red Curry Chicken, Fried Fish with Garlic, Stir Fried Kale with Salted Fish, Deep Fried Shrimp with Sweet Chilli Sauce.

Tom Yum Seafood

Sea Bass in Spicy Lime Sauce

Fried Sea Bass with Garlic

Stuffed Egg/Omelette

Stir Fried Mix Vegetables

Deep Fried Shrimp with Sweet Chilli Sauce

Picture menu on the wall

Saveena menu card

Saveena menu card overleaf

If you are looking for authentic, unpretentious, reasonably priced halal Thai cuisine, this is the place to go! Saveena opens everyday except Thursday from 9 am to 11 pm.

Halal Food in Phuket, Thailand

Many people around the world consider Phuket to be a desirable holiday destination and yours truly is not excluded. However, for Muslims, traveling always poses a challenge as far as getting halal food is concerned. Many non-Muslims usually think that halal is the absence of pork or pork related products but in reality, there is quite a bit more to it before food can be considered halal or a restaurant can be considered a halal eating place.

Having spent almost two weeks in Phuket, I decided to create this blog as a guide for all Muslims looking to holiday in Phuket and not have to rely on canned food or instant noodles all the time. The advantage Phuket has over other places in Thailand e.g. Bangkok is the higher percentage of Muslim population. It is not uncommon to see headscarf-clad girls working in the shops and supermarkets. So, halal food is definitely available in Phuket if one knows where to look.

Most people holidaying in Phuket would inevitably end up in Patong Beach and the surrounding area. The majority of restaurants serving halal food in Patong Beach are either Middle Eastern, Pakistani or Indian establishments. But a trip to Thailand would not be complete if one did not partake in the local cuisine. This is where the challenge is: locating restaurants/eating places that serve halal authentic Thai cuisine. The Middle Eastern/Pakistani/Indian joints I mentioned do also offer Thai food but, trust me, people who have tasted real Thai food in their home countries or elsewhere in Thailand or the world for that matter are bound to be disappointed.

Since I have spent almost a fortnight in Patong, let me walk you through some of the establishments that I have had the pleasure/displeasure of patronising.

Read on. I hope the information will be useful. Have a happy holiday in Phuket!