Best for Incredible Views: The Jungle Club

The Jungle Club 4.3 ★
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High in the hills above Chaweng, The Jungle Club has become one of Koh Samui's most recognizable viewpoint dining destinations.

The attraction is immediately obvious:

the view.

From its elevated position, you can look across the island's coastline and the Gulf of Thailand while having drinks or a meal surrounded by tropical scenery.

Come for:

• Panoramic views
• Sunset atmosphere
• Thai and international food
• Drinks overlooking the island
• A memorable hilltop setting

Best for: Sunset drinks, couples and travelers looking for one of Samui's classic viewpoints.

Best for a Romantic Dinner: Tree Tops

Tree Tops at Anantara Lawana takes the concept of dinner with a view considerably further.

The restaurant is built into the canopy around a 120-year-old rain tree and contains only eight private dining salas, creating a much more intimate experience than a conventional restaurant.

The focus is fine dining, privacy and atmosphere, making it particularly suited to:

• Anniversaries
• Honeymoons
• Proposals
• Romantic dinners
• Special occasions

This isn't where you go because you're suddenly hungry and happen to be nearby.

It's the “we're making an evening out of this” restaurant.

Reservations are strongly advisable.

Best for Traditional Thai Food in Bophut: Krua Bophut

Krua Bophut  4.2★

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Not every meal in Koh Samui needs an infinity view and a cocktail photographed against the sunset.

Sometimes you just want Thai food.

Krua Bophut is a long-established Thai restaurant in the Bophut area serving Thai dishes and seafood in a much more traditional restaurant setting.

Expect dishes such as curries, soups, seafood and familiar Thai favorites.

Best for: Thai food, seafood and families looking for a sit-down meal around Bophut.

Best Fine-Dining View: Dining on the Rocks

Dining on the Rocks 4.1★

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Located at Six Senses Samui, Dining on the Rocks is one of the island's most dramatic special-occasion restaurants.

The restaurant sits on a headland overlooking the Gulf of Thailand and is constructed across ten terraced decks, with the resort describing 270-degree views across the sea.

The experience combines:

• Fine dining
• Ocean views
• Open-air seating
• Contemporary presentation
• Romantic atmosphere

It's particularly suited to travelers looking for an evening where the setting is part of the experience, rather than simply somewhere to eat.

Best for: Fine dining, anniversaries and romantic evenings.

Fisherman's Village: Go Without Choosing a Restaurant First



Instead, give Fisherman's Village an evening of its own.

Walk along the area first and choose depending on what you're in the mood for.

You'll encounter:

• Thai food
• Seafood
• International restaurants
• Beachfront dining
• Bars
• Desserts
• Cafés

Friday evenings are particularly popular because of the walking-street atmosphere.

This works brilliantly for groups where one person wants Thai food, another wants pizza, and someone has apparently decided cocktails constitute dinner.

Don't Ignore Koh Samui's Night Markets

Some of the most enjoyable food experiences on the island don't involve restaurant reservations at all.

Night markets and walking streets give you the chance to try several smaller dishes instead of committing to one restaurant.

Look for:

• Moo Ping
• Grilled seafood
• Som Tam
• Fried chicken
• Noodles
• Roti
• Fresh fruit
• Coconut desserts
• Mango sticky rice
• Thai iced tea

And because portions are often smaller, you can sample several different foods during one evening.

Where Should You Eat in Koh Samui?

If you want...

  Incredible view: The Jungle Club
        Beach atmosphere: Coco Tam's
        Romantic fine dining: Tree Tops
Thai food: Krua Bophut
        Luxury experience: Dining on the Rocks
        Seafood: Sabienglae
        Cheap bites + variety: Night markets
        Lots of choices in one area: Fisherman's Village

The best strategy is actually not choosing one style for the entire trip.

Have local Thai food one evening.

Visit a night market another.

Book one memorable sunset or fine-dining experience.

And leave at least one night completely unplanned.

Sometimes the restaurant you remember most isn't the one you researched for three hours.

It's the little place you found because you were hungry and happened to walk past it.

Koh Samui Is an Island for Food Lovers

Koh Samui's food scene works because it doesn't force you into one type of dining.

You can eat seafood beside the ocean, share Thai dishes in a local restaurant, wander through a night market, drink cocktails barefoot near the beach, or spend an evening at an elaborate fine-dining restaurant.

The island can be casual one night and extravagant the next.

So come for the beaches.

Stay for the sunsets.

But leave some room in the itinerary for dinner.

Koh Samui might surprise you with how much of the trip ends up revolving around food.