Arrive in Hua Hin by the weekend express from Bangkok and the Gulf of Thailand is the first thing that greets you. At Azure, the beachfront restaurant of InterContinental Hua Hin Resort, it also becomes the backdrop to lunch.
A New Chapter by the Sea
Recently reimagined as an authentic Italian dining destination, Azure feels bright and coastal. Lemon-inspired interiors, handcrafted ceramics and crisp white furnishings frame uninterrupted sea views, a palette that suits the cooking as much as the setting.
The Chef Behind the Menu
The kitchen is led by Executive Chef Mario Caramella, a Sicilian with three decades of experience in luxury hotels and acclaimed Italian restaurants. His menu draws on regional Italian recipes built around carefully sourced local ingredients.
What Arrives at the Table
Lighter starters set the pace: bruschetta with vine-ripened and sun-dried tomatoes, garlic and olive oil, and crispy calamari with creamy tartar sauce. The Mortazza pizza is a highlight, combining tomato, burrata, mortadella, pistachios and fresh rocket.
Among the mains, spaghetti assassina is cooked until partly caramelised and tossed in a spicy tomato sauce, while the risotto ai frutti di mare brings together prawns, squid, mussels, clams and soft shell crab. Meat lovers can turn to the grilled Charolais entrecôte, served medium rare with a mushroom sauce.
Closing on a Sweet Note
Dessert follows the classics: a crème brûlée with a caramelised sugar crust over vanilla custard, a rich and moist chocolate cake with intense cocoa flavour, and a tiramisu of espresso-soaked sponge fingers, mascarpone cream and cocoa powder.
Azure succeeds in opening a fresh chapter for InterContinental Hua Hin Resort, offering Italian dining with Sicilian conviction and a sea view that needs no embellishment.
Related reading: Weekend Notes From InterContinental Hua Hin and Italy in the Tropics: Southeast Asia’s Most Elegant Italian Tables.
