Mario Pizzeria

Mario Pizzeria is an independent Italian restaurant on the main coast road, about halfway between the Pakarang cape hotels and the Nang Thong beach strip. The owner is Neapolitan, the pizzas come from a genuine wood-fired oven, and the pastas are all cut in the kitchen that morning. The wine list is short but carefully chosen.

The menu is short and honest: eight pizzas, six pastas, a handful of secondi, a tiramisu that has a fanbase. Prices are easily half what the resort Italians charge and the quality is, if anything, slightly better.

The back garden is the seat to request for any conversation that needs to happen quietly. Table spacing is generous, the music is low, and the kitchen will happily pace a two-and-a-half-hour meal across five courses for a two-person table.

Why it fits Close a Deal

Close a Deal belongs here because Mario Pizzeria combines three rare things in a beach resort: quiet acoustics, low prices, and food serious enough to be respected. It is the off-strip business-dinner secret that regulars use to avoid the hotel scene.