Review

Carpe Diem, an up-market beach club, resides in a peaceful beach-side location at the southern end of Bangtao beach. It's an idyllic venue to while away your day next to a tranquil azure seascape. Regular entertainment schedules bring a dedicated following to events, from resident DJ sessions to guest vocalists and local bands.

Along with the quality entertainment, the Carpe Diem Mediterranean cuisine and drink menus are an equally alluring alibi for a visit. The spicy prawns provide a tasty appetiser, with rustic garlic bread to soak up the smokey barbecue flavours. If something cooler appeals, the gazpacho soup is delicately chilled, with a rich tomato texture and tart balsamic finish. For those wishing to indulge in a seafood medley, the signature chilled seafood tower, obliges. This two-tiered extravaganza, best shared with a fine white, houses live Maine lobster, French oysters, black mussels, clams, wild prawns, slipper lobster, sashimi, and blue swimmer crab. Alternatively, the pan-roasted branzino sea bass presents two generous fillets in a lemon jus, accompanied by olives, capers, radish and fresh salad. The dessert menu is a rich and diverse offering, from a dark chocolate mousse, baklava and tiramisu to a decadent, ricotta cannoli, scattered with chocolate chips and drizzled with orange peel.