Having spent the whole day shopping and driving around with the family, we were getting a bit peckish, but even though Sri Prae Garden Restaurant had a whole menu of delectable food items on offer, we wouldn't be having our dinner there.

No, we came for something else completely.. an entirely new experience..

~ Sri Prae Garden Restaurant ~

While I was snapping shots of the surrounding area, and the boys were happily tormenting the aquatic life, my wife got straight to sorting out the details of the restaurant's speciality.

While most buffets can be an all you can eat assortment, like a Korean BBQ or a Salad Bar.. Sri Prae Garden Restaurant have one and only one item on the buffet table.. Durian..

That's right, for a modest price of 100 baht per person, you can have all the durian you can eat. Considering durian is currently going for 40-50baht/kg, but can reach skyrocket prices of 200baht/kg during high seasons, the value for money is definitely worth it.

It's not on the menu, so you do have to be in-the-know so to speak, but word travels quickly, and tables fill up fast.

When you order the buffet, a basket of the spiky fruit is brought over to your table. One of the owners of the establishment then proceeds to pry open the smelly snack one by one with a meat cleaver and arrange a display for you to enjoy at your convenience.

They provide glasses of water and napkins (because it can turn into a messy endeavor), and are pretty efficient at whisking away discarded pits and making sure that replacement silky smooth seeds appear as fast as you can consume them.

Durian is known for its pungent smell and milky taste. There were two kinds of seeds at Sri Prae Garden a soft yellowish sweeter seed, and a firmer white more savory seed. I couldn't tell which I liked more.. which is surprising considering I wouldn't touch the stuff until earlier this year.

Durian also goes by its moniker, The King of Fruits and reigns supreme in many countries in the region including India and Malaysia. Chinese tourists go wild for it, and signs have been put up to keep the strong smelling fruit off of airplanes and out of public places.

It is very delicious, if you can get past the smell. It's also very filling. I guess that's what Sri Prae Garden Restaurant is banking on by featuring it in their exquisitely one-of-a-kind buffet. As mentioned, the restaurant does have plenty of main courses to order if you are looking for a real meal, and while delicious, the prices were a bit too high, and the portions a bit too small to warrant recommending it for dinner.

But if you're into enjoying beautiful lakeside scenery and fancy all you can eat durian.. Sri Prae Garden Restaurant is the place to go!