Today we’d like to introduce you to Katy Noochlaor.
Katy, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
Our family restaurant is one of the first Thai restaurants in Los Angeles and is still operating under Chao Krung on Fairfax across from The Grove. We worked our family to learn the business and received family recipes that have been handed down from generation to generation. Annie went on to manage the famous Thai empire called Chan Dara, while I went on in the family footsteps to open my own casual Thai restaurant called Tuk Thai in Los Angeles. Later on, Annie and I decided to work together and open up Same Same, the traditional and nontraditional Thai food/wine bar, served in a distinctly LA environment. Now we are proud of showcasing our own traditional food from our country with our family background. Our goal is for people to feel the connection to Thai culture, but also feel like they are experiencing something new.
Has it been a smooth road?
As with any business, it is never a smooth road. Opening a restaurant is an obstacle itself. Our goal is to keep the family tradition alive, maintain the culture our family has developed, and be able to accommodate the next generation of Los Angeles. Dealing with critics are some of the many challenges, while Inflation and rent hikes make it even more challenging. At the end of the day, doing this with family can make obstacles less challenging and always worth it.
So let’s switch gears a bit and go into the Same Same story. Tell us more about the business.
Both Annie and I are partners and owners of Same Same. We are both restaurateurs who specialize in Thai culinary. What sets us apart is that we have a background in Thai cooking and can showcase simple, non-Americanized Thai food.
How do you think the industry will change over the next decade?
I see more cultural restaurants being more in trend. Right now, there is a lot of fast and casual concept places popping up. I believe that many people will want to experience unique flavors of cultural food. In addition, so many people have been inspired by other cultures to make something unique in their own cooking and have established a unique concept restaurant because of it. The Same Same concept is rare and strong and will continue to stay that way. We will always stay true to who we are – a restaurant that will bring you that homey feeling and a place everyone can always go back to experience both a traditional and non-traditional Thai experience.
Contact Info:
- Address: 2835 Sunset Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90026
- Website: https://www.samesamethai.com
- Phone: (213) 273-8424
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/samesamethai/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/samesamethai/
Image Credit:
White Oak Communications
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