THAI THAI IN GREY LYNN HAS A NEW OWNER

Somboon Khansuk (nickname Ekk) has lived in the Grey Lynn area with his partner for the past three decades.

Somboon worked in the Huckleberry store in Richmond Road for eleven years and was the manager for six. He and his Thai nephew Varot (nickname Nox) have recently bought the Thai Thai restaurant at 280 Richmond Road.

Why have you purchased the restaurant?

It has always been our dream to own our own family run restaurant, so when the Thai Thai restaurant came on the market, we jumped at the chance to make our dreams come true. I also wanted to stay in the area that I’m most familiar with and know a great many people, plus I live only five minutes away from the restaurant.

What kind of Thai food will you be serving?

Genuine, authentic, affordable Thai food with authentic ingredients. We will cover every aspect of real Thai cuisine from Thai curries, soups, stir fries, Thai salads to noodles and fried rice dishes plus specialty Thai dishes.

Will you be cooking at the restaurant?

Varot (Nox) my nephew will be the chef as he has been a chef for many years in Bangkok and Chang Mai. He has a genuine interest in authentic Thai food, something he is extremely passionate about. Adisak (Kie) who is also a chef, will be working alongside Varot. Besides our regular menu, we will be catering for vegan, vegetarian, plus special customer food requirements in both sit down dining and takeaway orders. I will be front of house, meeting and greeting and serving customers. Varot’s wife Nan (who is also from Thailand and a foodie) will be working in the restaurant, so it will be a real family run business. I want to make it quite clear that none of our regular dishes will change, nor will the recipes. But we will be adding a few new dishes.

When did your interest in Thai food start?

At an early age, in fact for as long as I can remember, I would watch my father cooking – my mother seldom cooked any meals. I come from a family of seven brothers and sisters and my father taught us all how to cook. He grew all the vegetables and we had a rice farm, so I was brought up on organic meat, vegetables and rice. He would make all his own sauces and mixtures from scratch. I’m happy to say, that I still have all his recipes and use many of them today.

Why did you buy this particular Thai restaurant?

I have been helping out at the Thai Thai restaurant for quite a while and have got to know all the regular customers. Also, I know so many people in the area from when I worked at Huckleberry, so it’s like meeting up with old friends. Over the years, my partner and I have been regular customers of the Thai Thai restaurant and always enjoyed the food. We have been friends with the previous owners, Patrick and Noi, for many years.

A big added plus for our customers is parking, which is such a hassle these days when you go out. But because we are off the main street, we have a lot of car parks available which is really convenient for our customers for both lunch time and evening dining.

Is your restaurant fully licensed?

Yes, we are fully licensed and also BYO for wine only. We have a selection of sprits, different beers plus of course Thai beers. We are open Monday 4.30pm – 9.30pm, open for lunch Tuesday to Sunday 11am – 9.30pm. 280

PHIL PARKER: SPRING IS IN THE AIR

I sincerely hope so after a wet and gloomy winter. August is my birth month and my late mum said that pink cherry blossoms were blooming in peerless blue skies the day I was born in 1956. So there.

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