Father and son, Patrick and Desmond Chen, are proud to announce that the Thai House RestaurantGroup will celebrate its 25th anniversary this September. What started as a single restaurant on Robson Street in 1986 has grown to encompass nine successful restaurants: four award winning Thai House locations, Charm Modern Thai and Urban Thai Bistro in Yaletown, Chilli House Thai Bistro on Beach Avenue, and Samba Brazilian Steak House, plus the new Pink Elephant Thai on Alberni Street. Along the way, a line of Thai House Curry Sauce was introduced in 2006 and is now available at grocery stores across Canada.
The Thai House Restaurant Group story began when Patrick Chen immigrated to Canada from Hong Kong in 1967. He opened Richmond’s first Chinese restaurant, the Unicorn, on No. 3 Road at Westminster Highway, followed by Pisces Chinese Seafood Restaurant in West Vancouver, then Meridian Chinese Seafood Restaurant near Main and Broadway.
Patrick developed his passion for Thai food on a fateful trip to Thailand in 1985. A year later, during Expo 86, he decided to introduce Vancouver palates to the fare and opened the first (of five) Thai House Restaurant on Robson Street; its name was inspired by the character house that was home to the original restaurant.
Desmond started working at the Thai House in Kitsilano in grade eight as a kitchen helper; he worked his way through the organization learning how to prepare Thai sauces, driving deliveries, and waiting tables as the Thai House empire expanded.
Over the years, Desmond attended annual trips to Thailand with his father and the Thai House chefs including Thai House Restaurant Group’s executive chef, Lek Tendonioe, who has been with them since 1986. Lek received some of her early training at the Oriental Hotel in Bangkok before she began her tenure with the group. During these ventures Desmond developed his own interest and dedication to Thai food and culture, along with desire to introduce Vancouverites to a new approach to Thai food.
The Chens opened Urban Thai Bistro in Yaletown in 2000 which set out to put a fresh and urban spin on Thai food while maintaining authenticity. From its location in burgeoning Yaletown, to new flavors, Urban Thai Bistro set the stage for organization’s next restaurants: Samba Brazilian Steakhouse, Vancouver’s first and only Brazilian Churrascaria Rodizio, opened in 2002; Chilli House Thai Bistro launched on Beach Avenue in 2004; then Charm Modern Thai and Bar in Yaletown in 2008, and most recently Pink Elephant Thai on Alberni in 2011.
For more information and specific social media links please visit www.thaihouse.com.
