tail wags montrose

Kin Dee owner opens new fast casual Thai restaurant in Montrose

Montrose’s newest Thai restaurant has opened its doors. Thai Tail has begun its soft opened ahead of a grand opening on June 20.

Located in the former La Fendee space at 1402 Westheimer, Thai Tail is the latest project from restaurateur Lukkaew Srasrisuwan. It combines elements of M Express Thai Kitchen, a short-lived ghost kitchen devoted to Thai-inspired takes on American street food, and Kin Dee, a popular restaurant in the Heights known for dishes such as Thai Flower Dumplings and “Money Bags,” deep-fried chicken and shrimp dumplings. The restaurant will also serve Thai-inspired cocktails.

Thai Tail has a diverse menu that contains both traditional Thai dishes such as drunken noodles and pad Thai as well as fusion-inspired fare such as:

Crispy Wonton Pad Thai, crunchy pork and shrimp wontons with sweet and tangy pad Thai sauce
Shrimp Nuggets served with sweet plum sauce
Beef Drunken Chili with spinach tortilla chips
Panang Chicken Club Sandwich with chicken breast, fresh lettuce, and Panang curry sauce
Green Curry Pork Burger made with ground pork and topped with Thai green curry.

Cocktail options include The Beach, a frozen daiquiri made with rum, coconut, and jasmine, and the Thaigerita, which adds tropical fruits to a traditional margarita.

The intimate, 1,200-square foot restaurant seats 24 in the dining room and 36 on its patio. It opens daily at 11 am and stays open until 2:30 am on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.

"Montrose is one of the most walkable parts of Houston, and Thai Tail is excited to part of such a vibrant neighborhood,” Srasrisuwan said in a statement. “Our menu will appear to all guests seeking an authentic and approachable menu celebrating Thai flavors at reasonable price points.”

MaKiin Concepts, Srasrisuwan’s hospitality group, has been growing steadily since she opened Kin Dee in 2020. Last fall, she opened MaKiin, her most ambitious project to date. Located in the Hanover River Oaks luxury high-rise, the restaurant serves Thai-inspired dishes made with luxurious ingredients such as wagyu beef and lobster. It also offers a luxurious environment, a high level of service with tableside presentations, and live music.

Photo by Sean Rainer

Behold the basil beef burger.

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truffle shuffle

Fine dining chef serves up casual sandwich shop in Houston suburb

Photo by Hungry AF Media

Richmond may not be top of mind among the Houston suburbs with destination-worthy restaurants — other than Larry’s Original Mexican, of course — but a new cafe could have sandwich lovers from across greater Houston contemplating a visit to Fort Bend County.

Meet Truffle & Rye Market & Café. The new restaurant, which celebrated its grand opening earlier this month, serves breakfast and lunch Monday through Saturday. In the morning, look for freshly baked pastries such as muffins and banana bread alongside breakfast sandwiches that are made with organic sourdough bagels.

Lunch is built around sandwiches made with freshly baked schiacciata bread, an Italian-style flatbread that’s similar to focaccia, that Truffle & Rye sources from Houston's Artisan Bread Gallery. They include The Pig (mortadella, stracciatella, pistachio, pesto, and pistachio crumble), The Boar (spicy salami, whipped ricotta cheese, Italian pepper spread, and arugula), and The Bird (roasted turkey, basil pesto, provolone, roasted tomato, and arugula). Three salads are also available.

Beverage options include a full coffee program, including lattes made with Mill-King milk and house made syrups, as well as teas, lemonade, and bottles of wine.

Truffle and Rye restaurant Kaitlyn Chavez and Joey Chavez Truffle and Rye owners Kaitlyn and Joey Chavez.Courtesy of Truffle & Rye Market & Café

Photo by Hungry AF Media

The Bird is made with turkey, pesto, provolone, and roasted tomatoes.

Chef Joey Chavez and his wife Kaitlyn are the husband-and-wife duo behind Truffle & Rye. Prior to launching his private chef company The Hidden Truffle, chef Chavez worked at a number of notable restaurants, including The French Laundry, Thomas Keller’s legendary, three-star Michelin fine dining restaurant in California; the Caribou Club in Aspen; and Brennan’s of Houston, where he had a brief stint as executive chef. Kaitlyn Chavez also brings top-level hospitality experience, having worked for The Ritz Carlton luxury hotel chain.

“We built The Hidden Truffle around private dining and elevated experiences,” Kaitlyn shares. “But we kept coming back to the idea of wanting something for our community, somewhere people could come in regularly, feel taken care of, and enjoy food that still holds that same level of quality.”

While the restaurant won’t serve dinner daily, it will be open on select nights for wine tastings, sourdough classes, pop-up dinners, and other happenings.

Although he has a fine dining background, chef Chavez said he’s excited to bring this more casual concept to Richmond. “We wanted to build something we would want to go to ourselves,” he said. “A place where the food is intentional, the ingredients matter, and people feel comfortable coming in multiple times a week.”

Truffle & Rye is located in Richmond at 107 S. Third Street. It opens at 7 am Monday-Thursday and 8 am on Friday and Saturday.

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