Sala Thai Restaurant
Home-cooking in the
neighborhood
Home-cooking in the
neighborhood
By Heidi M. Pascual
Sala Thai, the newest Thai restaurant on the east side, is located along Fair Oaks Ave. (near the
intersection of Milwaukee Street). Owned and operated by Pone and Pan Vanphravong, Sala Thai is a
dream come true for the couple. Several years ago, the Vanphravongs owned another Thai Restaurant
along Williamson Street, but they didn’t own the building. This time, they won’t worry about rent.
“This is my dream, you know,” Pone told Asian Wisconzine in a recent interview. “Pan and I have long
planned it, and now it is real!”
The couple purchased the property, a two-story house, in 2004. At that time, the couple had lost their
first restaurant and was managing the Corner Store on Williamson Street, a little convenience store that
offered subs, sandwiches, and one or two home-cooked Thai dishes. Pone said it was a way to keep
them busy while planning for their new restaurant near their home.
Early this year, the couple decided they were ready to execute their plan and realize their dream. They
have been collecting Thai and Laotian décor every time they visit Thailand and Laos, and were
excited to display their findings in their new restaurant. When the renovation was over, the walls were
lined with wood carvings specially made in Laos, while several framed photos of Thailand views hang
nicely throughout the cozy setting. In June 2008, their “second home” officially opened as a
neighborhood gathering place. “We were so excited, and so glad that many people came for the
opening,” Pone recalled. “I have been interviewed and our restaurant has been featured in a number of
local newspapers.”
Many Sala Thai customers are former loyal customers of the Vanphravongs when they still “cooked” at
Williamson Street. Word spread fast that they opened a new restaurant, and these customers didn’t
mind traveling a little farther from downtown to once again taste the excellent Thai dishes offered by
Pone and Pan. “I am thankful that many of them are back, and I’m very happy to see them all again!”
Pone exclaimed.
Pone emphasized that in the restaurant business, there is nothing more important than having a good
reputation. “ Pan and I cook real, authentic Thai and Laotian food,” she said, “and our dishes are very
good. We are now offering more dishes than we ever had before, and they’re’ very inexpensive. Because
we now own the place, there’s no reason to raise prices. We have good food for a good price, that’s all I
can say.”
The couple hasn’t hired any help yet, but they seek occasional assistance from close relatives when the
restaurant is very busy. Pone and Pan will have to hire waitstaff soon, judging from the increasing
traffic of old and new customers who are now starting to consider Sala Thai as a regular place to go to
for great food and company. The Vanphravongs have great PR skills, too!
“Sala means a gathering place, a temple, a pavilion,” Pone explained. “So we used that name in a
meaningful way. Our restaurant is a place to gather and enjoy a pleasant meal with friends and family.”
If you are looking for such a place with a homey feel, then Sala Thai is the restaurant for you.
Sala Thai’s Lunch Menu (sample)
(Lunches come with soup of the day or house salad; and with rice, except noodle dishes.)
• Pad Thai (Rice noodle, egg, pickled radish, bean sprouts, ground peanut)
Tofu/chicken … $6.50
Shrimp … $6.95
• Raad na (Large rice noodle with broccoli, carrots in thick sauce) Chicken/Pork/Beef … $6.95
• Pra Ram Long Song (Steam veggie, broccoli, carrot, peapod served over peanut sauce)
Chicken/Tofu … $7.95
• Seafood Combo (Mild stir fried shrimp, fish balls, scallops, mushroom, water chestnuts, baby corn, and
peapods) … $7.95
Sala Thai, the newest Thai restaurant on the east side, is located along Fair Oaks Ave. (near the
intersection of Milwaukee Street). Owned and operated by Pone and Pan Vanphravong, Sala Thai is a
dream come true for the couple. Several years ago, the Vanphravongs owned another Thai Restaurant
along Williamson Street, but they didn’t own the building. This time, they won’t worry about rent.
“This is my dream, you know,” Pone told Asian Wisconzine in a recent interview. “Pan and I have long
planned it, and now it is real!”
The couple purchased the property, a two-story house, in 2004. At that time, the couple had lost their
first restaurant and was managing the Corner Store on Williamson Street, a little convenience store that
offered subs, sandwiches, and one or two home-cooked Thai dishes. Pone said it was a way to keep
them busy while planning for their new restaurant near their home.
Early this year, the couple decided they were ready to execute their plan and realize their dream. They
have been collecting Thai and Laotian décor every time they visit Thailand and Laos, and were
excited to display their findings in their new restaurant. When the renovation was over, the walls were
lined with wood carvings specially made in Laos, while several framed photos of Thailand views hang
nicely throughout the cozy setting. In June 2008, their “second home” officially opened as a
neighborhood gathering place. “We were so excited, and so glad that many people came for the
opening,” Pone recalled. “I have been interviewed and our restaurant has been featured in a number of
local newspapers.”
Many Sala Thai customers are former loyal customers of the Vanphravongs when they still “cooked” at
Williamson Street. Word spread fast that they opened a new restaurant, and these customers didn’t
mind traveling a little farther from downtown to once again taste the excellent Thai dishes offered by
Pone and Pan. “I am thankful that many of them are back, and I’m very happy to see them all again!”
Pone exclaimed.
Pone emphasized that in the restaurant business, there is nothing more important than having a good
reputation. “ Pan and I cook real, authentic Thai and Laotian food,” she said, “and our dishes are very
good. We are now offering more dishes than we ever had before, and they’re’ very inexpensive. Because
we now own the place, there’s no reason to raise prices. We have good food for a good price, that’s all I
can say.”
The couple hasn’t hired any help yet, but they seek occasional assistance from close relatives when the
restaurant is very busy. Pone and Pan will have to hire waitstaff soon, judging from the increasing
traffic of old and new customers who are now starting to consider Sala Thai as a regular place to go to
for great food and company. The Vanphravongs have great PR skills, too!
“Sala means a gathering place, a temple, a pavilion,” Pone explained. “So we used that name in a
meaningful way. Our restaurant is a place to gather and enjoy a pleasant meal with friends and family.”
If you are looking for such a place with a homey feel, then Sala Thai is the restaurant for you.
Sala Thai’s Lunch Menu (sample)
(Lunches come with soup of the day or house salad; and with rice, except noodle dishes.)
• Pad Thai (Rice noodle, egg, pickled radish, bean sprouts, ground peanut)
Tofu/chicken … $6.50
Shrimp … $6.95
• Raad na (Large rice noodle with broccoli, carrots in thick sauce) Chicken/Pork/Beef … $6.95
• Pra Ram Long Song (Steam veggie, broccoli, carrot, peapod served over peanut sauce)
Chicken/Tofu … $7.95
• Seafood Combo (Mild stir fried shrimp, fish balls, scallops, mushroom, water chestnuts, baby corn, and
peapods) … $7.95
Pone and Pan Vanphravong (above) cook home-style Thai and Lao dishes in their new restaurant, Sala
Thai; Pone shows the wood carved decor she brought in from Laos; patrons enjoy the neighborhood feel
of Salai Thai, especially the warmth and friendliness of its owners. Many of the Vanphravong’s customers
are “loyalists” who have known the couple for many years at their old restaurant and enjoyed the couple’s
home-cooked dishes and warm smile.
Thai; Pone shows the wood carved decor she brought in from Laos; patrons enjoy the neighborhood feel
of Salai Thai, especially the warmth and friendliness of its owners. Many of the Vanphravong’s customers
are “loyalists” who have known the couple for many years at their old restaurant and enjoyed the couple’s
home-cooked dishes and warm smile.