Austin's streets are set to sizzle again with Thai-Chinese culinary delights as renowned local chef Thai Changthong readies to open his next P Thai's Khao Man Gai outpost. Changthong, who had to shutter his previous location inside the now-closed Hong Kong Supermarket, has secured a fresh start on Airport Boulevard, aiming to charm the Austin food scene with an expanded menu of Thai-Chinese cuisine, according to Austin Eater.
Fan favorites like the emblematic khao man gai—a Thai twist on Hainanese chicken and rice—are poised for a comeback, alongside new Bangkok Chinatown-inspired dishes; this pivot follows an untimely closure in January, a victim to the supermarket's demise, yet Changthong, who also co-runs the Thai Kun eatery, bounces back less than a year after the original stall's July 2023 debut. "I want to thank [everyone] for being here, for supporting me and for riding with me on this roller coaster," Changthong conveyed his gratitude in a social media post, as reported by Community Impact.
The new P Thai's location at 4807 Airport Boulevard, formerly housing the Vamonos Tex-Mex establishment from the Parkside Projects group, signals a strategic pivot for Changthong, whose ties with Vamonos’ owner Shawn Cirkiel, date back to Cirkiel's patronage of Thai Kun’s food truck. While the restaurant's opening is marked for late April, the exact date remains up in the air as interior details are still being hashed out.
