Chao Baan, the regional Thai restaurant that has anchored a stretch of Chouteau Avenue in The Grove since 2019, will serve its final meal this Sunday, September 20, closing the book on seven years in business. Owner Shayn Prapaisilp is shifting his attention to his family’s international grocery businesses and responsibilities at home.
The closure was reported by Sauce Magazine, which noted that Prapaisilp said he has become increasingly drawn to the grocery side of the family business. The family already owns Global Foods Market in Kirkwood and United Provisions in the Delmar Loop, both of which specialize in international groceries and ingredients, according to the same report.
A Menu Built on Two Regions of Thailand
Chao Baan opened at 4087 Chouteau Ave. in The Grove in June 2019, according to Sauce Magazine, quickly distinguishing itself from other Thai restaurants around town. As St. Louis Magazine reported at the time, the menu offerings are a mix of dishes from the Esaan region in the northeast and Pak Tai region on the south — two distinct culinary traditions served side by side. The restaurant's own website describes the goal plainly: “The idea of Chao Baan is to bring those two regional cuisines together under one, harmonious concept,” according to Chao Baan.
That fusion showed up on plates like khao tod nam sod, alongside beef nam tok, mieng kham leaf wraps and gaeng som, a southern Thai soup made with fish, papaya, turmeric and chile, per Sauce Magazine. The name itself carries meaning: Chao Baan means “of the people” in Thai, according to the restaurant's website.
Rooted in Family History
The restaurant drew directly from Shayn Prapaisilp’s own upbringing, and Sauce Magazine reports Chao Baan was inspired by his childhood food experiences. The regional dishes trace back further still — Suchin Prapaisilp grew up in Yala Province in southern Thailand, while Sue Prapaisilp came from Loei in the country's northeast, according to the outlet's reporting. Prapaisilp told Sauce Magazine that Chao Baan came from the food he grew up with.
Over its seven years, the restaurant became a gathering place for St. Louis' food community, per Sauce Magazine's report. Its annual dumpling dinner, which began as a one-night charity event in 2022, grew popular enough to sell out in less than 24 hours, with proceeds benefiting the Asian American Chamber of Commerce of St. Louis and the Very Asian Foundation, according to the outlet.
A Family Business With Deep St. Louis Roots
Chao Baan wasn't the Prapaisilp family's first venture into Thai dining in St. Louis. St. Louis Magazine reports the family eventually opened King & I, described as St. Louis' first Thai restaurant, back in 1983. That restaurant closed its longtime South Grand location and relocated to Richmond Heights at 8039 Dale Ave., according to a Sauce Magazine report from that year. King & I will remain open in Richmond Heights, per the outlet's current reporting, alongside Oishi Sushi in Creve Coeur and Oishi Sushi & Steakhouse in Chesterfield.
The family's broader operation includes four restaurants and two international grocery stores run by a staff of nearly 200, according to The STL. Those grocery roots run deep too: the family opened Global Foods Market in Kirkwood in 1999 and United Provisions in the Delmar Loop in 2014, per Sauce Magazine's reporting. Chao Baan's regional approach was distinct within the local dining scene.
What Comes Next for the Space
No immediate plans have been announced for the Chao Baan space once the doors close, Sauce Magazine reports. Prapaisilp told the outlet the family has nothing to report about the space at the moment, though he said he hopes a great operator eventually steps in to reimagine it. The family has expressed hope that another restaurant operator will eventually take over the location, according to the same report.
In the meantime, Chao Baan has encouraged longtime customers to return for one more meal before Sunday's close, per Sauce Magazine. For a restaurant that spent seven years introducing St. Louis diners to regional Thai cooking they'd rarely encountered locally, the invitation carries the same spirit as the name over the door — one last gathering, of the people, before it's gone.
