A new quick-serve restaurant called Hot Box opened last week right next door to Nonla Burger's Drake Road location in Kalamazoo, giving the Nguyen family's growing restaurant empire a fresh, health-focused spinoff. The build-your-own bowl concept, launched by Johnny and Kelly Nguyen, serves rice, veggie and protein bowls out of a small space at 1700 S. Drake Road, in the same Oshtemo Township strip where their burger brand has operated since February 2020.
A Long-Simmering Idea Finally Opens
Hot Box opened on September 11, and according to MLive, Johnny Nguyen said the idea for the restaurant had been in his mind for a long time. The space itself was originally intended to be part of Nonla Burger before the Nguyens decided to carve out a standalone concept, per the same report. Development took about three months and involved Bosch Architecture and DeLoof Construction as partners, with local artist Michael Mason contributing a large expressive painting for the restaurant's wall.
Kelly Nguyen told the outlet that the Hot Box concept grew out of the couple's experience running restaurants while raising a family, and that they wanted meals that were easy, convenient and healthy. The station's report notes Johnny Nguyen, who has five children, said he wanted a simple concept where people could order easy, healthy meals without much fuss. The finished space features tall ceilings, tall windows and light blue paint, a notably different aesthetic from the retro arcade theme the Nguyens built into their Grand Rapids Nonla Burger location, according to Swift Printing.
What's Actually In the Box
The menu centers on customization: diners choose two bases from white rice, brown rice, steamed vegetables or mixed greens, then pick from six protein options that include grilled chicken, sirloin steak, tempura chicken, shrimp, glazed pork belly and organic tofu, per the same account. Six sauce options round out the build. Sides include XL crab rangoons, truffle furikake fries and egg rolls, with fried eggs available as an add-on and apple pie egg rolls as one of three dessert choices.
Hot Box is open seven days a week from 10:30 a.m. to 9 p.m., and more details are available on the restaurant's website, hotboxrestaurant.com. The menu emphasizes customization and healthier ingredients, aligning with Hot Box's build-your-own bowl format.
From Street Food to Burgers to Bowls
The Nguyens' restaurant history includes street food, burgers and bowls. Johnny and Kelly Nguyen opened their first restaurant, Nonla Vietnamese Street Food, in 2015, which the chef described as chef-driven Asian cuisine, before the pandemic forced its closure in 2021. Johnny Nguyen built his culinary background working in restaurant kitchens across California, Hawaii and Michigan, including Michelin-starred establishments in two of those states, according to Swift Printing.
The original Mattawan site where Nonla Vietnamese Street Food first launched was later converted into a Nonla Burger location in January 2022 before eventually being taken over by another local eatery, per a Facebook post from Nonla Burger. Meanwhile, the burger concept itself first opened in 2017 in a retrofitted former restaurant building at 2103 South Burdick Street in downtown Kalamazoo, according to SW Michigan Dining. The Nguyen family now co-owns several Nonla Burger locations spanning Kalamazoo and Grand Rapids, including a fourth location the couple opened in December 2022 at 449 Bridge Street NW in Grand Rapids alongside Johnny's childhood friend Kyle Monk and his wife Natashia, as reported by WGRD.
A Proven Track Record in Kalamazoo
Nonla Burger's signature item, the N.B. Double, is built from two 3.2-ounce Certified Angus Beef patties, American cheese, lettuce, tomato, onions and house Nonla Spread, a sandwich previously recognized in MLive's Michigan's Best series. That reputation carried into this year, when Nonla Burger was voted the number one Best Burger in Kalamazoo in KZOOKIDS' annual reader survey in May, according to KZOOKIDS.
Hot Box now joins a stretch of South Drake Road that has become a dense hub for quick-service dining, including nearby spots like Mi Boba at 1750 South Drake Road, according to Vegan Kalamazoo. With Nonla Burger's fan base already established next door, the Nguyens appear to be betting that loyal customers will be curious enough to try a lighter, build-your-own alternative right around the corner.
