Thai Orchard

Dec. 2, 2007

Give your taste buds a new sensation! Check out the new family-owned Thai Orchid Cuisine located in downtown Petoskey. Open since October 17th, this 46-seat restaurant offers Thai fare with plenty of spice for those who crave it and milder dishes for those who don’t.
 
NORTHERN MICHIGAN BEAUTY BECKONS
Thai Orchid owner Thomas Vangyi thought Petoskey was a perfect place to open a new restaurant.
“I liked this town and I traveled many times through here,” he says. “It had beautiful scenery, back like in Thailand in the mountains, and a lake.”
The experienced restaurateur and married father of five has co-owned a Thai restaurant in Mt. Clemens with his brother-in-law for the last six years, but moved his family north in September.
“We have another restaurant in Detroit – in Mt. Clemens,” says Vangyi. “Our family, we do restaurants, and…we came here and we felt like we can’t let this thing go, we have to put another restaurant here.”
“I’ve worked in the restaurant business for a little over 10 years now,” he continues. “It’s not new to us.”
Tastefully decorated with pale lavender walls, multicolored tapestries under glass for tabletops and plenty of orchid pictures – in homage to the restaurant’s name – Thai Orchid Cuisine offers an extensive menu at reasonable prices.
 
SPICE IS NICE – BUT NOT
NECESSARY
Born in Laos, but raised for many years in Thailand, Vangyi came up with the range of menu offerings and says that curry is its basis.
“When yosu talk about Thai food, mainly it’s going to be curry, but we do some other popular (dishes) like stir-fried noodles and stir-fried rice,” he says. The majority of customers order stir-fry dishes, including vegetable dishes like pad cashew and pad almonds.
“The most popular dish that is Thai is going to be the red curry,” continues Vangyi. “Red curry is coconut milk, fish sauce and sugar.”
The restaurant’s varied menu includes Thai appetizers like spring rolls, crab wonton and chicken satay (skewered and grilled marinated chicken strips), plus a selection of entrees including fried rice, noodles, chicken, seafood and duck, and soup and salad – served only at dinnertime. And don’t forget the homemade coconut ice cream for dessert.
Vangyi has been pleased with the restaurant’s reception in Petoskey and would love to open an additional restaurant in the Traverse City area in a few years, if all goes well.
“I’ve always wanted to own a restaurant – not just one – maybe a couple,” he says with a smile.
 Visit Thai Orchid Cuisine on Mitchell Street in downtown Petoskey Monday-Friday 11:30 a.m. – 9 p.m. and Saturday 4 p.m. – 9 p.m. For takeout orders call
231-487-9900.