Nguyen and Thi Tran come back to tally your banana tonight, with the return of Downtown’s Starry Kitchen in a new location. What began life as an illegal dinner service specializing in Southeast Asian dishes at this married couple’s Hollywood apartment, SK went prime-time in 2010 with their own brick-and-mortar space in Downtown’s Grand Plaza, subsequently closing after more than two years due to debt and a few other things you can try to suss out here by reading between the liberal uses of “fuck.” Tonight’s grand open finds both Trans back in action at Fred Eric’s Tiara Cafe, and Nguyen stresses “this is not a pop-up,” but a permanent joint venture (and speaking of joint…), something the husband and wife wanted to establish as quickly as possible so their staff wasn’t left hanging.
There will be a new menu of Starry Kitchen eats tonight, of course, including chili crab, a new and improved version of their Malaysian chicken curry, and rib-eye noodles, as well as free Singha beer served throughout the night of the big reveal.
Following tonight’s reopening party, Starry Kitchen will then embrace new hours tomorrow, opening from Tuesday through Saturday, from 5:00 to 10:00 P.M., with reservations available at 213-814-1123.
Starry Kitchen at Tiara Cafe, 127 E 9th St. Downtown. 213-623-3663.
