From Thailand to a Hoover gas station.
The Aroonsakulwongse family cooked traditional Thai food in Thailand for years before moving to Alabama and reopening their kitchen inside a former convenience store on Lorna Road. They pulled out the gas pumps. Brought in tables and chairs. Hung a sign.
For the first stretch the dining room was quiet. Then word started getting around — first among Birmingham's Thai community, then the food writers, then everyone else. People drove from out of state. The crowd never went away.
This year they expanded the kitchen and removed more pumps to make room for parking. Sam, the owner, still knows most regulars by name. That hasn't changed.2
Why people keep driving here
"It looks like a gas station from the outside. Walk in and it's some of the best Thai food in the South."
— A common refrain in the reviews