An interview with Kris Lueamrung, Owner
What made you decide to get into the business of food and drink?
I have been in the restaurant industry since I was 13 working every aspect of the business. From busboy to dishwasher to server to manager of a franchise at age 16.
I got into the actual restaurant business mainly because of my mom in 1992. It was initially her dream to own her own restaurant. She asked me to help her accomplish this dream of hers. So we moved to Florida to start our first restaurant. We learned so much in three years there. I missed home and wanted to come back to Reno. So we moved back to Reno in 1996 and started Bangkok Cuisine here.
At this time, Thai food was beginning to boom. We build the restaurant and were able to make it quite the success. All this was possible because of our amazing community! We won awards for best Thai food in Reno, year after year. It was quite the honor!
After four years I felt it was time for me to pursue my dreams of starting a career in public safety. I tried to get on the fire department twice and was unsuccessful. I was then offered a job with the Washoe County Sheriff’s Office. So, I left the restaurant to start a career as a deputy Sheriff in 2000.
After almost three years as a deputy I was offered to buy the restaurant from my mom. She was tired and it was hard for her to run it on her own. While working at the Sheriff’s office, I would often hear about the guys who hated their jobs and saw many of the senior deputies counting the days until retirement. I decided it was a good time for me to buy the restaurant from my mom. So this is where my true restaurant career took shape.
Why Reno?
I was born and raised in Reno. This is my home! Couldn’t have been a better place to introduce our culture.
Why are you excited for Reno Restaurant Week?
Restaurant week is an exciting opportunity to introduce a few new drinks that we have added to our menu. We are honored to have this opportunity to introduce our food and drinks to people that may have never tried us out before!
What is one thing you’d like your guests to know about you and/or your establishment?
I would like our guests to know that we are a local family owned business that takes a lot of pride in the quality of our food. We strive to provide nothing but the best that our culture has to offer.
We are extremely thankful for all the support that our amazing community has given us throughout the years and especially during the Pandemic.
How are you complying with safety guidelines for COVID-19?
We have taken all precautionary steps to follow all CDC guidelines to make sure that our establishment is COVID safe. We have sanitized our establishment (as we always have done) and made sure to space our tables 6’ to adhere to social distancing. Our staff will all be wearing masks. We have designated staff that handles food and designated staff that handles removing of dishes and cleaning. All menus will be wiped down after each use. As always, employee hand washing is strictly enforced!
2020 RRW Menu
