If you like Thai food and live in Lexington, you’ve probably tried something from Kukie, either at their restaurant or at their food truck.
Fans of her Jasmine Rice Thai & Vietnamese Cuisine were surprised a few weeks ago when she announced that she was selling her restaurant on Winchester Road. And she wanted to give her customers plenty of advance warning.
“I love my customers, I cook my food with love,” she said.
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Nipaporn “Kukie” Ruadrew said after 14 years she decided she was ready to take on new challenges and leave some of the old ones behind.
She said she injured her back last summer and the long days on her feet, often running the restaurant alone, had begun to take a toll on her body.
There are plans to sell her restaurant to a former employee who will take over in September. The former employee, who also owns Thai House restaurant in Georgetown, did not respond to requests for comment.
But Kukie will keep the restaurant’s name, which is named after her older daughter, Jasmine, who was four when the restaurant opened. (She said Thai people have nicknames, so that’s the name most people know her by.)
“My last day will be August 31,” said Kukie.
She plans to keep her food truck running at least throughout this summer’s event season, so you can find her pad Thai and other top-notch specialties at Railbird, Crave, and the Woodland Art Festival, among others.
She also wants to offer cooking classes and maybe even start selling home-grown Thai vegetables at the farmers market.
“I want to pass on my gift to other people and inspire them to follow their dreams,” she said.
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