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Chef Daeng

With over 37 years of experience in the hospitality business, Chef Daeng is a true diamond in the crown that is now Racha Thai & Asian Kitchen. She started work in her family-owned restaurant before moving on to join the Imperial Hotel Group in 1973. Once there, she soon showed her cooking talents by creating many dishes. This led to an invitation to become Chef at the Imperial Hotel a few years later. Her theory, “Make normal food look like royal food,” was a key to her success at the hotel. While still working for the Imperial Group, she was sent to France to open a chain of new Thai restaurants. Her cooking talent became certified by most of Europe when her creative “Tamarind Duck” won 3rd prize in the Asian Food Category at the 1992 International Food Contest held in Lynne, France. She has been with Racha Thai and Asian Kitchen as an executive chef since 2000.

Punya Tipyasothi

From his first job in a restaurant as a dishwasher 22 years ago, Punya has learned lots of secret recipes from many great chefs. He traveled all over Thailand and South East Asia in search of new innovative ideas and recipes for his restaurant. He opened the first Racha in 1997 and now with help and support from Chef Daeng, and his friends and family in Thailand, he opened Racha Thai & Asian Kitchen in Westfield Southcenter Mall Tukwila, Washington and in Clackamas Town Center, Happy Valley, Oregon. His concept for Racha Thai & Asian Kitchen is maintain good authentic Thai recipes and add chef specials for customers who want to try new innovative dishes from our chef team. He keeps the standard high for cleanliness in his restaurants, serves filtered drinking water, and uses the freshest high quality ingredients… as you can see here. Eat like Thais is another menu created by his team for people who love to eat a real tasty and spicy Thai Food..

Tipsucha Bangthamai (Kae)

Kae’s cooking talent shined when she was only 18 years old. Kae won the 1st prize “Thai Dessert Contest” award at the national level. Along with the award, Kae received a scholarship to further her cooking education at ‘Suan Dusit Rajabhat University’, one of the top ranked food institutes in Thailand. Kae’s cooking career started at ‘The Mandarin Oriental Hotel’, the world’s most luxurious hotel, legendary for more than 130 years and the highest destination for many cooks in Thailand. After many years of gaining experience at The Mandarin Oriental Hotel, Kae has now joined Racha Thai & Asian Kitchen.

Kaew Thapan

It took us more than 2 years to convince this diamond to join us at Racha. Kaew was revealed to us as we stopped by at his restaurant while we were on a research trip in Southeast Asia. Tasting his food, we all agreed that it was one of the best Thai food we ever had. Kaew’s first job was in a little restaurant on the east side of Bangkok, from there he learned how to cook Thai food from scratch. At the age of 15, Kaew decided to elevate his professional level in a 3 star hotel, and continued climbing up, from time to time, until he became the chef at the 5 star casino resort “Tropicana” in Cambodia when he turned 35. With more than 20 years of cooking experience, Kaew is now cooking “Real Thai Food” for you at RACHA.

Wipawadee Santhaweesuk

With a passion for dessert and desire to be a pastry chef “Wipawadee” decided to quit law school and enrolled in pastry school at the Royal Culinary School, where she learned Thai pastry from top chefs who make dessert for the Royal Family. She learned western style pastry when she worked at Mango Three in the Four Seasons Hotel in Macau. From then she creates her own pastry by combining techniques and tastes of east and west that make her desserts unique and so good.