FARMINGTON —  When Thai Smile and Sushi Restaurant opens at 11 a.m. Thursday, owner Chaiwat Kloythep hopes people will opt to try new things.

The authentic Thai food restaurant has a variety of dishes, many homemade, he said. It’s at 103 Narrow Gauge Square, the former site of The Company.

Kloythep said he five employees for the kitchen and five for wait staff.

Kloythep, his wife, Anne Suphattra Kloythep, and 4-year-old daughter, Kasama, are making the move from Biddeford to Farmington where they’ll run the restaurant seven days a week from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., he said. 

Driving through the area, he said he realized there are no Thai restaurants in Farmington and with the university here, he thought it would be a good place for him to open another one. He already has a family business in Kennebunkport where perhaps his most famous patrons were once the first family.

“George Bush likes Thai food a lot,” he said.

Kloythep’s family moved from Thailand to California in 1988 and he started cooking. Making his way to the East Coast as a young man, he dreamed of having his own business.

“I started to dream when I was about 25. I have to have my own someday. Dream came true but it was not easy,” he said of the past 23 years.

Kloythep said there are misconceptions about Thai food and sushi.  Thai food is not always spicy and sushi can be served raw or cooked.

One soup on the menu is made with tofu and fresh herbs along with crab rangoons and Pad Thai noodles. His homemade crab rangoons are quite different than the version found in  Chinese Restaurants but they are definitely a must to try, he said. 

Kloythep likes the Pad Thai noodles, which he brings in from Thailand.  The lunch portion sample has shrimp, chicken and vegetables mixed in and garnished with a small vegetable and fruit salad. Fresh herbs and spices compliment the dishes providing a light, fresh taste.

While many locals have expressed a desire to have more ethnic food available in Farmington, for Kloythep it’s a matter of getting people to come, experience and learn more about the foods and methods of cooking he offers. Barbecued eel is on the menu but so are salads, he said.

“Thai food has been on the New York Times list of best foods for three years in a row,” he said. “My Kennebunkport restaurant is always busy.”

Along with lunch specials, the new restaurant will offer Thai beer and Saki along with the regular bar beverages. He also plans to continue with The Company’s Saturday night open mic nights and in the future bring some Thai musicians from Connecticut here to play.

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