by Max Marbut
Staff Writer
Yum salad. Phad Thai. Red, yellow, green and Panang curries. Chicken satay and crab Rangoon.
Those are items you’ll find on only one lunch and dinner menu Downtown, and you’ll find them at Indochine, a new Thai and Southeast Asian restaurant on East Adams Street. On the second floor above Burrito Gallery, Mark Salter and his wife, Ladda, and chef Susie Sysouvanh formed a partnership to bring distinctive cuisine to the urban core.
“I think the location is perfect,” said Mark Salter. “The key to surviving is doing good business at lunch. We think we can complement Burrito Gallery and they have developed such a strong lunch business.
“There are 25,000 people within walking distance of our restaurant and even with the terrible economy, people who work Downtown are still going out to lunch.”
The couple and the chef bring many years of experience in the Thai and Vietnamese restaurant trade to their new venture. Mark Salter was general manager at Square One in San Marco for 15 years and Ladda and Sysouvanh have spent most of their lives in the business.
“We were ready. It was time to step out on our own,” said Ladda Salter.
The partners have designed what they call “streamlined menus” for lunch and dinner. Selections include salads, soups, noodles and curries. There are also house specialties such as steamed catfish in red curry served with collard greens, as well as braised short ribs and soft-shell crabs. Many dishes are offered in a choice of six levels of Thai spice.
Salter built the tables, booths and other fixtures himself, transforming the previously vacant space into a 102-seat restaurant with a compact kitchen and a full bar. There are exposed beams, brick walls and a pergola with a living wall of plants and waterfall that lends a peaceful atmosphere to the room. Artist Nicole Rosseland, who worked with the Salters at Pom’s Thai Bistro and Square One, is exhibiting her paintings in the restaurant. As is the case downstairs, art is also part of the business plan at Indochine.
“We’ll be part of Art Walk next week,” said Mark Salter. “It will be a chance to expose the restaurant to people who only come Downtown once a month.”
Indochine is open for lunch 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Monday-Friday. Dinner is served 5-10 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday.
“We want to develop a late dinner crowd,” said Ladda Salter. “People can come here then head to Mark’s or Dive Bar.”
To download menus, go to www.indochinejax.com.
356-2466