SUDDEN SHUTTERS

Beloved Thai Cafe to close after 27 years in Northeast San Antonio

Thai Cafe is calling it a day after 27 years.

One of San Antonio’s staples for panang curry, spring rolls, and pineapple fried rice is closing the curtains on a 27-year run. In a poignant statement, Thai Cafe at 11318 Perrin Beitel Rd says it will close in the upcoming months.

Thai Cafe, known for its cheery yellow and blue building and lunch buffet, entered the San Antonio dining scene in 1998, serving classic Thai fare at an affordable price. Sisters Lek and Chim (no surnames ever entered the public record) built the restaurant into an Alamo City institution before handing over the keys to Lek’s two daughters, Alissa and Annmarie.

A Facebook statement announcing the imminent closure reflected on the family legacy.

“When I first opened Thai Cafe with my sister in 1998, my two daughters were just five and two years old,” wrote Lek. “They grew up within these walls — helping fold napkins, doing homework at the corner table, and learning the meaning of hard work [and] hospitality, surrounded by the aromas of Thai cooking, the rhythm of dinner rushes, and the warmth of our loyal customers. My oldest daughter, once a little girl greeting guests at the front counter, now brings her own children here — the next generation who [have] come to know and love this space just as we did.”

The shutter comes at a turbulent moment for San Antonio’s evolving dining scene. Although the owners have various reasons for calling it a day, the city’s mom-and-pops have been particularly affected by an influx of national franchises. In July, Tiago’s Cabo Grill, El Maña, and an outpost of Lin’s International Buffet shuttered, leaving a gap for budget-friendly comfort fare.

After almost three decades running Thai Cafe, Lek is awaiting some well-deserved rest.

“As I prepare for retirement and our family steps into a new chapter, I look forward to spending time with my grandchildren and embracing life’s slower, sweeter moments; it feels like the right moment to begin a new chapter — one that allows me to reflect on all that we’ve built together.” she wrote.

Thai Cafe has not determined an exact date for the closure, but will announce details via social media in the upcoming weeks. And there’s a possibility that the family business will be revived by a new generation. Annmarie, who studied Thai cooking at Bangkok’s Dusit Thani Culinary College, is considering a new chapter through a street food venture.

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COMING ATTRACTIONS

Chef Jason Dady revives much-missed Umai Mi at San Antonio's Pearl

Photo by Katie James

A coconut curry at Umai Mi.

Call 2025 the year of the culinary comeback. San Antonio chef Jason Dady is reviving his short-lived pan-Asian concept Umai Mi on December 10 at Pearl’s Bottling Department food hall at 312 Pearl Pkwy., Bldg 6 #107.

The prolific Alamo City chef first opened Umai Mi at 555 W. Bitters in January 2014 after closing tapas bar Bin 555 a mere 17 days earlier. The menu’s tagline, “so not authentic, it’s absurd,” aptly described the fusion focus, a mishmash of Asian flavors Dady enjoyed tinkering with at home.

Since he retired the restaurant in January 2015, he has explored Mediterranean, Mexican, and Italian concepts. Still, he has not returned to the “countless bowls, broths, herbs, and sauces” of his beloved modern Asian cuisine until now.

This time, Umai Mi has a sharper focus — bánh mì. The sandwiches will be made with Pullman Market crackling demibaguettes, delicate herbs, crunchy vegetables, and a choice of proteins such as lemongrass chicken, ginger soy beef, or shrimp. Guests can also order the sandwich Saigon-Style with a housemade pâté.

Umai Mi Bánh mì is the centerpiece of the menu.Photo by Katie James.

Beyond the sandwiches, Umai Mi will serve a bún bowl built with vermicelli noodles, fresh vegetables, peanuts, and a protein, finished with the house nuóc chãm. Diners can also dive into curries made with slow-simmered blends of coconut milk, aromatics, and Thai basil, available in red, Panang, or green.

The small plates and starters bring back some of Uma Mi’s heavy-hitters, including Japanese-inspired deviled eggs, crispy shrimp rolls, summer rolls, sweet and spicy wings, and a crispy rice salad. Although the kiosk — which replaces Chilaquil — doesn’t have “authentically absurd” cocktails of the original, it does offer playful choices like taro bubble tea, mango milk tea, and strawberry matcha.

The Umai Mi revival comes during a year of restaurant nostalgia. Earlier in the year, restaurateur Chad Carey staged a five-day series of pop-ups supporting Hill Country flood relief that featured the menus of now-shuttered concepts Cookhouse, Sandbar, The Monterey, Gwendolyn, and Feast. Feast is also undergoing a month-long resurrection at Battalion throughout December.

But the Jason Dady Restaurant Group is mostly looking toward the future. This year, the chef has opened Ice Ice Dady and Lil’ Bros BBQ Shack at The Rock at La Cantera and Tre Pizzeria at the San Antonio International Airport. Mexico Ceaty, a reimagining of mall food courts, is slated to debut in early 2026 at the Shops at Rivercenter downtown.

“We’re thrilled to bring Umai Mi to the Food Hall at Pearl, a place that celebrates culinary creativity and community,” says Dady in a statement. “The bánh mì represents what I love about cooking, balancing textures, fresh herbs, and layering flavors in a way that makes every bite exciting. At Umai Mi, it’s not just a menu item; it’s a dish that defines who we are.

Once opened, Umai Mi’s hours will be 11 am-9 pm Monday through Thursday, 10 am-10 pm Friday and Saturday, and 10 am-9 pm Sunday.

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