Meet Sopanut Sopochana | Chef owner

We had the good fortune of connecting with Sopanut Sopochana and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Sopanut, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
Since I was a kid I was doing bad in school I hated when people tell me what to do
But I also afraid of being poor
I came from a broken home
I am the poorest one on my dad side
And the dummest one on my mom side
I am a college drop out I start my first job when I was 14 as a Diswasher (illegal immigrant) got pay $2 an hrs push my self to be a general manager at the age of 22 I always be in the restaurant business I know from the bottom to the top
So my dream to have my own place I open my first restaurant when I was 28 in. Nyc
I guess to answer your question is I don’t want to be poor and I am good at what I do

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
From an illegal Asian immigrants growing up in the. Bronx was very challenging For me to get a job is was very limited
My first job was a Diswasher when I was 14 years old they paid me $2 an hrs minimum wage was $5
All my life I always be in the restaurant business I had 3 restaurants when I was in nyc
When I first move to Florida I felt like Florida need some real Thai food I want ppl
Here to experience real Thai food without tracing to Thailand
I want the world to think of “eathai” is a authentic flavor that why I started bottling my sauce I am selling over 10’ r market now
I don’t really care what other ppl
Think about me but I want my two son to look up from me what I can accomplish how far my sauce can go
From being illegal immigrants in the Bronx
Never give up
I didn’t finish college so my work it was my degree

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
My best friend come I want to take them to paddle board in the ocean and bring six pack each Fishing from
Paddle board and cook right on the beach
Then I ll take them to Wynwood
I love to go there a lot of mixed. Culture

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
First of my god My team and my mom

Website: wwww.eathaiflorida.com

Instagram: eathai_iceny

Facebook: eathai_iceny

Yelp: Eathai

Other: IG eathai_sauce

Image Credits
Shane Sopochana