About Us

Born in 1942 during a great flood in rural central Thailand, Chareonsak, the son of a Chinese doctor of herbal medicine, was nicknamed Mr. Juice or Mr. Shuǐ (meaning water in Mandarin). After immigrating to the States he began working in Thai and Chinese kitchens from Oklahoma to California, where he learned to craft his own style of cooking. In 1980, he settled in Los Angeles, where there was a large and vibrant Thai community. Once becoming an executive chef and co-owner of a successful Thai restaurant in West Hollywood (Thai Town) called To-rung (meaning overnight market) in 1981, he and his wife, Mrs. Ponphan, both yearning for a more peaceful environment for their children, moved with their friends to Santa Barbara, where they opened Your Place in 1983. Once having been warmly welcomed by local Santa Barbara diners, they opened a second Thai restaurant in Downtown Santa Barbara and then a third in Thousand Oaks over the course of their careers.

As the success of Your Place continued, Chareonsak taught Ponphan all the intricacies of kitchen preparation, and she later became the executive chef for many decades. As the chef, she introduced many more recipes, such as our green curry noodles, fresh summer rolls, and other numerous home recipes crafted for her children. Over the course of her career, she taught several chefs in her kitchen, whom she guided with care and dedication. With several of her chefs opening their own restaurants across Southern California, she continued to mentor and support them. Being that her guiding principle throughout her late success was to help those less fortunate than her, as she understood her fortunate position and life. She understood this, having grown up in a financially strapped family and having to forgo all formal education to support her six siblings financially through their schooling. Indeed, with much determination, she taught herself how to read and write orders in Thai during her tenure as the chef and accounting as a co-owner with her husband. The longetivity of our success can be heavily attributed to her as one of her principles of maintaining a successful restaurant was to connect with her customers, as throughout her tenure she greeted and familiarized with many diners personally. With on many occasions keeping our kitchen open after normal business hours for customers arriving late after a long workday or vacationers finding a late night meal. 

Today, our family strives to continue to cook with the same recipes but also to refine our menu for changing times. Chareonsak’s and Ponphan’s children and grandchildren continue to cook as chefs in our kitchens, bringing new ideas when traveling abroad in Thailand and Asia.