Ellington

A fire has forced one of the U-District’s family-owned Thai restaurants to rebuild — and it’s taking longer than planned.

The owners of Little Thai, which has been located at Northeast 42nd Street and Brooklyn Avenue Northeast for 20 years, have been without work since a fire in October and are counting down the days until the grand re-opening of their restaurant.

The fire started in the Seattle Vineyard Church office above the restaurant and, after it was put out by sprinklers, left behind massive water damage and a collapsed ceiling. Owners Kritsada Chautavipat, Kanlaya Khomthongstid, and Warinee Comthongstid have since been working to rebuild.

“It was so sad to see something like this happen with [Little Thai],” Chautavipat said. “And it was like something we never expected.”

The restaurant’s total renovation, which includes new ceilings, walls, insulation, paint, and furniture, is taking longer than the owners had expected. One of the big changes is the use of concrete floors without carpeting in the remodeled dining room, Khomthongstid said.

The owners didn’t expect it would take three months to repair the damages, Khomthongstid said, and they keep hoping they could open Little Thai again tomorrow. The remodeling process is taking longer than planned because everything in the dining room had to be removed, and the walls, ceiling, and doors had to be taken out and rebuilt.

“We got a call from the landlord saying there was a fire,” Khomthongstid said. “We didn’t think it was going to be a big one … we thought we could fix it and open tomorrow.”

It took a while for the owners to go through insurance approval. Insurance is helping cover some of the damage costs, but the business is still taking a hit financially.

“It happened when the new [academic] quarter just started,” Khomthongstid said. “[Those months] are very good for business at [Little Thai].”

Although it’s taking a while for them to get back on their feet, the owners hope to see their regular customers — and some new ones — when the renovation is complete.

“[Losing customers is] something you have to worry about around here because there’s a lot of restaurants — it’s not just us,” Khomthongstid said. “We’re closing for a long time, and maybe they’d forget about us.”

The owners plan to keep the same food quality and prices and are even looking to expand their menu a bit. Khomthongstid said Little Thai plans to give special discounts to students, hoping they can get their regular customers back.

“I loved the environment and the food was amazing,” said Nathan Valmonte, a Little Thai customer and UW student. “I can’t wait until they open again.”

Khomthongstid said they hope students come and give them another shot and that old regulars return and realize it’s the same Little Thai it was back in October.

Repairs are still ongoing, but the owners hope to get the place up and running by mid-February.

“We are very eager to come back,” Chautavipat said, “and we miss our customers a lot.”

Reach reporter Kaitlynn Miller at news@dailyuw.com.