Chef
Kris Yenbamroong
- Discipline
- Chef
- Based in
- Los Angeles, California, United States
i. Biography
Los Angeles functions as a working ingredient in the cooking Kris Yenbamroong serves: traffic-hour appetite, strip-mall proximity, and food built for heat, salt, acidity, and drink. The register is Thai-American through LA Thai cooking, treated as a living service language rather than a fixed archive. Chile, acid, generosity, and speed matter here because the food is made to move across a crowded table with a cold glass beside it. At Night + Market restaurants in LA and Las Vegas, where Yenbamroong is chef and owner, the format is casual but tightly identified. Natural wines and small producers are placed beside food with color, force, and social utility. Whole crispy catfish with sizzling ginger scallion works through crunch, steam, and aroma; lobster pad Thai uses a familiar form with a more abundant charge; pad kee mao made with pastrami from L.A.’s Langer’s Deli folds one local food institution into another LA appetite. The meal is built as a complete service scene: bottle, spice, company, noise, and the likely second order. “In Thai, it's called aharn glam lao, which roughly translates to 'food to facilitate drinking' or 'booze food.' That's at the heart of what we do. We make food for drunkards.” Kris has said.
The Ascent
Restaurant literacy in this line came through Talésai in Los Angeles, where Kris Yenbamroong worked as operator from 2008. That role put the craft of service in practical terms: dining-room timing, mood, pace, and the coordination between kitchen, floor, and guests. Before the later restaurant group had its own shape, the work was grounded in how hospitality is assembled in real time. The first defined expression of that style came with Night + Market WeHo, where Yenbamroong became owner since 2010. The cooking was direct, flavorful, and built for company, with Thai food and wine treated as a functional pairing rather than a concept requiring explanation. The confidence was in the placement: strong seasoning, bottles chosen for the table, and a room organized around appetite. The expansion continued with Yenbamroong as owner of Night + Market Song since 2014, then owner of Night + Market Sahm since 2018, and owner of Night + Market Vegas since 2021. Each address extended the same operating grammar: abundance at the table, intensity as an invitation, and a city-born way of eating carried without losing its local pressure.
Present Day
The current practice is the restaurant group in LA and Las Vegas, where Kris Yenbamroong is chef and owner, and the creative force behind those rooms in both cities. Its West Hollywood location is where he became founder and chef-owner in 2010, anchoring the work in the city that continues to supply its contradictions and appetite. Across the restaurants, the through-line is Thai flavor, wine, and company handled without ceremony but with clear intent. Natural wines and small producers sit next to dishes built on fire, funk, sweetness, smoke, richness, and snap. The structure favors sharing and accumulation: plates arrive in rounds, the table edits the meal as it goes, and the food is designed to hold up to conversation and another pour. The Las Vegas specials mark the range within that frame. Whole crispy catfish with sizzling ginger scallion brings texture and aromatic lift. Lobster pad Thai keeps the recognizable form while pushing it into a more abundant register. Pad kee mao made with pastrami from L.A.’s Langer’s Deli keeps the cooking tied to place, using the city not as backdrop but as pantry and reference point.
Credentials
Kris Yenbamroong has received Food & Wine Best New Chef (2016). Best New Chef (2016) and two nominations in the Outstanding Wine Program category place Kris Yenbamroong’s work in a trade context beyond restaurant popularity. The recognition is for a specific contribution: Thai-American cooking with a strong Los Angeles accent, paired with a wine culture built around use, pleasure, energy, and the table in motion.
Profile updated July 2026
FAQ
Asked of Kris
What does Kris Yenbamroong currently do?
Kris Yenbamroong is chef and owner.
Where did Kris Yenbamroong work before?
Earlier in their career, Kris Yenbamroong worked at Talésai.
What recognition has Kris Yenbamroong received?
Best New Chef (2016).
