For nearly fourteen years, at the corner of Central Ave. and Archer Rd., there’s been a small and delicious Thai restaurant that stands out among the area’s dining options, where Mexican as well as fast food options dominate.
Bree Thai Restaurant has a menu that captivates your palate, whether it’s miso soup, pad thai, or any dish served with rice—which can be served with beef, chicken, shrimp, or vegan—with its combination of savory, sweet, sour, and spicy flavors. It’s a true delight.
Behind this feat of establishing a Thai restaurant is the interracial couple made up of Frank Hernández, the son of Mexican immigrants from the state of San Luis Potosí, in central Mexico, and his wife Bree Hernández, from Surat Thani, a city located in southern Thailand known as “the city of good people.”
“We actually weren’t sure about the area,” Frank confessed when they began looking for a location to fulfill his wife’s dream of owning her own restaurant, as he had managed Thai restaurants in different neighborhoods for years.
“We looked downtown and on the North Side,” Frank said, keeping in mind that those areas have Thai restaurants. “We found this place, and since we opened in November 2011, we’ve been blessed.”
Since they decided to make Bree’s dream a reality, and although she also knows how to cook Mexican dishes such as mole and pozole, they wanted to maintain the authentic Thai flavor and not fuse or mix cuisines from other countries.
From the beginning, Bree wanted diners to experience the feeling she had as a child at her grandparents’ house.
“I love to cook,” Bree said. “I grew up with my grandfather and grandmother, and I helped them in the kitchen as a child. I like to see people happy when they eat my food.”
For Bree, maintaining the flavor she grew up with in Thailand is the most important thing, and to achieve that, the ingredients have to be fresh and authentic. “What we can find here (in Chicago and the surrounding area) and what we don’t, we order. That’s very important because spices are the flavor and the traditions,” she said.
When you come to this culinary corner of Thai flavor, you can enjoy the lunch special served Monday through Friday from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. $9.99 can afford you a plate of noodles, fried rice, or curry served with an appetizer and soup of the day—you can choose between chicken, beef, or tofu, or substitute shrimp for an extra $3.75—or to enjoy larger portions and a full meal from their menu.
Their menu includes nineteen different appetizers, eight soups, seven salads, eight noodle dishes, eight fried rice dishes, eleven entrees, six curries, five seafood dishes, two desserts, and drinks. In addition to soft drinks, there are Thai iced coffee and tea, Thai mango, and strawberry, pineapple, or blackberry smoothies.
Bree’s favorite dishes are the ones that bear her name: Rice Bree’s Fried Rice, which is a stir-fried rice with egg, carrots, and peas, and Bree’s Thai Stir-Fried Rice, served with a choice of protein with assorted vegetables.
And while Bree takes charge of leading the kitchen in every way, from cooking to delegating responsibilities, Frank is the one in charge of taking most of the orders and being there for customers.
Together, they’ve made their dream place a place where many find a flavor unmatched in the neighborhood and surrounding areas.
“It’s a wonderful neighborhood,” said Frank. “It’s diverse. We’ve found a niche. We’ve been welcomed from day one.”
Bree Thai Restaurant, 5306 S Central Ave. Tuesday–Friday, 11am–8pm; Saturdays and Sundays, 4pm–8pm; closed Mondays. (773) 767-3200.