By: Analyse Jester
Open for over a decade, Thai Thai, one of Norman’s Asian cuisine restaurants has treated Norman with authentic Thai food and great customer service.
Koi Strickland, 49, opened Thai Thai with the help of her husband to share her love of sharing food from her home in Thailand.
“I love to cook, I love to see people, that’s how we started Thai Thai. And I love to eat,” Strickland said.
After moving to the United States in the early 2000s and marrying her husband in 2003, the Stricklands decided to save up so Koi, 49, could open her own Thai restaurant. Thai Thai opened on March 23, 2011 and has been a successful hub for Thai food since.
“We put everything I like about Thai food on the menu,” she said. “How I run my kitchen, I make everything myself. Every sauce, every vegetable, I hand pick everything, bell pepper, onion, broccoli every morning. That’s why Thai Thai is fresh.”
Koi originally started working at a previous Thai restaurant, Pad Thai located on campus corner. However, the restaurant closed down which inspired Koi to take action on opening her own restaurant. Focusing on building strong relationships with her customers, Koi has created a loyal customer base.
“A lot of customers feel like they are a part of my family,” Strickland said. “It feels warming. That’s what a lot of customers have told me it feels like, so that is one of my favorite parts.”
Koi sold her first restaurant, which resided on Main St. due to there not being enough room for the traffic her restaurant was receiving. Instead of opening a second location, Koi decided to sell the first building and open a larger restaurant on 24th St.
Since Thai Thai focused on good customer relationships, Koi wanted to focus her energy on one location in order to maintain her connections.
“When we opened we became famous and that restaurant became too small for us, so we moved. We opened both for six months and then it seemed like with Thai Thai when they [customers] come, they want to see me, so there can only be one location.”
Opening Thai Thai was Koi’s dream since moving to the United States. Enjoying the relationships she has made with the Norman community and sharing her passion for cooking, Koi has created a successful business she loves.