Bay View’s newest restaurant, Room Service, is slated to open its doors to the public at 2159 S. Kinnickinnic Ave. at 5 p.m. today, Thursday, April 11.
The beautifully appointed new eatery, specializing in traditional Thai and Japanese cuisine, will mark the second of three openings at Ground 59, a multi-unit development in Bay View. The first was Todd I Believe I Can Fry, a restaurant specializing in Korean fried chicken and other Asian fare.
Designed by Dan Beyer Architects, Ground 59 is owned and curated by JJ Lert, Tammy Lert, and Tony Kora, co-owners of Rice N Roll Bistro and Kin by Rice N Roll. [Read more about Ground 59 here].
Behind the concept is Chef Joey Phadungsil, an industry veteran whose career began in Thailand and whose experiences led her to feel a calling to open her first restaurant in Milwaukee.
Room Service represents the culmination of Chef Phadungsil’s life-long love affair with food, which began in the kitchen of her family’s restaurant in Thailand, a lifetime of travel and years honing her craft in the bustling restaurants of Bangkok and the sophisticated Thai and Japanese restaurants in New York. Her varied work allowed her to immerse herself in both the cultures and cuisines of Thailand and Japan, mastering the art of each country’s diverse and flavorful offerings.
Twenty years later, Phadungsil is prepared to share her wealth of knowledge and expertise with diners in Milwaukee. Room Service draws inspiration from her roots in Thailand and her love for Japanese cuisine, creating a restaurant experience that bridges the two distinctive culinary traditions.
Built on stories
When guests enter Room Service, they will find a meticulously designed dining space, full bar and sushi bar built on a palette of earthy greens, gold, and black. Furnishings and fixtures showcase rich textures like velvet, metallic gold and warm wood.
Many of the interior features express elements of history and lore. For example, intricate mural work decorates the back of the restaurant’s bar, while the staircase leading up to the restaurant’s 500-square-foot rooftop patio features a series of murals that depict treasured stories from Thailand. Even the restrooms depict tales of time and place with artwork created by Meng, a Thai artist from New York.
“I want Room Service to be a place where people can come together, share stories and savor the joys of good food, good drinks and great company,” says Phadungsil, as she explains more about the concept, which was built to accommodate diners with gluten-free, vegan and vegetarian options.
A quick taste
The concept for Room Service reaches back in time, she explains, showcasing traditional dishes from Thailand, many dating back hundreds of years.
“I want people to understand the true flavors and dishes of Thailand,” she says. “And I want them to appreciate the nuances of flavor found in sushi and Japanese cuisine.”
Her wishes play out in every element. Bar Manager Golf Asavaponggitti will oversee the execution of various signature cocktails, many of which reflect the herbs, spices and ingredients innate to Thai cuisine, along with spirits like Japanese Whiskey and Sake.
Each drink is named for a place Chef Phadungsil has traveled with offerings like “One Night in Bangkok,” a cocktail that incorporates the flavors and aromatics of Tom Yum Soup (lemongrass, chiles and makrut lime).
Highlights from the food menu include Chef Phadungsil’s uniquely creamy Tom Yum Soup, prepared with evaporated milk and served alongside a grilled prawn. The soup will be presented tableside in a siphon so that diners can see (and smell) each of the individual components of the dish.
Additional starters include Chor Muang (Royal Flower Dumplings), a savory snack that dates back to the early 1800s in Thailand. Made with a tender rice and starch-based dough that’s dyed with butterfly pea flowers, and filled with a savory peanut filling, the dumplings are painstakingly carved into flower shapes by hand.
They are served with a basket of greens (fresh lettuce, cilantro and edible flowers) which can be used to create fresh, delicious wraps.
Other underrepresented dishes include Gaeng Hung Lay, a slow-simmered complexly flavored curry from Northern Thailand that Phadungsil says takes four hours to prepare. Unlike the most common preparations which feature pork belly, she says that hers will be made with beef short ribs.
Meanwhile, she says her sushi selection, made by Sushi Chef Martin Baxin, will emphasize more traditional styles of sushi, including sashimi and nigiri – each prepared to bring out the delicate texture and nuanced flavors of the ultra-fresh fish.
Phadungsil says the restaurant will present chef’s sushi sets for premium fish like Toro, Uni and rare Japanese beef.
Guests will also find temaki sushi (hand rolls). But, rather than being rolled into cones, the sushi will be presented in a looser, taco-like shape accompanied by a special eco-friendly covering for the nori that keeps the seaweed crisp until it’s eaten.
The new-style temaki features fillings like spicy tuna with yuzu and microgreens; eggplant with cucumber and fried kobu; spicy salmon and rice puffs; unagi with eel sauce and ika with yuzu-chili sauce and a touch of wasabi.
A few maki rolls will also be featured including the Harajuku Roll, named for the famed street in Tokyo. It features mango, cucumber and salmon topped with spicy salmon, mango, mango sauce and chives.
During its first week (April 11-18) Room Service will be open for dinner only with hours from 5 to 11 p.m.
Beginning Friday, April 19, the restaurant will switch over to its regular hours offering lunch service Sunday through Thursday from 11:30 to 3 p.m. and dinner service from 5 to 10:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, lunch service will take place 11:30 to 3 p.m. followed by dinner service from 5 to 11 p.m. On Friday and Saturday, Room Service will also showcase a late-night menu featuring special cocktails and bites served from 11 p.m. to 3 a.m.
Lori is an avid cook whose accrual of condiments and spices is rivaled only by her cookbook collection. Her passion for the culinary industry was birthed while balancing A&W root beer mugs as a teenage carhop, fed by insatiable curiosity and fueled by the people whose stories entwine with each and every dish. She’s had the privilege of chronicling these tales via numerous media, including OnMilwaukee and in her book “Milwaukee Food.” Her work has garnered journalism awards from entities including the Milwaukee Press Club.
When she’s not eating, photographing food, writing or recording the FoodCrush podcast, you’ll find Lori seeking out adventures with her husband Paul, traveling, cooking, reading, learning, snuggling with her cats and looking for ways to make a difference.
