Sampannee for You and Me

The owner Sampannee, a popular Thai restaurant in Dupont Circle, will open a sister restaurant soon in the space vacated 2.5 years ago by Social Beast at 2340 Wisconsin Avenue in Glover Park. Kesorn Aswalap, along with her daughter Nonna, and her sister will be running the show at Kiin Laow, the expected name of the new Thai restaurant. Anyone who has been to Social Beast or Town Hall prior knows that the space at 2340 Wisconsin is huge, plus it has a great outdoor courtyard. Kesorn plans pursue one of her passions here and use the upstairs to run a Thai bakery called Kanom Pan Bakery.

Kesorn Aswalap attended culinary school at the Grand Palace in Thailand when she was a teenager and ran a cooking school in Bangkok before coming to the USA. She opened Sampannee in Dupont in 2023 and continues to receive rave reviews. The palace-trained chef serves traditional Thai food, as well as creative and colorful Thai cocktails that bring in the crowds. Kesorn attributes the popularity to the authenticity of the cooking as well as the use of only high-quality ingredients. Kiin Laow will have more of an Asian fusion menu with a focus on wowing customers with their pan-Asian cocktail creations. Nonna and her sister will be running the bar area. They have no plan for live entertainment at the moment, though the courtyard at 2340 Wisconsin is set up to make that a fun option in the warmer months so maybe they will consider it later on. The Social Beast liquor license has been on ice (in “safekeeping” status) for the past two years where it awaits activation. Since that was not canceled it should not require an ANC review or neighbor protest period.

Kesorn and family have been dealing with a complicated permitting issue at the building for the past year, which involves a substandard electrical system, which has failed inspection. The building owner is actively involved to get that up to par, though Pepco needs to be involved and they are moving slowly. The family is hoping that will be completed within the next three months. The city really needs to facilitate such things to help more small businesses open up, rather than be caught up in red tape, delays and major expenses.

Kiin Laow is difficult to translate literally, but it is a phrase used in Thailand when people are going out for an evening and someone asks, “What do you want to do next?” A common response is “kiin laow” loosely translating to “let’s eat and drink,” with “kiin” referring to eating and “laow” referring to liquor.” Sampannee refers to a decorative Thai confection made from tapioca, coconut milk and sugar. It translates literally as "beloved" and was a traditional sweet given to soldiers leaving home to go to war. The word hints at Kesorn's passion for desserts and baked goods.

Once the electrical is handled, likely they will need an additional 2-3 months for a kitchen build-out and decorating, so Glover Park neighbors probably will need to wait until the fall before they can say “Kiin Laow.” Kesorn also has reserved “Malila Café and Thai Eatery” and “Pratunam Thai Food” as additional business names, so maybe she has even grander plans for the future of Thai food in DC….

Chris Jones