B.C. restaurant crowned best in North America; announces expansion to Granville Island

We independently select everything we recommend. Buying through us may earn us a commission, which supports our work.

Five years ago, chef Nutcha Phanthoupheng and her husband, John Phanthouphen, opened a restaurant in Steveston Village.

Located at 4100 Bayview St., the goal of the Richmond outpost was to present the perfectionist traditions of Thai Royal cuisine. Oh, and to also become known as the best Thai restaurant in North America.

“Not in Canada, in North America,” John Phanthoupheng, co-owner of Baan Lao Fine Thai Cuisine, confidently told former Vancouver Sun food critic Mia Stainsby in 2021.

In a few short years, they’ve more than met that goal.

At the 2026 World Culinary Awards this week, Baan Lao was crowned the best restaurant in North America. It was also named the best restaurant in Canada at the event for the third consecutive year. The awards are voted on online by members of the culinary community, industry experts and diners, according to the awards website.

The win, John Phanthoupheng notes, is an “incredible honour.” He said the award validates the restaurant team’s dedication to their original mission.

“This milestone reflects our wholehearted commitment to sharing authentic Thai flavours with the world,” John Phanthoupheng says.

For Nutcha Phanthoupheng, the recognition further underscores her shift from a career in nursing and cancer research to a professional chef.

“It encourages me and my team to keep improving,” she says of the wins. “I wanted people to look at Thai food in a new way. Thai food is not only street food. I wanted to make good food and make people happy.

“Now I feel confident I can do more.”

That ambition to do more will include the expansion of Baan Lao’s footprint with two new locations. They already operate a second dining concept inside Time Out Market at Oakridge Park called MaKaam, which serves up modern, artisan Thai dishes.

Baan Baan on Granville Island will be a late-night, sea- and farm-to-table dining concept that puts charcoal-grilled proteins front and centre on the menu, along with other Isaan or Norther Thai dishes. It will be a more casual approach than the original.

The new restaurant will feature a “waterfall bar” and a retractable solarium for indoor-outdoor dining, according to the pair.

The second new spot, Le KaNom, will be a hot spot for Thai desserts, including dairy and gluten-free offerings. Both restaurants will be located, side by side, at the Chain & Forge Building (1425 Anderson St.).

The two new additions to the Phanthoupheng’s portfolio will complete the trifecta of ideas that chef Phanthoupheng originally had when she set out on her own restaurant journey.

“I had three different concepts in mind. Royal Thai fine dining at Baan Lao. Elevated, healthy street food at MaKaam. And now Isaan food at Baan Baan,” explains Nutcha Phanthoupheng. “I don’t want to do the same thing. I want to challenge myself, too.”

Baan Baan will represent a culinary homecoming of sorts for the chef, who is from Khon Kaen, in the heart of northeastern Thailand.

“Isaan food is my favourite food. Spicy flavours, fermented sausages, charcoal-grilled chicken and dried meats with sticky rice,” she says. “These are the flavours I grew up with and love most …

“I want to use local ingredients here with these traditions from my hometown.”

Underscoring her belief that food is about celebrating culture and “bringing people together,” the chef says she’s looking forward to the accessibility to her culinary mission that the busy Granville Island area will afford.

“People from many different countries visit Granville Island. It feels like a community,” she says. “I can imagine people sitting there, drinking, enjoying music and hanging out with friends. Very fun. Very happy. That is what I want to see.”

With a planned opening for both dining spots of summer 2027, there’s still a while to wait until the new spots are up and running. In the meantime, the busy chef has plenty on the go.

“Chef Nutcha is working on a cookbook, and we are looking at a retail line of sauces,” says John Phanthoupheng. “Our goal has always been to build a lasting brand with a wide reach.”