The Osha Thai sister act

The Chron published a fantastic article today about Osha Thai , the trendy locally-owned restaurant group that is opening its 7th location this week.

I had no idea the company was owned by two sisters who emigrated from Thailand and started Osha in the Tenderloin with a $30,000 investment-- while they were just in their 20s!

The whole article is pretty snappy and worth reading, but here are my favorite tidbits:

• Lalita Souksamlane, 39, and Wassana Korkhieola, 37, "are immaculately dressed from head to toe, and they're as prone to chat about fashion as they are the latest stemware and serving plates."

• Both sisters met their husbands while building Osha. "Nuttawat Wongpisethkul was a regular at the Geary location - 'It was the best in that area,' jokes Wongpisethkul - before mustering enough courage to introduce himself to Souksamlane... [Korkhieola] met her husband, Derek Shotiveyaratana, at a restaurant supply shop."
  

• "Korkhieola says her older sister is more mature, more organized. Souksamlane says her younger sister is more outgoing and detail oriented...'She's more Thai contemporary, and I'm more modern and trendy,' Korkhieola says. 'It's a good fit.'"

Photo credit: Russell Yip/The Chronicle