A new Asian restaurant is opening in Castlegar, but it’s not your typical Chinese food or sushi restaurant.
The Grand Bhudda Bistro will open on Monday, August 10 serving popular dishes from Korea, Vietnam, and Laos.
The menu will include pho, a Vietnamese soup that’s considered a staple, and chicken vermicelli. From Laos in Thailand, there’s a green papaya salad, and pad thai, which chef Kham Athitahng explains is really more of a western dish.
Athitahng describes the food as having “authentic flavours, but with a twist on it.” She says it stops short of being fusion.
Prices range from $5 for an appetizer to $20 for an entree.
She and fellow owner Daniel Mathieson decided to open the Grand Bhudda Bistro because they wanted a restaurant that served the food they grew up with.
“This is what [my mom] cooked for us every day,” said Mathieson. “It’s like my comfort food.”
The restaurant is located in the Fireside Inn, and in anticipation of the opening, the building is being given a face lift.
Rob Lindskog, general manager of the inn, explained that they want the building to look good for when the restaurant opens.
“We’re trying to do what we can to make it work for them,” he says. “So you know fixing up the front of the building so when they put their sign up, it looks good.”
The restaurant’s kitchen also connects to the Fireside’s banquet room, so the Grand Bhudda Bistro can easily cater any event held there.
