Adventures in Starry Kitchen by Tran Nguyen

Hardcover. 2017.

The behind-the-scenes story of America’s most famous underground restaurant, featuring more than eighty-eight deceptively simple and unbelievably delicious pan-Asian recipes and dozens of luscious full color photos.

In 2008, as the American economy cratered, newly unemployed Nguyen Tran and his newly unemployed wife-to-be, Thi, opened an off-the-grid eatery in their small Los Angeles studio apartment. Word of their fabulous food quickly spread, turning their culinary “speakeasy,” Starry Kitchen, into an underground sensation—and the #1 Asian fusion restaurant in L.A. on Yelp.

Threatened by the city’s health inspector, Nguyen and Thi transformed Starry Kitchen into an acclaimed and wildly popular pop-up restaurant in a downtown sushi joint. But their success was only beginning. As their clientele exploded, thanks to raves in the Los Angeles Times, Nguyen and Thi moved to a bigger space of their own in Chinatown, where they helped make the neighborhood the epicenter of L.A.’s burgeoning food scene.

Adventures in Starry Kitchen chronicles Starry Kitchen’s DIY evolution—”this beautiful accident gone right”—the mayhem, mishaps, misdemeanors, milestones, and amazing meals that have contributed to (and nearly derailed) its success. As they tell their story, the Trans share more than eighty-eight easy-to-follow pan-Asian recipes—mouthwatering and flavorful comfort cuisine, including Claypot Striped Bass, Buttermilk Beer Beignets, Singaporean Chili Crab, Double-Fried Chicken Wings and, of course, Starry Kitchen’s trademark Crispy Tofu Balls.

Whether you’re cooking for two, four, or sixty, Adventures in Starry Kitchen demonstrates you don’t have to be a desperately hip (or even trained) chef to master sensational modern food that will amaze and delight.