Burrito lust: The story behind Bangkok’s Mission taqueria

Even in the land of green curry, sometimes all you want is a great burrito.

Last month Capp Street Crap wrote about a surreal taco truck that serves a “Mission Burrito” next to Mission street signs in the food court of a mall in Bangkok. Turns out, the San Francisco connections didn’t stop there. La Monita Taqueria, which also has a brick-and-mortar location, was started by Bay Area native and former information technology worker Billy Bautista
 and his Thai wife Kasama Laopanich. Dissatisfied with Mexican food in Bangkok, the couple decided to start making their own.

Laopanich recently chatted with Capp Street Crap about their love of food and how burrito cravings led to a successful restaurant.

I’d love to hear more about how you got started

My husband, Billy was born in SF and lived all his life in the Bay before moving with me back to Bangkok. He missed his burrito so much that we would go to every new Mexican place in town but didn’t find one that we like. So we started to cook and we were very happy after all. Then we wanted to share this love of Mexican food with others. That was the beginning of La Monita Taqueria at Mahatun Plaza, Ploenchit.

It sounds like you went on a search to find Mexican food in the city, tried many restaurants, but were left disappointed. What was it about the food that wasn’t quite right?

We are foodies so it’s hard to please us. We are very particular about food and quality so it’s hard to find Mission-style awesomeness. I won’t say the food at other Mexican restaurants isn’t good but it is a very different style and the quality is not even close. We think Mexican food is world class cuisine and it deserves respect, so we cook our food with love and respect.


How did you learn to make such great burritos?

When you really crave a Mission-style burrito anything is possible.


How did you two meet?

We met in the city while I was studying my Master’s Degree.


At what point did you decide to start cooking your own Mexican food? Were you only planning in the beginning to make it for yourselves?

We had a dream to open a wine bar in Thailand before we moved back here. So having a restaurant was always our aim in life. Billy was always craving good burritos and we started cooking Mexican food for friends. Because both of us loved cooking to begin with and we knew the taste we wanted, we figured out how things should be put together and it was not hard for us. Billy also has a Mexican aunt from Monterrey, Mexico so we got some awesome recipes from her as well. We often cooked Mexican food for our house parties and got good feedback from our friends, both Thais and Americans. So we thought opening a restaurant would be great, at least our friends would show up and not hang out at our house (which is tiny).

Did you already have experience in the food industry? Had you run other restaurants?

Nope, none whatsoever.

What did Billy do here before moving back to Bangkok with you? When did you move?

He worked in IT and moved about 10 years ago.


Is it difficult to find the right ingredients in Bangkok?

There are many similarities between Mexican and Thai cuisine. The main ingredients are very similar. Chilies, limes, garlic, onions, cilantro, etc. are in both Thai and Mexican dishes. The difficulty we found is that Thai food doesn’t have that variety of chilies nor dairy. We need to use imported Hass avocados and cheese, which is very expensive here in Thailand. Also, Mexican herbs and seasonings are not available in Thailand so we have to adapt the recipes and adjust the prices for what’s available here.

You opened your first restaurant in 2009. Was that an immediate success?

For us it was. No customers but we ate awesome food every day (tongue and chicharrón tacos, how can you not be happy?) Other people were seeking Mexican food like us so once the word got out people came to try but it took a long time.


You must be doing well with your business. You’re in the middle of opening a new restaurant, correct?

We are opening a new restaurant with a different concept. Mexican cuisine. The concept is a modern communal California-Mexican restaurant. It’s a very exciting and fun concept for us.


It sounds like the taco truck you serve food out of in your Siam Paragon mall location is actually operational. How did you get a food truck in Bangkok?

We asked an old friend of ours who restores old Fords, Buicks and Chevys to build a custom truck for us from scratch.


Do a lot of San Franciscans come and eat at your restaurants? What do they tell you about the food?

 Yes, they usually say ‘It’s hella good!!!’

[Photo courtesy of La Monita Taqueria]