Upon opening nearly five years ago in April 2014, Empty Bowl Gourmet Noodle Bar became an instant hit. The casual, open-kitchen, bar-wrapped restaurant by Jerry Lee, Emre Balli, and Chef Nui Pannak filled a void of Thai-inspired noodle dishes that Santa Barbara didn’t know it had and served as the steadily beating heart of the Santa Barbara Public Market as the large, collaborative space found its way.
About three years in, though, the trio started considering something new. “We wanted something more full-service, sit-down,” said Lee, who was ready to flex the wine muscles he grew while he and Balli developed the wine lists for San Ysidro Ranch and El Encanto in past years. “And we wanted to do it in Montecito. We knew there was a niche there that needed some Thai food.”
Pannak, who moved from her native Thailand almost 20 years ago and worked for a long time at Zen Yai, also felt the need to expand. “She always wanted to spread her wings more than what we can do at Empty Bowl because the kitchen is so small,” said Lee. “This way, she can mess around with more stuff — all of the curry pastes are handmade; every single thing is from scratch. She wanted to showcase her skills.”
