A veteran restaurant team, which runs several Thai eateries across the Bay, has just opened its first restaurant in Danville. Tucked into a quiet corner downtown, Bungalow on Rose focuses on coastal Thai cuisine.

The latest venture by restaurateur Todd Sirimongkolvit, this one is run by Angie Vanhorne, her husband, chef Ekkasit Thitiangkun, and his brother Surachet.

As you might have gathered from the name, Bungalow on Rose is housed in a bungalow. It’s an architectural style that recalls Thailand’s seaside beach lodgings, hence the menu focus on “cuisine that you would find in any seaside town outside of Bangkok,” Sirimongkolvit said. “This concept allows us to explore dishes that are not common in other Thai restaurants.”

The team behind Bungalow on Rose developed a menu with coastal Thai cuisine dishes in a Danville bungalow. (Courtesy Angkana Vanhorne.)
The team behind Bungalow on Rose developed a menu with coastal Thai cuisine dishes. (Courtesy Angkana Vanhorne.) 

After studying architecture at UC Berkeley, Sirimongkolvit has made pairing cuisine and building design a signature, beginning with his first restaurant, Basil Thai, in San Francisco. Located in a former SOMA warehouse, Basil Thai offers food you might find in bustling  Bangkok. Sirimongkolvit also runs Oakland’s Bird and Buffalo and Soi 4 Bangkok Eatery and San Francisco’s Basil Canteen.

The new Danville restaurant offers a seafood-focused dining experience with a calm, relaxed atmosphere inspired by those seaside bungalows, Sirimongkolvit said. “We have a saying in Thailand, ‘sabai sabai’, which is chill and relax.”

The menu ranges from Thai tapas like vegetable spring rolls ($9) to curry fries with braised Wagyu beef ($14). You’ll find curries, stir-fries, rice and noodle dishes and seafood, such as fried branzino ($29) served with three sauces, fried rice with blue crab ($24) and sea bass ($18) in a lettuce wrap with vermicelli.

The bar offers fruit-inspired drinks ($13), including a vodka-spiked Lychee-tini and a bourbon-based Kirimaya, made with orange bitters and lemongrass syrup.

The restaurant is currently in soft-opening phase, with grand opening celebrations set for Sept. 5.

Details: Open daily from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and 4:30 to 9:30 p.m. at 254 Rose St. in Danville; bungalowonrose.com.