We had the good fortune of connecting with John & Brittany Keovorabouth and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi John & Brittany, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
The thought process behind starting our own business was to be fully immersed into the food industry. Before beginning, owners John and Brittany were passionate about attending local farmers’ markets, food events and mom and pop restaurants to discover the latest and greatest eats.

When not eating out, both John and Brittany can be found in the kitchen at home cooking something new or comforting. So, it really all began with a true genuine love for food…how food is created. how food can be sourced, enjoying a diversity of food, engaging with the community through food, and even better having the opportunity to share our culture!

Feeding people and being able to create amazing food that we love and eat with our own family is truly the heart and soul of Saap Saap Thaiger.

What should our readers know about your business?
Saap Saap Thaiger is a mobile pop-up food business specializing in authentic Thai and Laotian street food. Saap Saap Thaiger operates in events throughout the east and west valley of Phoenix, Arizona.

What sets our business apart from others is how we present our culture. We love creating traditional Thai and Lao dishes but also putting on our own original twist on things. An example of this is our Thaiger Sauce. This sauce was created because of the owner’s absolute LOVE for sauce. The Thaiger Sauce has become incredibly popular and well-loved by our customers at events. The Thaiger Sauce is a sriracha mayo-based sauce infused with Thai Chilies, although this is not a common sauce in traditional Lao and Thai dishes, it brings a fun and exciting new component to the food we love. Some of the inspiration behind the sauce was also to create an orange-colored sauce that would be our “Tiger Stripes” for Saap Saap Thaiger.

We got to where we are today with a lot of hard work, dedication, and remaining consistent toward our goals. The journey thus far has definitely not been easy but the mantra of owner John Keovorabouth is “If It Wasn’t Hard, It Wasn’t Worth It”.

The challenges we have faced and continue to face are overcome by continuing to educate ourselves and giving it our absolute all. The food industry is extremely competitive and everyone is always looking for the next best thing.

The lessons we have learned along the way is that it’s okay to take a break. It’s okay to slow down and take time for yourself and your team. Since this industry is so competitive it can be easy to get so busy until the point you reach a feeling of burnout. We will never lose our love, passion, or drive, and taking time for ourselves has inspired us to be extra creative and be able to contribute even more value in the long run to developing the success of Saap Saap Thaiger.

We want the world to know that Saap Saap Thaiger is about creating joy for others. When people choose to eat our food, it brings joy to all of our team as our passion is to bring awareness and share in the richness of the Thai and Lao culture with the community. We can only hope Saap Saap Thaiger can bring them a little joy too.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
One of our absolute favorite spots in the city is China Chili. Located off of E Flower St in Phoenix, AZ – this is a place that we cannot stay away from. Each time we visit the restaurant we have become quite the regulars as we are known for ordering a TON of food on each of our visits. A few of our favorite dishes include the West Lake Soup and the Salt N Pepper Fried Pork Chops.

Another spot we frequent often and would take our good friends to is Bella Gusto Pizzeria in Chandler, AZ. The pizza here is truly off the charts and everything is made in-house. We can’t get enough of the Santa Merda or Sgt Peppers Pizza, add extra bacon jam, please!

To hang out, we enjoy a good time at Mavrix in Scottsdale, AZ. Easy-going spot with bowling, laser tag, arcade games, and some racing.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
We want to give a BIG shoutout to Richard Howell! He has truly been the backbone to us being able to make Saap Saap Thaiger a true success. From helping us with prep to picking up and driving our trailer to events. Richard is truly a founding member of Saap Saap Thaiger. He cares deeply for everyone on the team and is always showing up at every single event we do to make sure all of the equipment is good to go and ready to serve everyone we meet. We couldn’t be more grateful for Richard and all of his continued efforts to the success of Saap Saap Thaiger.

We’d also like to dedicate an extended shoutout to Sierra Keovorabouth, Alex Goffredo, as well as Gip and Emily Gutierrez. Our family has been so supportive throughout our success with Saap Saap Thaiger, we would love to recognize them as they have all greatly contributed to our story.

Website: https://saapsaapthaiger.com/

Instagram: @saapsaapthaiger

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/saapsaapthaiger

Other: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/saapsaapthaiger/

Nominate Someone: ShoutoutArizona is built on recommendations and shoutouts from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.