Kalaya (restaurant)

Kalaya, also known as Kalaya Thai Kitchen, is a Southern Thai restaurant in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania owned by Chutatip "Nok" Suntaranon. Established in November 2022, the business was included in The New York Times 2023 list of the 50 best restaurants in the United States, and won the James Beard Award for Best Chef: Mid-Atlantic.

Chutatip "Nok" Suntaranon
Chutatip "Nok" Suntaranon (จุฑาทิพ "นก" สุนทรนนท์) is a Thai chef and owner of Kalaya.

Born in Yan Ta Khao, a district in Trang province, Suntaranon worked as a business class flight attendant on Thai Airways. After meeting her husband, Wharton School professor Ziv Katalan, onboard a flight to New York City, she later relocated to Philadelphia to open Kalaya.