12/01/2021
Steve Dohack and his wife, Chinda, have been the owners of Si-Am Thaimerican restaurant – and Tampa Theatre’s next-door neighbors - for seven years now. The couple met “in jail,” as Steve likes to say: They were both working there, preparing meals for inmates. Chinda was working in the dish room and Steve was the Food Service Manager, cooking up to 10,000 meals a day. Their employer wasn’t fond of a couple working together, so they decided to find and run a restaurant of their own. They discovered Si-am Thaimerican was for sale and decided to purchase it.
Every day, Steve works from 9am to 9:30pm running the restaurant. He handles everything administrative, such as the employee schedule, payroll, accounting, and grocery shopping, and also calls himself “the expeditor” because he decorates and approves each plate that comes out of the kitchen on its way to the customer’s table. Chinda, a Thai native who studied cooking in the Land of Smiles, prepares all the meals at the restaurant. In addition to full-service dining at Si-am Thaimerican, Steve also delivers convenience meals to Duckweed Urban Grocery Store and Regions Bank every week, and supports Tampa Theatre’s fundraising events every year.
> Steve’s favorite thing about his job: To be 24/7 with his wife and family. His son and daughter, who are now 19 and 25, both work with them at the restaurant. It is very important to Steve that his kids have a good working experience.
> Steve’s favorite thing about downtown Tampa: Creating a sense of community, family get-togethers, and seeing downtown neighbors every day.
> What motivates Steve to keep going every day: He loves to see people and his incredible staff, the “regulars,” and the relationships he can build with people in the community
> Steve’s favorite movie? Arthur, with Dudley Moore, because he thinks he has a similar personality to the main character!
::: This , please join us in thanking our Community Helpers, who do good for us every single day behind the scenes so we can keep moving forward! Is there someone you would like to thank in your community too? :::
