Kru founder opening Sacramento restaurant in honor of his late mother
Billy Ngo made his name as the chef/co-owner of Kru Contemporary Japanese Cuisine, widely considered Sacramento’s top sushi restaurant. But Ngo grew up on Chinese and Vietnamese dishes in his family’s Florin Road apartment.
He’ll tap those roots, then transform them at Chu Mai, the “contemporary Asian cuisine” restaurant and cocktail bar opening at 1717 S St. later this year on the ground floor of a new housing development.
Chu Mai is Ngo’s tribute to his late mother, whose maiden name was Mai Chu. It’s a “passion project” for the star chef, who co-founded Kodaiko Ramen & Bar and Fish Face Poke Bar after Kru’s rise to prominence in the 2010s.
Chu Mai will predominantly focus on Chinese and Vietnamese flavors, though Cambodian, Korean and Japanese food will be featured as well. Most will be reimagined with fresh eyes, hybrid dishes geared toward first- or second-generation Asian Americans.
“The basic flavors are there, the authenticity is there, but it’s new and exciting enough for all the American-born Asians like us that are in their 30s or 40s and ate these kinds of foods growing up with their families,” Ngo said.
Ngo will be flanked by Chu Mai business partners Michael Ng, his opening general manager at Kodaiko, and Tyler Bond, chef/co-owner of Lemon Grass Restaurant and mushroom foraging extraordinaire.
The 3,500-square foot restaurant (plus two outdoor patios) will occupy the ground floor of ARY Place, a seven-story affordable housing building under construction across the street from midtown’s Ice Blocks project.
ARY Place is named for developer Ali Reza Youssefi, who helped transform downtown Sacramento before dying of cancer at age 35 in 2018.
Ngo hadn’t planned to open another restaurant after the pandemic, he said. But the chance to honor his mother in a building named for his deceased friend was something “really special” he couldn’t pass up. To him, Chu Mai represents the circle of life.
It’s also a chance to revive the spirit of Red Lotus, Ngo’s modern take on Chinese food, which opened two doors down from the original Kru on J Street in 2010 but folded a year later.
Ngo was a wunderkind chef trying a new, pricier concept during a recession, at a time when Sacramento’s restaurant scene was just starting to take off. In Chu Mai, he’s betting that the city’s taste buds are now ready for that kind of restaurant, or something similar to Slanted Door in the Bay Area.
“It’s going to be a fun concept, Ngo said. “I’m excited about it. I think it’s something Sacramento needs and is ready for, kind of a redo on Red Lotus, but with a lot more Vietnamese and Southeast Asian influence.”
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