Basil Spice, My Thai owner Somying Fox will open Fox Fire in The Loop

Somying Fox of Basil Spice and My Thai will open her new concept, Fox Fire, in the old Público space at 6679 Delmar Blvd., in April. The Asian fusion restaurant will seat about 60.

Fox said she’s thought about opening a restaurant in The Loop at least 10 years, but said the neighborhood is saturated with Thai restaurants, forcing her to come up with something new.

After reflecting on her experiences cooking with her American husband, Fox realized that she could offer a unique spin on American and Asian cuisine.

“[At Fox Fire,] you can get Asian food, American food, Italian food, all at one place,” Fox said.

In addition to the standard pad thai, fried rice and noodle dishes you’d expect at one of Fox’s restaurants, Fox will offer new creations like a Philly cheesesteak with Korean barbecue sauce and a hamburger that features Thai herbs like galangal, kaffir lime leaves, lemongrass and cilantro roots and stems.

As far as the bar program goes, Fox, who previously co-owned The Blue Pearl bar on Cherokee, intends to serve both traditional Thai beverages and other offerings like margaritas and strawberry daiquiris.

Though Público’s closing surprised the St. Louis culinary community, its closure was fortuitous for Fox, who had been thinking about leaving St. Louis.

“I’ve been so lucky to have this. At first, I was ready to move to Colorado. I was about to sell everything, all of my businesses, and move to Colorado like a lot of my friends already [have],” she said. “And when I saw this location, I’m like, ‘I want to stay!’ I love it so much.”

Adam Rothbarth is a staff writer at Sauce Magazine.