Chef Justin Pichetrungsi on Quitting Disney to Take Over Anajak Thai

My mom’s father was a painter. He worked in the court of the previous king of Thailand, Rama IX. When I was younger, I painted with him in his studio. His paintings hang on the walls here at Anajak.

After I graduated from ArtCenter in Pasadena, my mom received a letter in the mail from one of my elementary school teachers. For a class assignment, I’d written a letter to my future self. It said, “I want to be a Disney animator.” And that’s basically what I became.

I spent 10 years at Disney, doing R&D and concept design at Imagineering. There were so many projects: rides for the parks, video and mobile games. This was the time of Zootopia and Finding Dory. I got to do a lot of fun stuff for Pixar and Marvel and Lucasfilm, too.

But while I was at Disney, I noticed how hard my parents were having it at the restaurant. They were also getting older, and I felt the sense of the mortality of Anajak itself. It was a rough time, especially after the 2008 recession, which was brutal. When I took over in 2019 — the year before the pandemic — there was $4,000 in the business’ bank account. Some bills were not getting paid so that other bills could get paid. You’d just rotate. It was hard.

But as time went on, my passion really grew. I was inspired by the whole operation there. I felt a duty to help them. While still at Disney, I’d work the floor at the restaurant and cook in the kitchen. Eventually, I remade the wine list, which had been small and pretty shitty. That was my small entrance point. I’ve since told my old Disney bosses that I used to leave early to do these trade tastings across town, to try to build out that wine list. I was also printing menus on the company dime. They’ve got very nice printers at Disney!

Since I’ve been at Anajak, we’ve had a lot of Disney people in. Ken Potrock, the longtime head of Disneyland, came by a little while ago. Looking back, what I took most from the company is the skill of creative management. It’s the hardest thing to do, whether you’re directing someone to paint something or to plate something.

Recently we did the Emmys afterparty for Disney and The Bear. That show is a mirror to my place. I have a Tina on my team. I have a Marcus on my team. I have a Sydney on my team. I told Liza Colón-Zayas and Lionel Boyce and Ayo Edebiri that. For many people, The Bear is PTSD, but for me it’s cathartic and validating.

Now, my goal for myself — if I were to put something in an envelope and mail it to my future self again — is to pitch Disney on an animated story based on my experience. I have some pitch illustrations. No lightsaber, no sword in the stone, but when I came back here to Anajak, I found my father’s sushi knife from decades ago, rusted and pitted, and I shaved it down and restored it. There’s an allegory there. — As told to G.B.

This story appeared in the April 16 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. Click here to subscribe.