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This winter, things are about to get hot in Williamsburg. The team behind the beloved and famously spicy Ugly Baby has signed a lease at 364 Grand Street, as initially reported by the Instagram account Yes Williamsburg, before chef Sirichai Sreparplarn's business partner, Som Kharazmi, confirmed the news to Grub Street.
The Ugly Baby team will move into the former Emmy Squared space between Havemeyer Street and Marcy Avenue, with Kharazmi saying that while there is no official opening date set, "February seems likely."
RECOMMENDED: Ugly Baby, considered by many to be the best Thai restaurant in NYC, is shutting down
The Carroll Gardens original closed in late 2024 after a seven-year run that included a stint at the top of Time Out's Best Restaurants in NYC list. At the time, one of the owners explained to Grub Street, “We’re closing because chef Sirichai is just really tired and needs a long, long break. While we’ll miss the restaurant and all the great things that come with it, the upside is that this will give chef Sirichai the chance to work on a cookbook, which he’s long been wanting to do.”
There's no cookbook yet, but we'll happily settle for the return of Ugly Baby (and not cooking meals for ourselves). The new Williamsburg iteration will keep the fundamental concept and same boundary-pushing approach, but with room to play—literally. The 2,500-square-foot storefront is larger than the previous location, all the better to avoid splashing sweat on fellow diners while testing your Scoville Scale endurance.
The original Ugly Baby drew long lines and devoted crowds obsessed with the searing flavors offered on site before the announcement of its closing drove diners to public mourning. After Sreparplarn closed the Carroll Gardens location, the staff stayed on at the Smith Street address to launch their own Thai spot, Hungry Thirsty.
If all goes according to plan, you might actually have a reason to bundle up and get on the subway for dinner this February. Our tongues might end up hating us all over again, but our stomachs will be delighted.