Thai Restaurant Changes Hands and Rebrands

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Mai's Thai exterior

A Thai takeout place in Grand Rapids has undergone a rebranding after changing hands within a family of restaurateurs.

Owner Lisa Chang sold Erb Thai Xpress, at 820 Michigan St. NE, to her mother May Lou Her this spring.

The new owner has rebranded it as Mai’s Thai to avoid confusion with Chang’s other restaurant, Erb Thai, at 950 Wealthy St. SE, which she co-owns with her husband Luke Chang.

The menu at Mai’s Thai will remain the same as it was for Erb Thai Xpress, with the exception of a few items being added, including pho Thai, an iteration of the popular Vietnamese beef soup, pho.

May Lou Her is founder with Chang of the original Erb Thai in Troy, which closed over 10 years ago. May Lou Her and her husband are immigrants from Laos, which borders Thailand. They learned to cook Thai food in Detroit and have been working alongside their children in the restaurant industry ever since.

“With 25 years in the restaurant industry and with more than 20 years of being a small business owner, I wanted to share my love for cooking Thai cuisine and my passion for business with the city of Grand Rapids,” she said of her decision to acquire Erb Thai Xpress and turn it into Mai’s Thai.

Mao Her, May Lou Her’s son, is the restaurant’s general manager and chef.

All of the employees were retained.

Mai’s Thai is open from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday-Friday and noon to 9 p.m. Saturday.

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