Vietnamese Surprise

Miss Chi Vietnamese tickles Preston Center tongues with noodles and pho

The Wicked Po'Boys empire expands yet further — or does it contract? — with Miss Chi Vietnamese, a new concept opening November 20 in Preston Center.

"Expansion" is because it's a new concept, added to a family of restaurants from husband and wife Joey and Chi Le. That includes the original Wicked Po'Boys in Richardson and the buzzy new Tanoshii Ramen in Deep Ellum.

The "contraction" is because it takes what used to be the second branch of Wicked Po'Boys, which the Les closed in August after only four months.

According to a release, Miss Chi is inspired by the Les' experience growing up in a large Vietnamese household with family meals made from scratch. The menu includes pho and banh mi (in both meat and vegan versions) but also some more home-style and less-familiar dishes such as spicy beef noodle soup, braised pork belly and eggs, and wok-seared salt and pepper prawns.

The menu also features some Chinese items such as the cream cheese and crab wonton appetizer and bubble tea, along with papaya salad, shaken beef, baby clams with rice, Vietnamese crepe, grilled meats with rice or vegetables, and tapioca noodle soup with shrimp and pork meatballs. Dessert includes a traditional Vietnamese dessert with tapioca pearls, banana and coconut milk.

Design by Coeval Studio is bright and cheerful. There's a mixologized cocktail menu created by Jules Pagan of Cedars Social that features fresh juices, herbs and unexpected ingredients. Desserts and pastries will be made in-house, fresh daily.

"Miss Chi will bring our favorite home-cooked meals, to bring the same ingredients we had in our home," says co-owner Chi Le. "It's inspired by the many generations in our family who have brought wonderful meals to the table."

Miss Chi spicy noodle soup.

Photo by Joy Zhang

Miss Chi spicy noodle soup.

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Fried Chicken News

Chicago restaurant debuts its fried chicken and boba tea in Frisco

Chi Tea

Chi Tea burgers and chicken sandwiches.

A new restaurant serving boba tea and fried chicken just opened in Frisco: Called Chi Tea, it's a chain from Chicago that opened its first location in Texas at 4760 Preston Rd. #228, in a former Bonchon Korean in Frisco Village.

According to a release, It opened November 1.

The concept was founded in Chicago in 2020 by brothers Zak Ayyubi, Aman Siddiqui, and friend Abdurahman Sharif, with an unusual goal to pair fried chicken sandwiches, fries, and bubble tea drinks. They've since opened two more locations in Illinois; Frisco is the fourth and the first outside the state.

The name is a little misleading, as it implies it's a beverage place, but there's equal emphasis on the sandwiches and fries. They also tout their welcoming vibe, encouraging customers to eat, drink, and linger.

Their menu features three sandwiches — Nashville hot fried chicken sandwich, a grilled chicken, and a burger with grilled onions, jalapenos, pickles, cheese, and Chi-sauce — which can also be ordered in a smaller slider size.

There are also fries, loaded fries, popcorn chicken, chicken tenders, and mac & cheese, which can be customized with bacon, beef, fries, and other toppings.

Prices typically range from $5 for a single Chi Tea Classic slider to $13 for four-piece chicken tenders.

Boba drinks are entirely customizable, starting with choice of blended smoothie or over ice, with choice of flavor ranging from pineapple to brown sugar milk tea to horchata; and toppings, like popping pearls or cream cheese foam. A regular starts at $5 and a large starts at $6.

Notably, Chi Tea was among the restaurants selected in the recent Spongebob Krabby Patty promotion during October that took place in 12 cities across North America, included a dozen restaurants in Dallas.

"We are very excited to finally bring a taste of Chicago to the Greater Dallas area," says Ayyubi in a release. "This move has been very promising and we cannot wait for the community to welcome us and for us to serve this beautiful city."

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