Jet Tila, the chef whose Thai and pan-Asian cooking is familiar to Food Network viewers through his series Ready Jet Cook and Tournament of Champions, is bringing his food to South Philadelphia in a new collaboration with Live! Casino & Hotel.
Tila is partnering with Live! on about a dozen new menu options launching May 12 at Luk Fu, the casino’s pan-Asian restaurant. The rollout is expected to expand to Live! properties in Louisiana and Maryland.
Tila said the partnership is more residency than menu takeover. “Luk Fu already has a great menu, and we don’t want to stifle the great DNA of the property,” he said last week.
Tila, born into a Los Angeles family credited with helping popularize Thai food in America, grew up around Bangkok Market, a Thai grocery and cultural hub. He trained at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris, worked in classical French and sushi kitchens, operated restaurants in Las Vegas and Southern California, and became a regular on Food Network shows including Iron Chef America, Beat Bobby Flay, Cutthroat Kitchen, Guy’s Grocery Games, and Tournament of Champions.
The Live! relationship began about 18 months ago when Tila cooked with Wolfgang Puck at a private dinner for casino guests in Philadelphia, said Jake Joyce, a senior vice president with Live!, at 900 Packer Ave. Similar events followed at other properties, leading to talks about a broader partnership.
“He’s really got this fresh, high-energy dining experience,” Joyce said. “When you see him on TV, it’s the same thing that we like to do in our brand. It’s modern, it’s diverse – lots of flavors and very bold.”
For Luk Fu, Joyce said, the goal is to sharpen a broad “something-for-everybody” Asian menu. The audience is already there: Joyce estimated that about a fifth of guests identify as Asian or Asian American, but account for 40% to 50% of revenue.
“In today’s world, and particularly in markets like Philadelphia, it’s a foodie town,” Joyce said. “You can’t come with anything less than your A game.”
The initial menu items will include Thai pineapple fried rice, tempura crunch roll with yuzu miso, tom yum soup, Jet’s pad Thai, hamachi chili ponzu, sizzling Mongolian beef, and crispy tamarind-glazed prawns.
“These are basically the dishes that I’ve been making in restaurants, on TV, on social media for the last 25 years,” Tila said.
Tila said the appeal is direct: Fans who have watched him teach pad Thai online or compete on television often ask where they can actually eat his food.
The menu may shift by market, Joyce said, with Philadelphia and Maryland sharing core dishes while other locations could get region-specific items. “He’s not just putting his name on a menu,” Joyce said. “He’s really spending time with our chefs.”