Ahan
Southeast Asian restaurant · The Isthmus ·
Lao comfort cooking, creative Southeast Asian, James Beard semifinalists
Lao comfort cooking, creative Southeast Asian, James Beard semifinalists
"A pop-up-turned-brick-and-mortar focused on creative Southeast Asian cuisine, notable for inventive offerings such as tropical soft serve finished with housemade chili oil." - Regan Stephens
"It’s heartening to know that a restaurant like Ahan, which shifted from a mobile kitchen to a takeout-centric pandemic pop-up of sorts, can not only survive but settle in, thrive — even expand. You’ll now find Ahan on Williamson Street, run by the dynamic duo of Jamie and Chuckie Brown-Soukaseume, chef and general manager respectively. From noodles and soups to dumplings and fried chicken, the chefs’ homey and deeply informed recipes have earned them the attention of the James Beard committee, which named them 2025 semifinalists in the Best Chef: Midwest category. Online ordering is available." - Kyle Nabilcy
"Ahan does pan-Asian dishes made from locally sourced ingredients, which might mean your kung pao is loaded with asparagus and the coconut sticky rice gets topped with honeynut squash from a Madison-area farm. If we had to pick our perfect meal, it’d include the huge beet and tofu vegetable egg rolls and praram long song served with crispy tofu and a side of peanut sauce. Ahan is a great casual lunch and dinner move, and you should definitely stick around for the excellent dole whip and soft serve." - sarah probst
"It’s heartening to know that a restaurant like Ahan, which shifted from a mobile kitchen to a takeout-centric pandemic pop-up of sorts, can not only survive but settle in, thrive — even expand. You’ll now find Ahan on Williamson Street, run by the dynamic duo of Jamie and Chuckie Brown-Soukaseume, chef and general manager respectively. From noodles and soups to dumplings and fried chicken, Jamie’s homey and deeply informed recipes have earned her numerous accolades, most recently Madison magazine’s Chef of the Year for 2024." - Kyle Nabilcy
"A busy Lao spot on Williamson Street run by chef-owner Jamie Brown-Soukaseume that channels family recipes passed down from her mother born in Laos; standout dishes include a rich, brothy khao soi, a sweet-and-savory papaya salad, and addictive Lao egg rolls." - Aislyn Greene
