After years behind the scenes at Madison restaurants like Sujeo, Estrellón and Forequarter, chef Jamie Hoang is looking forward to the chance to be outside and one-on-one with customers as she and her boyfriend, Chuckie Brown, launch their food cart, Ahan, this spring. 

Hoang will serve Southeast Asian inspired dishes like the ones Ahan showcased at a pop-up at the Robin Room recently: drunken noodles and Khao Piak Sen, a Laotian-style soup with handmade tapioca rice noodles. Much of Ahan’s menu, Hoang said, “is inspired by my family, things I ate growing up, in combination with things I’ve learned along the way.”

Hoang and Brown purchased their cart in 2018 and were already working on launching it when Sujeo, where Hoang was sous-chef, closed last August. With a smaller menu and limited hours, a food cart seemed like an easier transition to starting her first business, she said, than jumping into a restaurant.

Hoang’s hopes for the future of food in Madison? “I hope that working in restaurants becomes more sustainable for people. I hope to see more women running kitchens. There’s still not a lot of that. I hope to continue seeing people work together,” at local festivals and events, she said. 

Collaboration, at least, is happening more and more. Hoang will participate in Femmestival at Garver Feed Mill Feb. 23, an event to celebrate women and non-binary people in the industry. Hoang and Brown will also be returning to the Robin Room, where Brown works, for pop-up events Feb. 10 and Feb. 27.