With food, it’s often the fondest memories from childhood, spent around a dinner table or helping in the kitchen, that imprint the most. And even in the most elaborate fine dining restaurant, the humblest nostalgia can manifest amid caviar and jamón ibérico. For Jeff Chanchaleune, the vaunted chef/owner of Ma Der Lao Kitchen, it all comes back to chicken noodle soup. It’s a homespun dish, free of pretense and packed with familial comfort, that many can relate to in some form. But for one of the most acclaimed chefs in OKC, a two-time nominee at the James Beard Foundation Awards and one of Visit Oklahoma City’s Hometown Heroes, that nostalgia has evolved into BAR SEN — a noodle bar like this city has never seen.
One of our most anticipated restaurants of 2025, Chanchaleune’s new concept sits directly next door to Ma Der, where Khao Piek Sen (Lao chicken noodle soup) became such a fan favorite it spawned its own spin-off. And while OKC has its fair share of noodles from ramen to pho, BAR SEN is the first to put Lao noodle soups in the spotlight.
“I’ve always wanted to do another noodle shop, something other than ramen, to introduce something else to the city,” explained Chanchaleune, emphasizing an interest in wanting to open a bar space as well. “Lao people love to drink, and I thought it could be great to have kind of an overflow space for people waiting for next door, so we could hit two birds with one stone.”
With Ma Der, Chanchaleune introduced authentic Lao cuisine to OKC, offering different noodle specials through the week as a means of testing out his idea for a Lao noodle shop. The test worked: “Our noodles became really popular, especially Saturday’s chicken noodle soup,” he said. “This is my way of continuing the Lao food moment, and introducing Oklahomans — and, I think, the nation — to a different realm of Lao cuisine, not just sticky rice and papaya salad.”
Along with a variety of shareable dishes, like Lao salad with egg yolk dressing and coconut milk fried chicken (a nod to Chanchaleune’s childhood favorite, Church’s Chicken), those rice noodles — housemade and mostly gluten-free — are the star of the show. Particularly the Khao Piek Sen that he grew up on.
“If I could have one last meal, it would be this chicken noodle soup, but my mom’s version,” Chanchaleune said. “I love her version, but ours is a little different. What makes this soup unique is the viscousness of the broth, which thickens up. It reminds me of chicken and dumplings, really fun to eat.” The heady broth is topped with poached chicken breast, fried shallots, garlic oil, Chinese celery and local quail eggs, with chili oil on hand for those who like it spicy. Lao noodle soups are the crux of the small menu, and in addition to Khao Piek Sen, BAR SEN features a vegan version with tofu, a red curry vermicelli, a Lao Khao Soi with wide rice noodles and ragout-like pork sauce and Suki Yaki, a medley of pork broth and bean thread noodles with a spicy sauce that has quickly become a crowd favorite.
