How It All Started

In 1987, Rathana's mother opened a little Cambodian-Chinese restaurant in a small rural town in Oregon called St. Helens, situated 40 minutes north of Portland, Oregon. She was 7 years old and spent most of her days after school there. She first learned to load the dishwasher and scrubbed pots and pans. Eventually, she began wielding the knife, cutting vegetables, deboning chicken, and learned to make her first stir fry while in the second grade. It was broccoli with beef garnished with a couple of sliced carrots. 

Rathana eventually moved home to Oregon with her husband in 2005, where they settled in Beaverton. She gave birth to two boys, while battling cancer in 2009 and 2010, followed by a brain tumor in 2015. After a long and difficult recovery from neurosurgery, she was ready to create feasts again. In 2017 she finally made the decision to make her kitchen skills available to the public. After creating many, many meals for her friends and family for so many years, in 2018 she opened Rathana’s Catering. Her dishes range from spicy and savory Asian cuisine to rich traditional American dishes, and many other ethnic entrees from across the globe.