DESPITE being about to have a baby in three weeks’ time, ambitious cook Yupin Sayboot has opened a brand new Thai food business in Southend with her partner.

Buddha Belly Thai, in Queen’s Road, is a trendy Thai street food eaterie and bar.

Yupin’s partner, Ben Selby, 27, already owns a decorating business called New Colour, and the couple had been saving its profits to open a project between them.

Yupin, 34, said: “I am from Thailand, moved to Southend and met Ben through some friends.

“We’ve been together for five years and live in Leigh.

“Ben loves my cooking - I really love to cook - and he is always saying people need to taste my food.

“We had always spoken about wanting to start a Thai food business.

“I got pregnant and had a little boy who is now three, so we hadn’t before felt the time was right.

“Then I got pregnant again and when I was five months pregnant, the opportunity for this little place came up and we decided to go for it.

“People were saying ‘You are crazy to work on opening it up’, when I am about to have a baby, but I say to people, ‘Look, there will always be something, always be a reason to think we might not be ready, but we feel ready now’ and so we are just going to do it.

“We have a commercial kitchen and some staff will help until I am ready.

“We just wanted to get it up and running.”

Having a chef from well-known Thai restaurant chain the Giggly Squid to run the kitchen is also a big coup.

“My chef is brilliant and I really trust him to cook in my style” said Yupin. “My style is that I really wanted a street food vibe, a trendy place. We are near the college and university and Revolutions - it is young and fresh - just how we wanted it to be.

“When you usually go to a Thai restaurant you will sit down and have a starter and main and so on, but here you have one good meal, food like my mum cooks at home.”

Buddha Belly Thai opened on Friday, November 4.

The couple’s aims for the future include developing the outside to create a beer garden.

Follow the new business on Instagram at @buddhabellythai_