Imagine you are a resident of an imaginary COVID-free San Francisco. You have just finished Padma Lakshmi’s Taste the Nation episode on SF Chinatown and now crave Chinese Food. You find a list of restaurants she visits.
Which would you choose?
https://www.haidilao.com/en/index/index.html
Depending on your demographic and mood, you probably came to wildly different decisions. Each website represents a different ownership mindset and business model. Compared to other popular food-discovery platforms like Yelp or Instagram, your standard restaurant website gives the restaurateur creative freedom to put their best foot forward for their desired clientele.
Taste the Nation sprung from Padma’s work as an ACLU ambassador on immigration, and the human embodiment of “effortlessly charismatic” doesn’t hide that her show focuses as much on the stories of the minorities behind the wok as it does glamorizing the dishes they serve. In this episode, Padma and her guests thoughtfully chose an eclectic mix of restaurants that represent the different personas within Chinese America and the varying visions they have for Chinese American cuisine.
In Episode 20, Akshay and Eric join me in revisiting Padma’s adventure through Chinatown. After giving our own recommendations for the best SF Chinatown (and adjacent) restaurants, we asked each other: where does Chinese Food’s future lie in America?
Mister Jiu’s and Yank Sing are both run by young owners: Brandon Jew and Vera Chan-Waller, but one is a maverick chef and rising star in the hip culinary world while the other is an heiress to a multi-generational culinary kingdom. Accordingly, they have pushed Chinese Food in completely different directions.
Mister Jiu’s: Brandon Jew unabashedly molds his restaurant and menu to help his trendy, in-the-know customers associate Chinese food (and specifically, Chinese Bay Area food) with quality over value. Brandon is close to hitting IG Foodie BINGO by proudly displaying his Michelin star and James Beard nominations (catnip to the #foodporn crowd) while draping his take out in Millennial Pink.
Yank Sing: Vera Chan-Waller was groomed from youth to be the 3rd generation owner of her family’s dim sum dynasty. Her father (Henry Chan) not only passed down hugely successful restaurants but also a determination to "uplift the vision of dim sum."
Henry’s vision in 2005:
Vera has certainly displayed this vision on her website. A luxurious close-up shot of a xiao long bao and elegantly displayed tagline promises “Contemporary & Traditional Dim Sum.” Note: “Contemporary” takes precedent over “Traditional.”
Both restaurants are trying to re-imagine Chinese American cuisine as something more than Chop Suey and dumplings— something Americans would open more of their hearts and wallets to enjoy. Brandon and Vera aren’t alone. The next generation of ABC restaurateurs all over the nation are aiming their sights higher and asking more from their clientele.
These ambitions are important, but selfishly I wonder: where does that leave the food? At [41:13] of the pod, we start listing our favorite SF Chinatown restaurants, including at least one from Padma’s show. None of us picked Yank Sing and Mister Jiu’s. Our unanimous winner was R&G Lounge because at the end of the day, the most delicious dish wins out. Authentic Cantonese flavors mattered more than interesting new takes on old classics or kitschy Instagram posts about old family memories.
R&G Lounge: Judging by its matter-of-fact early 00s webfront (and having eaten there many times) Kinson Wong, the owner who founded the restaurant in 1985 (he likes to say R&G stands for “Real Good”) still calls the shots and focuses on his dishes instead of his digital presence. Without looking into their finances, I would guess that R&G is able to stand toe to toe with the other two on a solid combination of delicious food, prime real estate, and healthy word of mouth.
Other hole in the wall places that focus on preserving a corner of culinary tradition might not be so lucky. In New York, pod favorite 88 Lan Zhou Handmade Noodles just announced they are closing permanently. Even in a pre-COVID world, they stood on shaky ground compared to the wildly successful Xi’an Famous Foods. The Veras and Brandons are pushing American consumers to expect something more, (or perhaps something different) from Chinese restaurants. And most don’t have the budget or the savvy to appeal to broader groups outside of Henry Chan’s “Chinese and adventurous Caucasians.”
Support your local favorites
However, Henry might have overlooked a new wave of Chinese immigrants that were starting to enter the country right as he made that statement. These immigrants from mainland China were wealthier than previous generations and came in large enough numbers to create their own digital communities like Amy Duan’s Chi Huo and attract successful Chinese chains like HaiDiLiao to establish multiple branches in the US.
HaiDiLiao: The multi-national’s website is fitting for a company of its scale. Knowing that you’ve probably reached the website through other marketing channels, HaiDiLiao tries to offer the most inoffensive stylistic choices possible, focusing on providing you with efficient information on its soup bases and dishes rather than selling you on the experience. With Corporate Social Responsibility and Investor Relations more accessible than meat cuts, you would not be blamed for wondering if you’ve stumbled upon the website of a Chinese cellphone provider.
While HaiDiLiao might be on the top end of businesses benefiting from these new Chinese immigrants wanting a taste of home, smaller mom and pop shops might be able to double down on traditional flavors desired by the Chinese community to stay in business.
In a perfect world, traditional flavors and “uplifted” new takes coexist in delicious harmony. In practice, flavor often gets deprioritized for presentation and marketing. Whichever path the owner of the next Lan Zhou or Kingdom of Dumpling chooses, they should know that the IG Foodie crowd is here to stay— #foodporn close up shots and witty marketing quips are now table stakes. How do we make sure the classic flavors many of us love aren’t left behind? Maybe its time for some enterprising Asian-American MBAs to roll up their sleeves and make sure the old traditions can keep up with the New Vanguard. For the rest of us, make sure to support your local favorites—a little extra love can go a long way.
Further Reading:
Padma talks about her new show with Domino
The best damn guide to Chinese Food in the Bay
SF Gate article on Yank Sing's dim sum dynasty
LA Times: Fancy Chinese food is here to stay — and it’s about time
Ep. 20: The Future of Chinese Food in America