In this episode, Susan Tung sits down with Joanna and Jeanette, second-generation owners of Yueh Tung Restaurant, one of Toronto's oldest Hakka Chinese restaurants located in the original Chinatown. The sisters discuss their journey taking over the family business, navigating the challenges of maintaining a legacy while adapting to modern marketing demands, and their personal struggles with gender dynamics in the restaurant industry.
Takeaways
- The moment their father got sick changed everything—including who would actually run the kitchen.
- Why their mom actively fought against the one thing that ended up saving the business.
- The backlash Joanna faced in her own kitchen reveals an uncomfortable truth about the restaurant industry.
- How loyal customers became an unexpected liability instead of an asset.
- The reason Joanna scheduled her own shifts without asking permission as a teenager.
- What happened when they tried to modernize their father's "cowboy cooking" approach.
- The one policy decision downtown that hit harder than any economic downturn.
- Why Chinese wok cooks are in such high demand but so few people pursue it.
- The advice their father gave them that took 15 years to fully understand.
- What they wish they'd known on day one about ego, observation, and letting results speak for themselves.
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Chapters
- (00:00:00) - Restaurant Talk
- (00:00:26) - Jeanette and Joanna on Toronto's Chinatown
- (00:04:10) - What Are Your Pre-Childhood Memories?
- (00:06:50) - The Sisters' Return to the Family Business
- (00:11:19) - Toronto's No. 1 restaurant has stayed relevant with social media
- (00:17:47) - Restaurants Open for the New Era
- (00:19:22) - The Challenges of Running a Restaurant
- (00:20:47) - Being a head chef is challenging
- (00:22:47) - When I became the boss of a restaurant, I had to change
- (00:27:16) - Teaching your dad how to cook
- (00:29:08) - Chinese Kitchen's Success Story
- (00:31:53) - Susan and Yitong on Starting Your Business
