Alan Yau (Chinese :丘德威) OBE (born 11 November 1962) is a Hong Kong-born British restaurateur who founded the Wagamama chain in the United Kingdom. Of Hakka ancestry,he was born in Sha Tau Kok,Hong Kong and moved to King's Lynn,Norfolk in 1975 with his family.
Alan Yau started his career in 1992 founding Wagamama and was appointed an OBE in the 2006 New Year Honour's List for services to the restaurant industry. Following that,Alan founded numerous ventures in gastronomy such as Hakkasan (awarded a Michelin Star in 2003),Yauatcha (awarded Michelin star in 2005) and Park Chinois. In 2016 Alan pivoted into the software world and founded Softchow,a taste aggregation platform. [1]
In April 2019,The Asian Awards honoured Alan for his culinary work with the "Outstanding Achievement in the Arts" award. [2]
Founded in 1992 by Yau, [3] Wagamama is a ramen bar with nearly 200 locations globally as of early 2019. [4] Yau left Wagamama in 1997. [5]
Founded in 1999,Busaba Eathai is a casual dining Thai restaurant chain. [6] Yau left Busaba Eathai in 2008. [7]
Founded in 1999,Hakkasan was initially a fine dining Chinese restaurant which later expanded to include nightlife entertainment. Hakkasan was awarded a Michelin Star in 2003 [8] and Yau exited Hakkasan in 2008. [9] [10]
Founded in 2004 by Yau,Yauatcha is dim sum restaurant and patisserie tea house chain. Yauatcha was awarded Michelin Star in 2005. Yau left Yauatcha in 2008. [10]
In collaboration with Rocco Princi,Yau founded Princi in 2008; [5] an Italian Bakery in Soho. He sold his shares to Starbucks in 2016. [11]
In 2008,a collaboration with Kuwaiti firm Kout Food Group saw Yau open Cha Cha Moon in Kingly Court,London,a ‘fast casual' Chinese noodle bar. A second location was launched in Whiteleys Shopping Centre,but closed down less than a year later to be transformed into Cafe Licious/Chi Wok/Pasta Rossa. [12] The Kingly Court location closed in 2016 as Kout Food Group began to withdraw from the UK market.
Founded in 2014 by Yau,Babaji was a Turkish Pide concept. [13]
Founded in 2015 by Yau,Duck and Rice is a Chinese pub with comfort food in Soho,London. [14]
Founded in 2015,Park Chinois is a Chinese old school entertainment restaurant. [15]
Similar to most of Yau's other creations,Park Chinois stays as authentic as possible to the restaurateur's heritage by drawing inspiration from popular dishes in 1930s Shanghai restaurants and supper clubs. [16]
Softchow was founded in 2017 by Yau as a "taste aggregation platform". [1] [17]
A restaurant is an establishment that prepares and serves food and drinks to customers. Meals are generally served and eaten on the premises,but many restaurants also offer take-out and food delivery services. Restaurants vary greatly in appearance and offerings,including a wide variety of cuisines and service models ranging from inexpensive fast-food restaurants and cafeterias to mid-priced family restaurants,to high-priced luxury establishments.
Yum cha is the Cantonese tradition of breakfast or brunch involving Chinese tea and dim sum. The practice is popular in Cantonese-speaking regions,including Guangdong province,Guangxi province,Hong Kong,and Macau. It is also carried out in other regions worldwide where there are overseas Cantonese communities. Yum cha generally involves small portions of steamed,pan-fried,or deep-fried dim sum dishes served in bamboo steamers,which are designed to be eaten communally and washed down with hot tea. People often go to yum cha in large groups for family gatherings and celebrations.
Cha chaan teng,often called a Hong Kong-style cafe or diner in English,is a type of restaurant that originated in Hong Kong. Cha chaan teng are commonly found in Hong Kong,Macau,and parts of Guangdong. Due to the waves of mass migrations from Hong Kong in the 1980s,they are now established in major Chinese communities in Western countries such as Australia,Canada,the United Kingdom,and the United States. Likened to a greasy spoon cafe or an American diner,cha chaan tengs are known for eclectic and affordable menus,which include dishes from Hong Kong cuisine and Hong Kong-style Western cuisine. They draw comparisons to Western cafés due to their casual settings,as well as menus revolving around coffee and tea.
Wolfgang Johannes Puck is an Austrian chef and restaurateur.
Heston Marc Blumenthal is an English celebrity chef,TV personality and food writer. His restaurants include the Fat Duck in Bray,Berkshire,a three-Michelin-star restaurant that was named the world's best by the World's 50 Best Restaurants in 2005.
Wagamama Limited is a British restaurant chain,serving Asian food based on Japanese cuisine.
The Michelin Guides are a series of guide books that have been published by the French tyre company Michelin since 1900. The Guide awards up to three Michelin stars for excellence to a select few restaurants in certain geographic areas. Michelin also publishes the Green Guides,a series of general guides to cities,regions,and countries.
A Cantonese restaurant is a type of Chinese restaurant that originated in Southern China. This style of restaurant has rapidly become common in Hong Kong.
Hakkasan is a Chinese restaurant first opened in Fitzrovia in London,England but has since expanded to many cities worldwide. The restaurant was founded in 2001 by Alan Yau,who was also behind the Wagamama Japanese restaurants and later the Yauatcha restaurant,also in London. It serves modern Cantonese cuisine fused with Western upscale dining experience. The Hakkasan group has also branched into hospitality and entertainment including a nightclub opened in Las Vegas.
Yauatcha is a Chinese restaurant in Broadwick Street,Soho,London,England,specialising in dim sum.
Starr Restaurants,stylized as STARR Restaurants,is a restaurant group headed by founder and CEO Stephen Starr,with restaurants in Philadelphia,New York City,Washington D.C.,South Florida,and Paris,France.
Qiu is an East Asian surname. This surname is common in Mainland China,and is also one of the most influential surnames in Taiwan,as well as the Sichuan and Fujian provinces in the South China region. As well as being a surname,the character 邱 also means "mound,dune,or hill". A less common surname is 秋,pronounced the same in Mandarin but differently in Cantonese and Hokkien.
Kout Food Group K.S.C.C. is a Kuwaiti-based conglomerate,founded in 1982,operating in Kuwait,Jordan,Lebanon,Morocco,the United Arab Emirates,Qatar,Iraq,and formerly in the United Kingdom. The business also offer catering services,import and export of food related items,representation of foreign companies as well as advising others in such businesses.
The Restaurant &Bar Design Awards,is an annual award dedicated to recognising the design and architecture of food and beverage spaces internationally. The Restaurant &Bar Design Awards is an independent award system,set up by Marco Rebora in 2008 in the United Kingdom with the encouragement of a panel of judges,including the editor-in-chief of Wallpaper*,Tony Chambers.
Simon Kim is a Korean-American restaurateur who owns and operates COTE Korean Steakhouse,a restaurant with locations in New York,Miami and Singapore. COTE New York has received a star from the Michelin Guide each year since opening in 2017. Kim's original “Korean Steakhouse”concept combines Korean barbecue with an American steakhouse experience and was inspired by his dual nationalities. Crain’s New York named Kim as one of their “40 Under 40”business leaders in 2019. In 2021,the National Restaurant Association,which represents 1 million restaurant and foodservice outlets and a workforce of 15.6 million employees,elected Kim to serve on their board.