Happy 10th Birthday,
Mister Jiu’s!
Published:
10 years ago, in the heart of the country’s oldest Chinatown, Brandon Jew opened a restaurant that would come to define a generation of Asian American chefs. But not just. In celebration of Mister Jiu’s 10-year anniversary, we asked a host of them what the restaurant and Brandon meant to them.
Eating there the first time, I remember feeling that he had put everything he’d learned into that restaurant. And it was really exciting, because at that point, I hadn’t had Chinese food cooked like that in California before.— Danny Bowien
Chef of Mission Chinese Food
Seeing a Chinese American restaurant presented with that level of intention, storytelling, and pride was really inspiring. More than anything, I remember feeling seen.— Mei Lin
Brandon is a big part of why I wanted to open my restaurant. I wasn’t really sure if I wanted to pursue Cantonese food, but after eating his food, I knew I wanted to dive deeper into my heritage the same way he had.— Calvin Eng
Chef-Owner of Bonnie’s
By the end of reading the ‘Mister Jiu’s in Chinatown’ cookbook, I was completely indoctrinated into the fan club. It sparked an interest in seeking Chinese food with a more personal approach. I was changed.— Patty Lee
Chef of Lei
I really think Brandon and the team at Mister Jiu’s are role models for all of us, both in terms of how we tell our stories about Chinese food and how we should run our restaurants.— Lucas Sin
Mister Jiu’s really helped redefine what Chinese American food could look like for my generation of chefs. Brandon showed that you can be deeply personal, modern, and ambitious while staying rooted in culture and community.— Mei Lin
I think that’s one of Brandon’s secret superpowers: He just knows exactly what ingredients to deploy, when to reference flavors of nostalgia, and when to kind of push the envelope and introduce new flavors to his guests.— Lucas Sin
It’s already legendary, you know what I mean? It’s an institution, I have it up there with Zuni, Chez Panisse, and Slanted Door. Mister Jiu’s represents so much for the Bay Area, specifically for Chinese cooking, and it’s monumental.— Danny Bowien
Chef of Mission Chinese Food
Thank you for paving the way for the little guys like me, and for so beautifully representing Chinese food for the last 10 years!— Calvin Eng
Chef-Owner of Bonnie’s
10 years in restaurant years, it’s like 100 years. And they’re only getting better. It’s one of those places that you know is just never going to plateau. It’s going to be perfect forever.— Danny Bowien
Chef of Mission Chinese Food
What I really want people to take from coming here is that this is a Chinese restaurant, and a very Chinese American perspective. And maybe one layer in, is that this is a unique, San Francisco Chinatown experience that they can only really get in San Francisco Chinatown at Mister Jiu’s.— Brandon Jew
Chef-Owner of Mister Jiu’s
