FOUNDING TANG HOTPOT | Yu Li
Yu Li is the founder of Tang Hotpot, a popular Sichuan style restaurant in New York City.
Why did you become a chef?
I think the biggest reason was because I love food. It made me think about how I can do it — do it well. I feel that in the US, Chinese food has a lot of room for development and innovation. Another reason is because of my family. They have been in the restaurant industry in Beijing for the past 9 years. Lastly, it is because I want everyone to enjoy the food I make without regards to race or which country it’s from.
Why choose to do Tang Hotpot instead of something else?
One of the reasons I chose to do Tang Hotpot is because there are thousands of hotpot restaurants in China, and hundreds of them here in New York City. However, I don’t think that New York hotpot is good quality, or at least not as good as the Sichuan hot pot that satisfy me. Then, I thought that Sichuan hot pot, with its heavy taste, is very suitable for the fast pace of New York since people always seem to be under the pressure of work and study. I think that’s why hot pot is pretty popular even outside of Beijing, Shanghai, and Shenzhen. I want to fill the gap for the poor quality hot pot restaurants and also introduce new foods to the locals of New York.
Why did you choose to start your business right after graduating?
The reason I started my business directly after graduation is because I feel like it will allow me to have more room for exploration. I wanted to get in touch with industries I didn’t know about, and explore things that are unknown to me or that I don’t understand. This learning process exposed me to many people and industries, allowing me to build my own team. Learning and building from the start is very important to me because no matter what industry I decide to go into in the future, this experience will prove useful.
What made you feel the most excited during the entrepreneurial process?
I think the process was very difficult, but it is something I felt really excited and passionate about. I felt great that there were people sharing the same vision as me, and also trusting in me. You are not alone, and other people are willing to work with you, struggle with you, and recognize your achievement in the end. It is also exciting to find other that my restaurant turned out good and met the needs and standards of my customers.
What is your opinion on this industry?
I think that there’s competition in the catering industry, whether it be Chinese food, Japanese food, etc., especially in New York. This is pushing us to make our food, service, and environment of the restaurant better. The industry is heading in a good direction.
为什么选择做餐饮?
我觉得做餐饮最重要的是首先我自己对食物非常热爱。然后我觉得我只有喜欢这个事情，我做这个事情才能把它做好。我是觉得中餐在美国还有很大的一个发展空间，所以是不管是我做面堂，还是做火锅，我都希望还是有一个。有一个在创新上，在一个质量上有一个突破。也有一部分原因是受到我家庭的影响。因为我家庭在九几年的时候就开始在北京做一些食物相关的一些东西。然后最后一部分原因我是觉得就餐饮在美国它不受到一个种族啊，国家的一个界限。然后任何人都可以做，然后任何人只要你的东西好，大家就会appreciate你的东西，所以这也是我想做餐饮的一部分原因。
为什么选择做唐锅而不做别的?
我选择唐锅的一部分原因就是因为，我觉得就是，第一，火锅这个东西在中国是一个城市里有几千家，几百家。但是在纽约我觉得还没有出现一家质量非常好的，至少是能让我和我身边人满意的这么一家四川火锅。然后我觉得四川火锅它本身就很适合纽约这种快的生活节奏，就是因为平时生活大家压力很大，工作啊，学习啊。然后我觉得这个四川火锅重口味的东西可以给纽约快节奏的生活做一定的调节。这就是为什么我觉得不管是北京，上海，深圳，这些大的城市，火锅是一个非常受大众欢迎的一个东西。但是纽约还没有出现一个很高质量的火锅店，所以我希望去填补这块的空缺。也希望把好的东西介绍给在纽约的一些本地人。
为什么选择毕业后创业?
毕业后直接创业的原因是因为我觉得就是我本身就比较喜欢一个，有一个探索的过程。我希望去接触一些我不了解的行业，而且我不希望知道是，啊，就是下一周或者接下来的半年，一年会什么东西会发生。我希望有点未知性。我希望通过这个创业本身，重要的是学习，去探索一些了解自己不了解，不清楚的东西。然后我觉得这个过程也让我接触了很多不同行业的人，培养了自己的团队，我觉得这个是对我来说是最宝贵的东西。创业对我个人能力的培养，也是是一个非常宝贵，不管以后在任何一个行业里做，或者怎么样。我觉得这段经历是一个，对我来说非常重要的经历。
在创业过程中最让你感到热血沸腾的是什么？
我觉得这整个过程中，首先我觉得辛苦啊，艰难的过程是大于本身你这个，是，开心和热血沸腾的这个时间。但是真正让我觉得特别兴奋和热血的时候是有人跟你share同样一个version，然后相信你的version，然后我觉得这个时候你会觉得哦你不是一个人在奋斗，有人愿意跟你一块然后大家认可你的这的这个一个奋斗的成果。对我来说是是非常，非常重要的。然后当你发现你的产品也好，你的餐厅也好，满足一些顾客的需求，他们在其他地方满足不了这个需求的时候，我觉得这个也是让我非常兴奋的地方。
你对这个行业的看法是什么？
我觉得对餐饮行业来说，不管是在中餐，美式中餐，日餐，其他一些。估计竞争会越来越大，尤其在纽约，这也就push我们把东西做的越来越好，服务也越来越到位，然后整个餐厅的environment也是越来越好，所以我觉得大趋势是会向好的方向发展，但是对我们的经营者来说，竞争会越来越大。