Alan Yau (1/2)

Changed London's Dining Scene Yau, a 40-year-old London restaurateur recognized for his “outstanding contribution to London restaurants” at the Carlton London Restaurant Awards in 2001, exhibits that Impressionist trait. So far, he has turned inspiration gleaned from a noodle, a nametag worn by a Thai waitress and a glass, among other things, into highly regarded quick-service and fine-dining concepts located worldwide. “Yau is a phenomenon among restaurateurs. He was the man who conceived and created Wagamama, the original noodle bar chain which under other’s management has now spread across the south of England and most recently opened in Sydney, Australia. He then spent ￡2 million converting a National Westminster Bank on Wardour Street into Busaba Eathai which now boasts sales of over ￡3 million a year on an average spend of just ￡12.60”. Such remarked by a Guardian Food Critic. The son of Chinese parents, Yau came to England from Hong Kong at age 11 to live in the provinces, where his father was running the kitchen of a chop suey house. “My father told me that if I wanted to go into business, I had to be the best, and at the end of the day, food is everything,” Yau said. “I wanted to compete with the best in the UK, and they are in London. Equally, if I were to go to America, it would be to New York, where many of my English compatriots have had a hard time. The only oxymoron is that while you have to be really passionate, I don’t really love the business.” He studied business, political science and philosophy in college but grew frustrated with his lack of vocational skills upon graduation. So he turned his attention to fast food. “I somehow intuitively felt comfortable with the concept,” Yau said of quick service. “It is systematic, there is standardization, outsourcing. At that time I found that idea sexier than [fine] dining.” The interest brought him back to Hong Kong, where he trained with McDonald’s for a short time before eventually turning down an offer to run a franchise in China. Then he joined KFC in London, where he further refined his operational skills, designing kitchens with “short production lists” and individual workstations to fit different parts of the menu. “Those lessons helped greatly with the founding of Wagamama. Interested in the concept of portability in fast food, he conducted extensive research and controlled test on Chinese food before concluding it did not have “hand-held potential”. “Analytically, I find it very hard to turn an Asian concept into proper fast food,” he said. “I don’t think – in the real sense – that it performs well in that parameter.” But noodles and rice were another matter. “When I gave up the opportunity to take on the franchise idea for McDonald’s, a friend of mine introduced me to the ramen noodle. I had no idea what it was, but I saw the DNA for a fast-food concept. I saw soup and noodles and topping, and I just thought, “Wow, this is amazing because the potential is so great.” “In order for me to develop something, I have key another components,” Yau explained. “It starts as a simple concept, a kind of visualization around which the concept grows. Strong ideas have really hot key anchor components. The idea is strong in its own right. For example, I have a Japanese concept in mind centered around a seating system, and I know that even with only that, it will be a success.” When asked what his experiences have taught him, he replied, “In the absolute sense, nothing.” But he said he finds the whole process of working with different ethnic group “intriguing”. “It has taught me a lot about each culture: how they behave and interact and react – even down to management process,” he said.