Kathy Fang, Part 2 (S8E10)

In Part 2, we pick up where we left off in Part 1. Kathy left her hometown of San Francisco for the first time to go to college at USC. Originally, she wanted to major in science. There was and perhaps still is a prevailing expectation in her culture to go into some sort of lucrative career. Surely, no one would want to go into the food business intentionally, so the trope goes. So Kathy set out to make her parents proud.

Soon enough, though, she realized she doesn’t like science, and switched to becoming a business major. She earned a bachelor’s in entrepreneurship and operations and soon got a job in the corporate world at the stock brokerage Merrill Lynch. A short time later, not too happy, she moved to Johnson and Johnson, another job that ended up boring her. Despite this, she was getting more and more used to LA and wasn’t thinking necessarily of coming back.

Still in her Twenties, the idea of joining her parents at their restaurant started to grow on her, and she took the plunge. She moved back to San Francisco and lived with Lily and Peter for a time. She’d been bringing college friends to her hometown for a while, parading them around to ride cable cars or eat at places like Taddich Grill. They’d explore San Francisco neighborhoods and restaurants with Kathy as their guide. Her friends loved it here. Duh.

Returning home felt good for Kathy. Her husband had lived in Hawaii and Georgia and would sometimes urge to go other places. But Kathy is a city girl, an SF girl. “It’s always good to be back.”

Her first year back, she worked with Peter and Lily at House of Nanking every day. She aimed to prove to her dad that she was serious about restaurant work. After that year, Kathy went to culinary school. When she graduated, Peter lovingly let her know that three is a crowd at his eatery and asked his daughter what she wanted to do. “I kinda wanna open another restaurant,” she told him. He’d resisted opening a second location for House of Nanking. The idea of Kathy branching out, however, offered an opportunity to do a second restaurant, but have it be unique and distinct from his own place.

Because the new joint would be father/daughter (vs. the husband/wife structure at House of Nanking), it provided space for Kathy’s dishes, Peter’s dishes, and menu items featuring collaborations between the two. The scaffolding was there, and it was solid. But right away, Kathy found herself the victim of outdated stereotypes of what it means to be a chef. Some even felt that the operation was nepotistic, that Kathy was just riding her dad’s coattails. They couldn’t imagine that she’d because a great chef in her own right. People, amirite?

I ask Kathy whether it’s an apt metaphor to say that House of Nanking gave birth to Fang. She agrees. She uses this topic as a springboard to describe physical differences between the two restaurants. House of Nanking feels older, more disheveled, with dim lighting. Fang is newer, cleaner-feeling, brighter. I was sitting there that day at House of Nanking, talking with Kathy, and I couldn’t help wonder whether Anthony Bourdain had eaten there. She wasn’t sure on the spot that day, but I looked it up. I’m almost certain he did not, but I can’t help but believe he eventually would’ve made it. House of Nanking is just “like that.”

Kathy seizes on the opportunity to share celebrities who have been to her parents’ restaurant, and tells the story of a recent mention by comedian and writer John Mulaney. She was in London when Mulaney performed in SF. On stage in The City, he mentioned loving House of Nanking and wishing it was open after his show. Kathy made a few phone calls from across the Atlantic and had food delivered to him. The next night, Kathy Griffin basically said the same thing. And Kathy Fang once again came through, having food brought to the comic actor. Griffin let it be known that House of Nanking is on an unofficial “comedy circuit,” meaning a group of comedians who share tips about various cities and what to do and eat there.

We start to wind down the conversation by talking about the book that Kathy wrote. Along with her dad, Kathy’s new book, The House of Nanking Cookbook, is something that’s been in the works for a while. Folks kept asking them to share their recipes, and Peter resisted. But then the show Chef Dynasty: House of Fang came out on Food Network. After her dad saw the show (and he’s in it, mind you), he changed his tune. He wanted there to be a record of everything they’d accomplished. Kathy convinced Peter that a book was the best way to do just that.

The book is written in both Peter’s and Kathy’s voices. So it’s got the story of opening and carrying on all those years. But it also has Kathy’s perspective, growing up in the restaurant and eventually becoming a chef in her own right. After doing research and seeing a dearth of Chinese-American cookbooks, getting her family’s recipes out there became even more important for Kathy.

The House of Nanking Cookbook is available at local bookstores.

House of Nanking, 919 Kearny Street, @houseofnankingsf

Fang restaurant, 660 Howard Street, @fangrestaurantsf

Find more about Kathy on her website, kathyfang.com.