Kahja interviews C-Y and Shane
Starting with pop-ups that went on to become a full scale restaurant in late 2020, C-Y Chia and Shane Stanbridge turned up the volume on Oakland's food scene at Lion Dance Cafe with a menu that highlighted fresh vegan fare steeped in a rich profile of spice and flavor reflective of their respective cultural backgrounds in Teochew Singaporean and California Italian cuisine. Garnering national attention with nods from Michelin Guide and the New York Times, they shocked the Bay Area community in 2024 with the announcement of their closure, proving why going out on top serves as much of a purpose as staying put.
On this final episode of season 6, Kahja talks with C-Y and Shane about creating community through food when communal dining isn't an option, the theory of experiential dining, the nuances of food and hospitality in pop-up environments vs. your own location, making the decision to leave the Bay and reconnecting with parts of yourself in familiar places that've evolved and changed, being intentional about uplifting other producers, the process of creating their upcoming cookbook in a way that's approachable for home cooks, and looking forward to new beginnings.
Recorded on location in Oakland, CA.
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Intro music by Diff Works