The core of who I am is Canadian.
Kids always like the villain or the guy who's different.
Chinese parents always think you can do better. But it comes from wanting you to succeed.
Those who come into my restaurants expect something more, expect my 'fingerprint,' and trust me to give them a different experience.
My grandmother and father both had diabetes.
I have developed recipes that are diabetes-friendly for my restaurant menus.
There's a great vibe in Vancouver, and there's a market. If there's a market, then there's an opportunity.
You have to be confident to be successful... I am somewhat confident.
My food is an extension of my personality.
One of the reasons I'm called 'Demon Chef' is because in Hong Kong, people were calling me God chef, and I right away took away that term because calling yourself God is blasphemous.
People keep saying I'm westernizing Chinese food. No I'm not. McDonald's, KFC, Starbucks, have done it big time, way before me.
Airplanes are a good place to concentrate because you get no emails, no phone calls.
Part of my trademark is my blue sunglasses and cross earrings, which I always have.
I've ruined a lot of hotel towels. I did a shoot in San Francisco and stayed at the Mandarin Oriental. I must have ruined thousands of dollars worth of towels. I dye my hair once a week. The dye is not temporary. It stains everything. It stains tiles, that's how powerful it is.
All the earrings are mostly crosses. It's kind of a contradiction to wear it since I'm known as the Demon Chef. They're all custom-made. Some are Tiffany's. Some are Stephen Webster from England.
I love to go to Hunter's Pizza on Huntingwood and Birchmount. That's in Scarborough, of course! It's been in the same family for two generations. It's been there since I moved there in '67, so it's been there for 50 years. I can't claim it's the best pizza in the world but I can say it's my favorite pizza place.
I play squash.
My grandmother passed away from diabetes. And my father died from heart disease as a result of diabetes. They were in their early 60s.
I love cooking with wine.
Calling yourself God is blasphemous, but calling yourself demon isn't.
