Local Tastemaker: Chef Yia Vang

Article by Becky Fillinger

Chef Yia Vang Photo credit: Lauren CutshallLegends walk and cook among us. Please take time to meet Chef Yia Vang. Then, enjoy his visionary food.  The Union Hmong Kitchen is open in the North Loop at 520 N 4th Street and we all await the opening of Vinai in Northeast Minneapolis.   

Q:  There are so many reasons to offer congratulations to you. You've won so many awards for your cooking and have been the subject of many news programs and magazine articles. The most recent award – Finalist, Best Chef Midwest, James Beard Foundation - was just announced. When did you know you wanted to be a chef? Did you always want to showcase Hmong foods?   

A:  At first, being a chef wasn’t something I wanted to do. I was always embarrassed of Hmong food, but when I realized the deeper meaning behind it, that changed everything. You know, there’s a famous Mark Twain quote I like, "The two most important things in your life are the day you are born and the day you find out why." And for me, the why was realizing why I wanted to cook. It made sense that this was my calling, but it took me almost 30 years to figure out.

Early days in the Ban Vinai refugee camp  

Q:  Your new restaurant Vinai, is named in honor of the Thai refugee camp, Ban Vinai, where your parents met and you were born. The restaurant's website describes the food as "drawing on the flavors of the Southeast Asian countries that the nomadic Hmong people traveled through." I applaud your efforts at recognizing the refugee past of the Hmong people. As a true food visionary, what can you tell us about the future of Hmong cuisine?  

A:  I hope that the future is that it keeps progressing forward to continue showcasing the history and the present of our people. Basically, my hope for Hmong food is that it keeps developing, but it also never loses its past. I want to see new techniques used in food – like French food today has evolved so much from French food from 500 years ago, but there are still the same basic elements. I want us, Hmong people, to be a part of the bigger culinary conversation. We’re part of the history of America.

Q:  You became a naturalized US citizen late last year - congratulations! What did it mean to you to become a US citizen?

A:  It had a lot of deep meaning, especially in understanding how much my family, my parents, my grandparents, sacrificed to get us to this country. I don’t take this citizenship lightly, but I wear it as a badge of honor to represent them.

Q:  When might Vinai open its doors? I know you’re preparing the space at 1717 2nd Street NE in the Bottineau neighborhood. 

A:   We expect to open Vinai later this year, in 2022. After years of pop-ups and travels through kitchens, we are building a permanent home in Northeast Minneapolis. More details to come soon!

Q:  Please keep us posted. Will the cuisine be different from that offered at Union Hmong Kitchen? 

A:  It’ll still be Hmong food at Vinai, but with that service aspect to it. We want to dig deep into the service part, taking care of people when they come in, making sure they feel cared for. We want to offer a space for people to come together and celebrate and have good conversations over food.

Q:  The website mentions the approach will highlight the hospitality and abundance of Hmong meals - please tell us more about that concept.

A:  For us, hospitality comes from the idea that the food we do isn’t naturally served all plated up for one person; that’s a very euro-centric way of thinking about food. What we really want to do is serve food that will be in the center of the table. Then there’s the whole idea that food is made for all of us, not just an individual. I think removing the individualistic part of it, and seeing that food is made for the community, for the whole, is what we’re aiming for.

The Vinai Feast features a whole fish. Photo credit: Lauren Cutshall

Q:  What's one Hmong dish on the menu you wish more customers would order? 

A:  I’d like more people to order the whole fish - I’d love to introduce more people to the idea of eating the whole animal, the whole fish. That way of eating is not just a cool or new experience like it is for a lot of other people, rather it’s just the way we grew up, and I want to share that. 

Q:  How do you spend your downtime?

A:  You know, I always say that I’m in the restaurant industry, but I’m a huge fan of our industry too - I love going to other restaurants and visiting friend’s places and sharing a meal together.

The Union Hmong Kitchen Breakfast Sando features a Hmong sausage patty topped with a sunny-side up fried egg. Photo credit: Lauren Cutshall 

Q:  How may we follow your news? 

A:  Lots of social channels: Facebook, Instagram and our website. Check out my personal Instagram, too.