![]() He knows the rules of business tough love because he was born into a family of entrepreneurs and overachievers. “In our company, it took us 10 years and some fights,” Lee said. “Who’s the boss at the shop? Gotta have one. He also told them they couldn’t both run the show. 2: You’re going to lose all your money because divorce comes with ripping your business apart.” “Separate the issues you’re having at work with the issues you’re going to have at home, right? If you guys can’t separate that I guarantee two things are going to happen. They have two young children and Lee has raised two sons, so he knows it’s a balancing act. He cautioned power couple Fujimura and Tjangnaka - they both worked at Marché Moderne and Charlie Palmer at Bloomingdale’s South Coast Plaza before going out on their own - to get their house in order before opening Lit. When necessary, he’ll butt into their personal lives. Otherwise you can’t leave the kitchen,” Lee says. “Don’t overdo it because you’ve got to teach somebody else to make it. Other times he cautions them to slow down, to wait before opening a second location or expanding the menu. Sometimes he’ll encourage chefs to expand. “He got his signs outside and he called me like, ‘Oh my God, you’re right!’” Lee said. Say who can I ask to forgive me, forgive me, forgive me?” It worked like a charm when Fujimura hit a roadblock with signage in Anaheim. That phone call led to a sweet deal to keep Kim in Orange and started a friendship that’s lasted for years. But you need to answer your phone when the city calls,’” Lee said. I know you’re the bread guy, I’m the Wahoo’s guy. “I said, ‘Dude, I don’t know you very well. When the city of Orange called because officials couldn’t reach Dean Kim, Lee cold-called the baker. Need a friend in city hall? Lee will go to bat for you. “But Ed said, ‘Look at your profit margin on an egg.’” Lit thrived by deciding to serve breakfast, lunch and brunch. “We were originally going to do a dessert bar and tapas,” said Fujimura. Lee’s not a chef, but he’ll tell you if your menu is too ambitious. “I can text or call anytime and he has all that information,” Pangilinan said. Need someone to face down an ornery dishwasher repair man? A phone number to get your liquor license rolling? Lee selflessly shares contacts. It took a couple years before I found my place in Santa Ana,” said Pangilinan, who was awarded a Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand designation in May. “When I found something I liked, a restaurant for sale or a lease, he’d go over it and tell me what he thought. “Dude! You can’t sign that, it’s a tension slab,” he told one chef, saving him from moving into a building where a grease trap would have been impossible to install. He helps with reading the fine print in leases. Lee loves the industry and thrives on pulling in young talent. “If I was as accomplished as he was, I don’t know if I would be spending my weekends doing that.” Taking care of business We thought it would be, ‘Here ya go, here’s some money and some advice.’ But they show up every weekend,” Park said. The restaurant also employs homeless people, veterans, recovering drug addicts and graduates of the foster care system.Īt Toast, Lee shows up with his wife, Michal “Mimi” Masada Lee, to greet customers, serve food, polish silverware, even bus dishes. Toast donates 10 percent of its profits to charity each month. “I thought I’d like to be part of his vision,” Lee said of John Park. Most times he doles out free advice, in one case he actually invested - he’s a major shareholder in Toast. Lee handpicks chefs whose food inspires him. You do this side.And Brian looked at me, and he goes, ‘You’ve gotta be nuts!’ But then he came down in the summer, and said, ‘Holy crap, you’re right!’” Lee showed them inside a concession stand and offered a deal on sharing the space so that each restaurateur had his own setup. “And they’re like, ‘Where is this place?’ And I said, ‘Turn around.’” So the trick is to get the million-dollar people to walk down to your non-moving food truck. “But within walking distance, every single home is over $1 million. ![]() “Imagine if you had a stationary food truck in the middle of nowhere,” Lee said. ![]() Huskey and his brother Andrew met Lee on the beach at Corona del Mar to hear his pitch. He decided to call Huskey out of the blue to discuss opening his own place. and Japan and that includes 33 in Southern California, with 20 of those in Orange County. Eduardo “Ed” Lee co-founded the Wahoo’s Fish Taco empire with his brothers Wing Lam and Renato “Mingo” Lee. ![]()
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