Raised in a Chinese Restaurant

My parents bought "Peking Palace" in 1987, when I was 2 years old.

Everyday after school, my brother and I would come to the restaurant and do our homework and stay till closing. Sometimes we would help work, and most of the time we went outside to run around.

I started working at a fairly young age, I washed dishes, and peeled snow peas and string beans, just easy things that earned me a whopping $5.00 a day. I saved my money every week to buy a new barbie doll. And ever since then, I just kept working because it was fun for me to work, even day it still is.

My fondest memories of my childhood included running around downtown Napa. Going to KB Toystore, and hanging out with the "Asia Cafe Girls" and the boys from "Rio Poco" and "P.J.'s Cafe" We would tell scary stories while sitting in front of the ghost bar (Fagiani's Bar) and one night while sitting there the phone in the bar began to ring! Creeeepy!

There were some downfalls of being raised in a chinese restaurant. I witnessed crazy customers at a young age, I was always late to school because I wouldn't go to sleep till past 10:00P.M, and....thats pretty much it. These were the best times of my life. I got to eat delicious chinese food everyday and hang out with my brother.

Across the street from Peking Palace is the Veterans Park.
There would always be a bunch of skaters that would hangout there all day and they would come in all the time to use our restroom but then we stopped letting them use our restroom because they didn't buy anything. One day these two skater boys came in and stole this red bucket that we made into a "Wishing Well". The bucket was filled with water, so when they were running away with the bucket the water was leaving a trail....so we followed them to the rock waterfall or where the clock tower used to be. They ended up giving us our bucket back but without the money in it of course.

One morning,  I don't remember exactly when this happened but we were walking up to the restaurant and saw that our glass front doors have been shattered....We've been ROBBED!....but...guess what was stolen? That infamous red bucket wishing well. Hmm...?

Although I remember a lot of things,  I think I had the best childhood ever because for some crazy reason I remember so much of my childhood but I can barely remember high school. I could tell you tons of stories that happened on the 1000 block of 2nd and Main Street. 

Many customers have watched me grow up.
They still remember my brother and I running around outside late at night hanging outside of Peking Palace. Our most loyal customers have followed us all the way to St. Helena.

My parents purchased "Golden Harvest" in 1995 and sold Peking Palace in 1999.
 I began working as a full time waitress in 1999 at Golden Harvest.
We bought back Peking Palace in 2009.

Good Times

Mu Shu Debacle

A few weeks ago one of my top 5 worst customer came in.

I don't like to service ANY of my worst customers because it tends to put me in a horrible mood and I just can't seem to smile after I see them, So I make whomever I'm working with take their table...so this time it was my cousin.

He ordered a Vegetarian Mu Shu for To Go

He asked my cousin to roll them up for him as well. (Which we do not recommend because it becomes "MUSHY MU SHU" but she did it for him....

He calls the next day....

"I ordered the Vegetarian Mu Shu for a Vegetarian and there was chicken in it and we had to throw it away so I demand a free Vegetarian Mu Shu next time I come in"

I find the receipt for this order....On the ticket it says "Vegetable Mu Shu"

I ask my cousin about this vegetable mu shu since she had to roll them...she said it was for sure vegetarian and I even asked the chef (my dad) if it was vegetarian. (We all have very good memory around here when it comes to the weirdos and the worst customers)

So....Do I give this guy a FREE vegetable mu she next time he comes in?

Well....he came in tonight...and said very LOUDLY that he wanted a FREE vegetarian mu shu.

I told him that what we gave him was vegetarian mu shu...he said....

"A DOCTOR said it was chicken"

Ok....?......

I wanted to tell him that Doctors made mistakes also, and was this doctor also old like you sir?

I don't know...maybe the mu shu really did have chicken or maybe this so called doctor mistaken a piece of egg or water chestnut as chicken? Who knows?! This mystery mu shu has been discarded into the veterans home garbage.

So....did I give him a free Vegetarian mu shu?

Of course I did...the customer is always right.....right?

Guess what the guy said when I brought it to him?

"Is this the Doctors mu shu PORK?"

Tipping is not a city in China

T.I.P.S. = To Insure Prompt Service 

I hate people who don't tip

Especially when it's a restaurant/service situation. 

I think it is absolutely cheap and disgusting when people demand good service and leave without tipping. 

I feel that if you don't want to tip because your excuse is "I need the money more than the waiter" or "I don't have enough money" or "I think the service was bad".....DON'T DINE OUT. 

Get your ass to the grocery store and buy some bread and peanut butter and jelly and make your own god damn food. And pour yourself unlimited amounts of water, and then clean up after your nasty ass.

Save your money for when you are ready to go out into the real world where real people are working really hard for their hard earned money by giving you prompt service. 

When you take care of us...we take care of you.

I have a lot of "Regular No-tippers"...These bitches really have the nerve to ask for E.V.E.R.Y.T.H.I.N.G.

Hot sauce, Napkins, water, to-go cup for their left over soda, you name it...what ever is free, they want.

So I've come up with a payback plan for these regulars. I pretend I'm really busy for the first few minutes after they walk through the door....I seat them...and then I take their order after 10minutes of waiting, without bringing any water. I wait another 10minutes before putting in their order in the computer, bring them their drinks and then when their food is ready...I wait another 10minutes before I bring it out. Now...this only happens when its not busy. When its busy I try to get this person out of the restaurant as soon as possible because the table that their sitting at, can have an actual tipper sitting there.

The dining room at Golden Harvest is fairly small, it can have approximately 48 seats...legally. We have 2 large round tables that can fit up to 10 seats and we have booths that fit 4 maximum. When we have 5 people come in, they would sit at the round table. Which is we add an 18% gratuity to parties of 5 or larger.  

Today for example: We had a group of 5 chinese people come in. My cousin gave them great prompt service and when the bill came, they asked why we added the gratuity on. My cousin said she felt bad but why? It's policy that we add it on, plus it was written on the menu that we do so when there is a party of 5 or more. When they were leaving, I asked the party if my cousins service did not deserve 18% gratuity? Guess what the mother fucker said? 

He said "Yes she does but I wanted to give her more than just 18%"......Huh?! THEN DO IT! What's stopping you? What a dumb ass mother fucker....not only do you look cheap for even bringing the gratuity up but you look hella dumb for saying that last part. 

The other day we had "Regular No-tippers" but these ladies I do not like. I seated them after letting them wait...and when it was time to pay..they brought their ticket up to the counter. (which means they're not going to tip) The bill was $19.97. My cousin was just going to put the $20 bill in the cashier drawer without giving them their $0.03 change. But I told her in mandarin "you better give them their 3 pennies back because they're going to need it" so she did, and this bitch waved her fist with the pennies in her palm over our tip jar and you can tell she was thinking "Should I? or Should I keep it?" It was hilarious watching her doing this motion, and while she was doing this, I was saying out loud to my cousin in mandarin 

"Oh she's going to tip Oh nope she's not Oh she is" And guess what she did?

She kept the pennies.

Meet your Meat

I am a vegetarian.

I've stopped eating meat March 2011.

Why?

At first it was to help my friend out through lent...and then...

I watched a Animal Cruelty video

Everybody...Meet your Meat

I lost 10lbs...and I couldn't bring myself to eat chicken, beef, or pork...after seeing this video

Then I read Skinny Bitch & Eating Animals

And then I became part-time Vegan for awhile...Lost another 10lbs...

I feel so much healthier and happier, people always ask me "Where do you get your protein?" From many things...tofu, soy milk...I eat a lot of fruits and vegetables and I take a multi-vitamin everyday. 

Being Vegan was easy at first because after reading about cow udders being used with a machine sucking all the milk out of their poor bodies too much that it starts to produce sores and pus and all the dead skin cells is what also goes into milk that everyone drinks. I only drink soy, almond, and rice milk now. 

But I have issues with:

Cheese....AWW MAN! it's so hard! I tried Vegan cheese...it smelled really bad....I'm from Napa...

Cheese and wine...

Desserts...Yo Belle, Sift Cupcakes, and Champagne Cake. 

My Favorite Meal of the Day: Breakfast....I love the Sweet & Salty Combo. Waffles, pancakes, potatoes and eggs...:::sigh::: Have you guys been to The Griddle Cafe in Los Angeles? YUM! 

I need to always think that eggs are a chicken's abortion. That way I don't eat them...

I've made Vegan cupcakes

I do need to experiment more in the kitchen because I know I can make vegan pancakes...I'm just too lazy. But I definitely will try not to be lazy for animals. Those poor defenseless animals.

These are my confessions: The only thing I don't consider myself a full 100% vegetarian is because my weakness is Sushi. :::sigh::: I sometimes have a hankering for sushi but I've only have it like 3 times.... Only sushi, I can't help it...I'm asian...My mom brings me sushi all the time and I don't want to hurt her feelings. ;)

I am trying to quit sushi from now on...because those poor defenseless fish! I'm actually more concerned with Dolphins and Whales because they get killed when they are accidentally caught in the line of fire when fishermen are catching salmon or tuna. 

I'm Taiwanese I've been raised on a lot of weird delicious food..like pig intestines, pork belly, chicken feet, and cow stomach.....I've quit all that. My family is Buddhist.

 I am trying to practice Buddhism, and I think being Vegetarian is a good start to great Karma.

Everybody be kind....you'll be happier and good Karma will come 

And don't forget to tip!