03 Feb Throwback Thursday: Chef Han Appears as Guest Chef at Twitter

On occasion, Twitter, the San Francisco-based social media giant, will invite guest chefs to come cook for their employees. A wide range of culinary masters have been featured over the years. These guest chefs range from Mark Dommen of One Market, to an autonomous, salad-making robot named Sally.

On Valentine’s Day (February 14th), 2019, Twitter invited guest Chef Lijun Han, owner Z & Y Restaurant. As a pioneer of authentic Sichuan cuisine on the West Coast, his visit was a popular one.\

Over several hours, Chef Han cooked and served over 2000 spicy dumplings. The dumplings went to a hungry and appreciative swarm of Twitter staff members.

Chef Han Biography

Below is the biography for Chef Han, the guest chef at Twitter Headquarters during his appearance:

“Chef Lijun Han was born in Beijing, where he started cooking at a young age with his father. When Chef Han was 18, he enrolled at the top cooking school in Beijing, where he became enthralled with Sichuan food and culture. After graduating from culinary school, he worked his way up to become the Executive Chef at The Beijing International Hotel. Ten years later he moved from China where he cooked for many distinguished guests including two Chinese Presidents, Deng Xiaoping and Hu Jintao. Chef Han then met his now-wife and Z & Y co-owner, Michelle, and they opened Chinatown’s premier Sichuan restaurant, Z & Y Restaurant, in August of 2008. Following the phenomenal success of Z & Y, the opened Chili House in San Francisco’s Richmond District in 2012, specializing in Peking Duck and Beijing Dim Sum, followed by Z & Y Bistro in 2018, a contemporary twist on classic Asian cuisines featuring Sichuan favorites, yakitori, ramen, and hot pot.”