Chef Harold Villarosa, originally from the Philippines and raised in the South Bronx, shares his journey from fast food joints to working at world-renowned restaurants like Noma. Now residing in Austin, Texas, he talks about his new role as a father, his exciting culinary projects like OKO Austin, and his dedication to community building through authentic Filipino cuisine. Learn how Chef Harold is blending his rich cultural heritage with innovative culinary techniques, and his vision for the future of Asian cuisine in Austin.

Topics Covered:
• Chef Harold's background and culinary journey
• His experiences working at prestigious restaurants
• The transition to Austin and upcoming Filipino restaurant Oko
• His commitment to sustainable, community-oriented food practices
• The importance of food media and storytelling in today's culinary world

Materials Referenced:
OKO Austin
Chef Harold Villarosa Instagram
Alice Waters Edible Schoolyard

Speakers from Asian Family Support Services of Austin (AFSSA), Asian Texans for Justice (ATJ), Austin Asian American Film Festival (AAAFF), and Austin Asian Community Health Initiative (AACHI) joined us for a live moderated panel discussion at the Austin Asian Professional Summit in May this year. During the discussion we learned more about the direct services and support they offer to the AANHPI community in Austin, why it's important to focus on our community and how individuals can get companies involved to support their work.

Moderated by:
Minh Vu, Asian in Austin Podcast

Panelists:

• Zahra Shakur Jamal, Director of Prevention, Outreach and Education, Asian Support Family Services of Austin
• Hailey Easley, Executive Director, Austin Asian Community Health Initiative
• Sabrina Sha, Operations and Development Manager, Asian Texans for Justice
• Hanna Huang, Executive Director, Austin Asian American Film Festival

The Austin Asian Professional Summit was hosted in collaboration with the Asian American Resource Center and the Greater Austin Asian Chamber of Commerce, with support from Austin Asian Film Festival, Orchid Events, and Northshore Media.

Materials Referenced:

• Austin Asian Professional Summit
• Asian Support Family Services of Austin (IG)
• Austin Asian Community Health Initiative (IG)
• Asian Texans for Justice (IG)
• Austin Asian American Film Festival (IG)
• Asian American Resource Center (IG)
• Greater Austin Asian Chamber of Commerce (IG)
• Orchid Events (IG)
• Northshore Media (IG)

Nelson Lin is a retired Chinese restaurant child laborer, with decades of experience in the food industry and shoving down his feelings. He currently takes credit for running Soupleaf Hot Pot with his mom and brother, which is Austin's first all you can eat hot pot restaurant. He also runs a meme group called Subtle Asian Real Estate, with over 23,000 members helping each other get from 0 to 1 on their first home. Subtle Asset Management, his investment company, primarily focuses on funding affordable housing with $35M AUM. He has degrees in engineering from Columbia University and Cal Poly SLO, and was formerly a techie at Apple, Microsoft, and Brookfield Asset Management.

Topics Covered:

• The history of his family from the Fujian province in China.
• Austin's welcoming environment for restaurateurs
• The difference between Austin's Asian food scene and other larger areas
• Mom and pop run Asian restaurants vs a newer wave of restaurants
• Running a restaurant with family members
• Striking balance of authenticity when serving hot pot
• The success behind Soupleaf
• Investing in real estate and tips on how to get started

Materials Referenced:

• Soupleaf Hotpot
• Subtle Asian Real Estate Group
• The Snakehead: An Epic Tale of the Chinatown Underworld and the American Dream by Patrick Radden