Richard Ho
Ho Foods | New York
October 2019
Richard Ho grew up in the San Gabriel Valley, east of Los Angeles in an area known for being a hub for Taiwanese-American cuisine. But his first cooking job was at a greasy spoon in West Berkeley, learning the work ethic of the restaurant world by showing up at 6am to make coffee every day. After completing his bachelor's degree in economics at the University of California, Berkeley, in 2006, Ho couch surfed for a year, visiting friends around the country. He fortuitously landed on a friend’s sofa in Park Slope and began knocking on doors of restaurants to find a gig. He finally got offered a job at Blue Ribbon Sushi Bar & Grill, and ended up on the opening team for their Midtown Manhattan location. He soon became a manager and spent eight years working front of house for the group.
Yearning to bring the tastes of his Taiwanese childhood to New York, Ho began doing pop ups in 2015, serving the cuisine’s signature beef noodle soup. In 2018, Ho opened a 10-seat storefront in the East Village neighborhood of Manhattan, featuring his signature savory 10-hour broth and other modernized Taiwanese classics. The restaurant, Ho Foods, has been met with critical acclaim by The New York Times, Eater, Grubstreet, and Bon Appetit.
