As a “foody” his whole life, Dan Lew, chef and owner of China Club, uses his culinary expertise to craft meals unique to not only his Asian ancestry, but cultures across the globe in order to satisfy a wide range of customers who visit the ten-year-old restaurant.
All of the menu items are original, Lew explained. “We tweak some of the recipes here and there and try to make it our own.”
In an effort to appeal to more customers, the restaurant developed an extensive eggroll menu, which features 28 different types of eggrolls, including such items as the vegetable lasagna, Reuben, shrimp and grits, and hamburger helper eggrolls.
“We took some mainstream comfort food, like a pizza roll, and turned it into an eggroll to add a little bit of an Asian twist.”
The menu also includes items like the Kobe burger, NY strip steak, Brussels sprout salad, and moo shu pork tacos.
Lew borrows from his Korean background when developing some of the recipes. He further stated that some of the cooks are Laotian and so they incorporate their heritage into the recipe-making process, as well.
“We try to encompass a lot of Asia as a whole,” Lew explained.
In that endeavor, China Club maintains the philosophy that Asian food serves as one of the original cuisines of the world.
Extrapolating on the restaurant’s philosophy, Lew described, “Asian food started with the kings and emperors and always has been high-end cuisine. Today, as you look throughout the perspective of the entire U.S., Chinese food has become very watered down and it’s become fast-food-oriented and buffet-oriented. We went the other direction and we’ve taken it to the level where we try to emulate the food back to the traditions of the emperors and kings, but yet try to make the food more progressive and modern in today’s society.”
In conjunction with trying to modernize the food, Lew has expanded that approach to the restaurant’s environment with the recent addition of ink.
In April of this year, China Club added a lounge space that was dubbed “ink.” “The idea was to utilize more space and bring in different clientele,” said Lew.
With the addition of ink., the restaurant began offering more hours of operation, now opening at 4 p.m. on Monday – Saturday. The restaurant closes at 9:30 p.m. on Monday – Thursday and at 10:30 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, (often open later on the weekend evenings for live entertainment and karaoke). Lunch is also available on Wednesday at 11:30 a.m.
Lew, a native of Mansfield, graduated from Malabar High School, received his undergraduate degree from Miami University in marketing, a master’s in business administration from Ashland University, and finally a master’s in food service from Cornell University.
Interestingly, China Club’s location at 1217 Park Avenue West is not unfamiliar to Lew. Before China Club was established in 2003, Mark Pi’s restaurant took up residence in that location. Lew explained that he worked with Mark Pi for a six-month period and helped him open the Mark Pi’s restaurant in 1987.
Both Lew and Pi share a long history, Lew mentioned. The two trained in culinary together in Columbus. Lew added that Pi served as the head chef for the president of Korea at one point. “He’s an excellent chef and I learned a lot from him,” said Lew.
After graduating from college, Lew took a position at Progressive Insurance, and later on a managerial position at a Rax restaurant in Indiana. In 1995, he operated his own deli and catering service named Paisley Park.
In reference to his work in food service he noted, “God gave me a lot of talent and I get use that creativity on a daily basis. And unlike with some other jobs, food service is different every day, and I really think that is where energy comes from and the constant desire of wanting to fulfill people’s passion for food.”
Typically, Lew can be found in the kitchen during business hours, “But I have to make my appearance out on the floor because we often have a lot of regulars who come in,” said Lew.
Summing up the mission of the restaurant, Lew stated, “It seems to me that the world is based on food. Think about a lot of the memories and good times you have, and oftentimes they’re all based on food. That’s really what China Club’s foundation is based on, and I really hold that close to my heart in everything we do.”
“It seems to me that the world is based on food. Think about a lot of the memories and good times you have, and oftentimes they’re all based on food. That’s really what China Club’s foundation is based on, and I really hold that close to my heart in everything we do,” stated Dan Lew.
