George Chen, Founder and Executive Chef George spent his formative years working at several of the top restaurants in Los Angeles and, most notably – while attending Cal Berkeley, at The Mandarin in San Francisco for Madame Cecilia Chiang, a lifelong friend and mentor. Since then, Chen has created, developed and operated several award winning restaurants. Betelnut, Chen’s first restaurant, was nominated for a James Beard Award for the Best New Restaurant in America in 1995. Overall, Chen has created, owned and operated 16 restaurants around the world.