Restaurant Redemption - Shiki wok

HUANG: My name is Ching-He Huang, and I'm known for making Chinese food easy. So, now we're gonna wok. Barbecue sauce. Serve it now. Now I'm on a mission to help struggling restaurants think outside the takeout box to turn their business around. Out with the old, in with the new. Your new signature dish. This is "Restaurant Redemption." -- Captions by VITAC -- Closed Captions provided by Scripps Networks, LLC. I've come to Bloomfield in New Jersey, 20 minutes outside of New York City, and I got a call from a failing restaurateur who owns Shiki Wok. It's got some terrible online reviews. "Stay away! Never have I ever tasted such horrible Chinese food in my life." Ouch. "Got takeout from there. "Everything was super-greasy, no flavor whatsoever. Never coming here ever again." Bad food equals bad reviews. I'm gonna see what I can do to help. Ming Wong moved to the United States from Malaysia in search of the American Dream. I came to this country in 1994 with my wife and my kids. I moved here for better education and better future for my kids. HUANG: Upon arrival, Ming didn't have a trade. So he turned to his family for guidance. After years of hustling in the kitchen, Ming saved up enough money to open Shiki Wok Restaurant in Bloomfield, New Jersey. When I first came here, everything was very good. I paid my bills. Everything was beautiful, you know? It was a dream come true. But ever since the economy crash, everything starts going downhill. HUANG: As the economy continued to crumble, so did Ming's restaurant. Clientele fell off, renovations were never made, and now Ming can't even afford to pay his staff. Anny Fernandez, his manager, is one of the few people who stuck by him. ANNY: I'm working here for almost 14 months now. It's been almost six months that he has not paid me. Sometimes, it's not about the pay, it's about the people that you work with. and I take them as my family. HUANG: As Ming's debts keep increasing, Shiki Wok's life span keeps decreasing. Me and my husband almost closed last summer. [ Voice breaking ] We don't have any money. I feel very bad. Now with the weight of his family on Ming's shoulders, the pressure's become almost unbearable. I don't know how much more I can sustain it. HUANG: Shiki Wok may look like another hole-in-the-wall takeout restaurant, but off-the-radar, low-key establishments often have the best food. Hi. My name is Ming. Nice to meet you. Nice to meet you. Um, tell me what's going on. The food is excellent. No complaints on the food. What kind of food do you serve here? Typical Chinese food and sushi. My wife, Jenny. Have you trained? No, I learned by myself. I have not had a sushi complaint before. No. Business is bad. Because the delivery time has been slow lately. How many orders are you doing? 15. Yes. Very low. We're losing money every day, and no customers come in. But it's not because of the food? It's not because of the food. It may be because of economy-wise and people are moving out of the state. So, how long do you have? I think three to five months. I'm back on bills. I'm very tired. [ Chuckles ] When was the last time you had a day off? That's a long time. If I knew this would happen to me, I would have never come to America. American Dream has gone, like, wrong. It's very sad. I mean, if you were to lose this place, what would that mean? Uh, it would look very bad on me and my kids. [ Speaking native language ] So, your two sons are at university. Your kids stand to lose their education if you lose this place? Yeah. I'll see what I can do to help, but we go to start from the food. Okay. So, I'd love to try five of your top dishes, and then we'll go from there. Mm-hmm. Okay, this way, please. HUANG: Ming's clearly in dire straits, but if his food is as good as he says it is, we won't have too much work to do. Hi. Okay. Okay. Pork Fried Rice, and the Pork Lo Mein. And this is Sweet and Sour Chicken. Wow! I mean, everything looks...brown. It's just one color. All right. So, where do I start? This is the Sweet and Sour Chicken. Now, look at that. Look at how much grease. Look at this sweet-and-sour sauce. It looks bright red, you know? It's just full of coloring. It's greasy. It's not good. This is bad Chinese food. And that oil, it just tastes horrible. Now, this next dish, this is General Tso's chicken. It tastes like... how a General Tso's Chicken should taste, except there's another aftertaste, which is rather strange. And the meat, it almost feels like they've cooked it, and then they've frozen it, and then they fried it. That's not a plate of fresh food. Now, this is the Lo Mein. Lo Me-in is more commonly referred to as Lo Mein here in the States. Can you see already? Look at how much grease and oil is on this noodle. That does not look appetizing at all. There are hardly any fresh vegetables. There's no scallions. Oh, there's some carrots that have been over-fried and look old. Might as well taste it. The online reviews are correct. This is bad food. I think it's to do with that oil. I really don't think it's fresh. I think that oil has slightly gone rancid. Okay, now I'm concerned this food isn't being prepared sanitarily. I'm heading back to the kitchen. So, this is the kitchen. Everything looks greasy and dirty. It's got a horrible old smell. Exposed wires. Toasted sesame seeds. It's Just full of oil and dirt. It needs a serious deep clean. By the looks of that fryer... That oil needs changing. That deep fryer hasn't been cleaned in God knows how long. Everything in there just spells laziness. Ming needs a wake-up call now. Mm-hmm. And it's not good. Uh, which one? All of them. Mm-hmm. And it's not good. All of them. Yes? Greasy. This is like eating oil. American kids...love this. The American customer wants salty, greasy. That's what they want. Yes. Mm-hmm. ...It's bad American Chinese food. The General Tso's Chicken tasted like the chicken was cooked, and then it was chilled for some reason, and then it was fried again. I just felt -- Yes, that's true. Yes, ma'am. Why are you doing that? Why are you not frying it fresh to order? Because this is what American people like. He's serving bad-quality Chinese food. He says it's for the Americans, and it's like my worst nightmare. It didn't have any flavor. There's no vegetables. There's no pineapples. There's no onions. There's no peppers. One day, one American kid was here. He did not try the food yet, and this is what went in. All the way. I told my wife, "We're gonna lose a lot of soy sauce." I said, "You have not tried the food yet." "But this is what I like." No. This is what they like. Ming doesn't have enough customers to keep him in business, yet he keeps insisting he knows what people want. My food is good, and this is what I know they want. How many times you eat this a week? Tell me now. Not that much. If a big American guy, he can eat this every day. But you told me that no one's really eating here. Maybe because of the economy-wise. It's not about the economy. Maybe the seating area is bad. Maybe air conditioner is not on enough. Ming can't attract new customers because he refuses to acknowledge the big-picture problems with his food. It's just your subpar, below-average takeout. I've seen that kitchen in there. That kitchen is not where it should be. The oil that you're using, it tasted almost rancid. How? There's a lot of things in there that need sorting out. Let me tell you something -- you need to change quickly. Tell me, if this business failed, how would it affect the both of you and your children? We may close the restaurant if we don't make the money. If this failed, we cannot sustain to pay them to go to college. Destroyed. That's why we call you, Ching. To help us. I'm willing to help you. But in order for me to help you, you have to be really open-minded for change. People don't want greasy, heavy food anymore. They want it exciting, they want it new, they want quality ingredients. They want it full of flavor and done well. I might disagree with Ching, but I am willing to take the challenge to save the restaurant, my family, and my crew that works with me. Tomorrow, we'll start. We're gonna shut this place down. You're gonna get a front-of-house makeover, we'll work on the menu, new items, new concept, too. I'm taking Ming back into the kitchen to see if we can find the root of Shiki Wok's problems. All that, it needs to be deep-cleaned. It looks unsanitary. Oil needs changing. I want it chucked. While Ming was changing the oil, I found an even worse problem. This is cooked rice from yesterday? Yes, yesterday. It's not fresh. You don't need to make the rice so far in advance because there's a risk here. Someone could get sick. I want you guys to really clean this place up. It's not at the standard where it needs to be, okay? [ Sighs ] This place is a mess. Where do I start? First of all, the horrible wallpaper. I don't know where we're supposed to be, but that just does not look pleasing. That is peeling off. That is damp. And then these banquettes, ripped apart. The upholstery's gone, and the horrible lighting in here. This place is sad. It's about to fall apart, too. And the sushi, I have to say, does not look fresh. It's all dried and shriveled up. Why are they serving sushi at a tiny Chinese restaurant anyhow? And then, this space here, we've got an upright fridge/freezer. And what is in here? [ Sighs ] That's how they store sushi? Freezer burn. Look at this. What an eyesore. You've got eggs, you've got sauce, you've got packaging everywhere. Who would want to eat in here? Nobody. My decor team's doing a deep scrub and cleaning up this place. I want to give it a modern, welcoming look, because at the moment, it's hideous. In the meantime, I'm heading back to the kitchen. It's in a much cleaner state than it was yesterday, so we can now start updating the menu. I want Shiki Wok's new concept to be fresher, more flavorful Chinese-American classics. I've asked him to bring his head chef, Michael, along so he can learn, as well. Hi, Michael. The Lo Mein that you have is more like a stir-fried noodle. There's no real sauce in it. Mm-hmm. Okay. Okay. Okay, sure. Yeah, you will look at it. Then you will taste it. Yes. If he doesn't believe in this new concept of healthy, tastier American-classic favorites, then I don't know what more I can do. MING: The new concept, I might give it a shot. But if I do not like it, then I have to go back to my old ways. HUANG: I'm in Bloomfield, New Jersey, working with Shiki Wok, a floundering restaurant that prioritizes selling greasy, heavy Chinese food. Their owner, Ming, seems to think that's what young kids are looking for. American kids love this. But I beg to differ. So, I'm going to teach him how to make food that's fresh and full of flavor, not full of artificial stuff. Okay. Yesterday, when I came in, I saw, like, oyster sauce, stock soy, salt, sugar, MSG. I didn't see anything exciting. Traditionally, Lo Mein served with some blanched vegetables in broth and then some Wonton Soup dumpling. The dish that I wanted to show you has a lot more sauce. Instead of MSG, we're gonna add a little bit of vegetable bouillon stock powder. Okay. Time to wok. Ginger. The shrimp. Some rice wine. The vegetables. Vegetable bouillon. Noodle, about two handfuls. But that's it. This is Lo Mein. I like it. It's good. MING: I like this. Because I know this already back in the days when I was a little kid. But for the American, New Jersey kids to like this, I do not know. Ming is cooking dishes that he thinks will satisfy the American public, but yet, he's not making food that he's happy cooking. If you eat this, if you're happy making it, you're proud of it, you put love into making it. Of course I'm proud of my Chinese cuisine. But to enhance it to the American boys, it's not that easy. Yes. And it's fear. American kids are gonna love it. I'd like to see that. I'm going to take this outside and prove it to you right now. Ming needs to stop worrying about his customers because he doesn't even have enough of them to stay afloat. For the typical American to like that, I really do not know. HUANG: HI, how are you? How are you? How are you? We're just, uh, two doors down from Shiki Wok. Would you like to try some food? We've got some Shrimp Lo Mein. It's cooked fresh. Try and see what you think. It's good. It's really fresh. It's a good mix. We're passing little samples of the Shrimp Lo Mein, and the young people are enjoying it. I think people here know a lot more about taste and flavor much more than I think Ming realizes. And I think he's just stuck in his old ways. They're all American. They like the food. I mean, I know it was just a little test, but it's an indication. We went out on the street with what Ching cooked, the Lo Mein. A couple of kids liked it, but to sell it to the customers, I'm a little scared. This is just the beginning, but we'll get there. It's still a lot of work to do. HUANG: Ming still seems skeptical about updating his menu. Hi. Shiki Wok. May I help you? But at the very least, we need to keep updating his front-of-house service. We have a lot of work to do. The front of house is a mess. Since Shiki Wok's low on resources, they've struggled with everything from delivery to decor to retaining their customers. Their manager, Anny, requested some help with the specifics of restaurant management. I could send you a new one, but it will still take half an hour to 45 minutes. Okay, have a great day. Thank you. So, I've arranged for her to go to Double Ai restaurant, a successful Asian eatery that's mastered delivering a first-class dining experience. This will be a great opportunity for her to get some insight from successful business insiders. I have a lot of questions. I just wanted to learn how to be a better manager with my co-workers, for my customers, how to make my customers feel more comfortable. The one thing that makes us successful here is making sure every customer here is happy with what we're doing. Any complaints, we make sure right away we solve the problem. It's hard for one person to do everything at the top, and be in the kitchen as much as possible, too, Yes. The number-one thing customers always complain about is the food's cold. So, you got to make sure it's hot, not sitting there, get soggy, especially the fried food. And fried food, if it's soggy, the customer's gonna complain right away. No matter what happens, you've just got to keep smiling. Yeah. I try to do it. You have a better relationship. They would like to see your pretty smile. [ Laughs ] Thank you. We would like to show you the kitchen and the staff, how we manage. Okay, great. That'd be great. Follow us, please. Wow! This is beautiful. It's so big! Yeah. The chefs cook here. This is where the woks are. Hi. All the vegetables are nice and fresh. Beautiful. Never cut more than we need to. And you prepare everything fresh in the morning. And the food has to come out the same every time. Consistency is key. This is where we have our delivery and our prep station for all the wrapping orders. We look at which deliveries are which. Package the soup with a plastic container just in case if a side's broken. JEFFERSON: If it spills out, that customer's gonna go crazy about that. So, that's why you wrap soups by itself. And also anything that's fried, we always poke holes into the caps so nothing gets too soggy. Do you have a specific person that packs this? Actually, anybody we hire, the first place they go to learn is the takeout station. And then you'll learn all the foods, what they look like. Even the chefs, sometimes, if it's not too busy, they'll come help out, too. So, everyone communicates. Teamwork is very key also in the restaurant business. I would love to manage my place the way you manage your place. I definitely learned a lot today. I am ready to manage Shiki Wok. HUANG: With the front of the house shaping up, let's hope Ming's amenable to further updating the back of the house. Even though his menu is littered with greasy, heavy dishes, Ming's quite well-versed in classic Chinese flavors. So I'm hoping he'll be receptive to my new take on the iconic General Tso's Chicken. Okay. So, we've done one dish. Another dish that I want to transform is General Tso's chicken, an original dish that originated out of Hunan. I grew up with this food. I know what it is. This is what we eat back home. I want to show you how to make a better, newer version. See, my customers know my General Tso's Chicken. I have to satisfy my customers. I don't want to lose them. We have to go this direction. See, my customers know my General Tso's Chicken. We have to go this direction. Fresh. Everything's fresh. No MSG here in any of the ingredients. Mm-hmm. Two, we're going to make Okay. And then we're gonna put it all together in a stir-fry. I'm going to freshen up this dish by using high-quality ingredients. So, no more MSG and orange food coloring. Instead this sauce consists of natural vegetable stock, yellow bean paste, light soy sauce, soft brown sugar, chili paste, and honey. Now, the second thing, a nice, light batter. We're also not going to double-fry the chicken like Ming used to. Rather, we're going to use a light tempura batter made from eggs, potato starch, kosher sea salt, white pepper, and seltzer water. Very juicy. Yep. I've got all the ingredients ready. The fryer's heating up. I've got everything prepped here, and we're ready to wok. 2 tablespoons of oil. In go two bits of garlic. And the four chilies -- five. Some scallions. In go the vegetables. This sauce. In goes the chicken. All those nice pieces, really quick. Take it off the heat. That's it. General Tso's Chicken. And then just slice some scallions just as a fresh bite at the end. It's all about freshness. It's got the scallions in there, but it just injects a little bit of fresh note at the end. But let's taste it. I do not know whether this is the right direction for my restaurant. My customers know orange-colored General's chicken, the thickness, the sweetness of the General Tso's Chicken. This is General Tso's Chicken, lighter, healthier, better, tastier. No. I might as well take the sugar right now and just put it all over, sprinkle it all over the top. Ming is giving me a hard time. He's really doubtful about where I'm going with my General Tso's Chicken. He needs to throw away that fear and embrace the opportunity. But this is a very big stake for me, then. This is. Listen, big risk, big payoff. Either you're in or you're out, because we don't have the time. And I can't keep arguing with you and battling with you. This process is about building a new, larger customer base that welcomes fresh, high-quality cuisine. Ming needs to stop concerning himself with the paltry number of patrons he currently has and focus on new diners. MING: Customers pay my bills. I have to satisfy my customers. I really do not know whether my customers will really dig the new concept. HUANG: With their renovation on the brink of failure, Ming decided to call his son Ben to talk everything through. Hey, Dad. I'm hoping that he'll agree that my idea for a fresh and more flavorful menu is the right approach. Did Mom tell you about the business going down? A little bit. I don't know how much longer can we sustain. Maybe a couple more months. Are you gonna be back here to pick up the phone or get a job? I'm really sorry to hear this. Oh, that's why I called. Ching, she'll be coming in to help us. Ching wants me to cook all this healthy food, but the American kids want greasy food. I think she's crazy. Ching came over to Shiki Wok to help find solutions. So, you can't be mad at that. But I don't think that's the solution. You have to understand that there's a whole other demographic that you have to target -- students and younger generations that enjoy being healthier. I mean, I've told you this before. I don't believe that everyone likes greasy, unhealthy food. [ Chuckles ] Ching wants me to take away all the old stuff. I'll be closed in two days. I think what she's trying to give you is guidance. Putting out greasy food does not show that you care about your food. I'm a little skeptical, but... Right. Your dad got to go, got to work now. Okay, bye. Well, at the very least, Ming's now taking my new menu into consideration. So, let's see if I can continue winning him over with an addition that I have for the exterior of the restaurant. So, Ming, Jenny, I wanted to bring you both outside here. I want you to look up. Uh-huh. That sign needs to come down. Look around you. All along the street, we've got new places opening up just right next door to you -- new, beautiful sign, modern, contemporary. Uh-huh. How do you feel about it? It's a new era today, which is a very challenging thing to me. Everything is, like, fast, fast. That sign is, like, old, old, old. Give me a fresh look. Yes. Yes, I'm ready. Yes. Let's do it. Thank goodness. Two happy, smiling faces. Ming and Jenny agree that that sign needs to go. Ming accepting the new sign just might be a sign he's willing to change. HUANG: I'm in Bloomfield, New Jersey, working with Ming Wong, the owner of Shiki Wok Restaurant. I spent the last day pushing him to update his greasy, outdated menu. And after several battles, he appears to be coming around. So, now I'm going to tell him about one final idea I have in mind. I'm getting rid of the sushi, because you guys, frankly, cannot handle sushi. One, you cannot handle it, two, it's high-cost, and three, it's boring. Everyone else is doing it. The sushi I saw in the freezer was anything but fresh. Why complicate their menu and put demand on inventory when they can simply focus on Chinese cuisine? So, the next thing I want to show you is Meatball Baos. MING: Yeah. What do people like in New Jersey? Meatball sandwiches. But you're gonna give them a Chinese version. You can make different fillings. I've got here ground beef, but you can use ground chicken, you can use ground turkey. You could use tofu and vegetables, do so many different flavors and can make it exciting. Bao's versatility makes the perfect new menu item for Shiki Wok because they can create a number of different dishes without storing too much inventory. It's a modern, low-maintenance menu item that's sure to attract new patrons. To the ground beef, I add a heaping tablespoon of garlic, grated ginger, and cornstarch to bind it together. Some scallions. Bird's eye chilies. This is hot, so I'm gonna go with one teaspoon. Teaspoon of soft brown sugar. Salt. Ground black pepper. Have you made anything like this before? Back home, not here. Why not here? Different concept here. What do you mean, different concept? We have never sold this before. I really do not know whether my customers will really dig the new concept. You have to find that passion, that fire again inside you, and you have to believe in yourself. And then everyone else will believe in you. I did not lose that fire. I was born the year of the tiger. Yes, I do. I'm a horse. You know, they say the tiger and the horse works together? Yep. We work together very well. HUANG: Ming's still apprehensive about the new concept, but I can tell I've gained his trust, and that's vital moving forward. Okay, now, let's cook this. We're gonna fry in here until they're nice and golden brown. I mean, there's more than enough here. Great. Just like that. This color. That's what I want. I don't want it over-browned. Okay. We've got the buns. Keep them nice and hot. The meatballs are draining. We're gonna put the bun -- You can open it up, take some of the meatball, a little bit of this sauce... ...a little bit of sprinkled peanut sugar, cilantro, and a little bit of scallion. Made-to-order Meatball Baos fit right in with our new concept of fresher, more flavorful Chinese-American classics. Look at that. Who wouldn't want a little meatball sandwich, Asian-style? MING: Okay. What do you think? It's good. It's good. It's very forward-thinking. Yes. It's good. What Ching taught me is like the new version of the real Chinese food. You're gonna have queues all the way. Nice. From here to Holland Tunnel? Yeah. Why not? [ Laughs ] Great! HUANG: Next up, we're going to tackle another problem Shiki Wok struggled with. We do have a lot of complaints about the delivery. I am so sorry about that. May I have your phone number? And some customers, they stop calling. HUANG: Customers complain the food's cold and soggy by the time it arrives, so I've got one idea in mind that should help solve this problem. You say most of your business is takeout? And whether it's takeout or delivery, when the people get their food, it goes cold and it's almost soggy? Yes. So, I have a solution for you. Welcome in your new packaging. This box right here, made of cardboard cornstarch, environmentally friendly. You can easily box it up. And there's little vents in there. It's perfect. That is gonna let that steam escape, but still this is going to insulate and keep the dish nice and hot. You sold on it? Yeah? Good. Good. HUANG: I'm real excited to reveal the brand-new restaurant to Ming and Jenny, the new Shiki Wok. That's your new sign. Shiki Wok. Very exciting. Very nice. Are you excited about going in? Very! Yes. Close your eyes. Ready. Yep. It's been quite a challenging last few days, yes? Yes. You've been a real tiger. Yes. Fighting me every step of the way. You ready? Yes. Open your eyes. HUANG: You've been a real tiger, fighting me every step of the way. Yes. Open your eyes. Wow! Ohh. I'm speechless. Yeah. [ Sniffles ] Thank you. This is like a dream come true. So, the walls, there was plastic board, peeling wallpaper. In its place, beautiful, grass-green-colored walls. Gone, the hideous banquettes. In its place, clean tables with chairs of turquoise and orange. We got rid of those mirrors, and we put that big blackboard for your menu. Yes. So, we've built a wall. Storage right here. Everything is organized. Then you've got the counters as before, but look behind. You've got lots of shelving and storage space. So, this was the sushi bar, and now it's the bao bar. In here, we're gonna have beef balls, we're gonna have chicken balls, we're gonna have pork balls, we're gonna have the fluffy white bao buns in here. They choose the meatball, they choose the meat filling, they choose the bao. And then, what you do is you put the water in, put the baos, steam them just for about three minutes until it's nice and hot. You put them in this box here, you wrap it, and that's the order. You guys are gonna be able to do it, yes? No more sushi. Jenny, you don't look happy. I'm very happy. You are? Yes! [ Laughs ] They're gonna be able to cook this day in, day out, and it's going to be consistent. So, you ready for the opening? Okay. We've got a lot of work to do. Let's go. Thank you. With the vibrant new decor and a delectable new menu, the only thing Shiki Wok needs now is some customers. Let's see if Ming can help round some up. Are you excited about tonight? Good. Good. Now, the whole thing, the new launch of Shiki Wok, right, I want you to call your regular customers. I want you to tell them about the new menu, the new concept for Shiki Wok, Yes, yes. So, we've got your version of General Tso's Chicken now on the menu. Borrowed from me. We're gonna call it General Ming's. I'll leave you to it. All right. See you in a bit. Hi, Shirley. How are you? Hi, Danny. Ming. Hi, Felicia. It's a new face, Shiki Wok. New menus, new concept of healthier stuff, great Lo Mein. General Tso's Chicken under my name now -- Ming's General's Chicken. I'd like you to come over and check it out. Beautiful. See you then. Great! Great! See you then. Bye. Come on! Let's go! HUANG: With a slew of new customers on the horizon, Ming promptly gets back to work in the kitchen. His new menu's loaded with fresh, made-to-order items, so everybody needs to be on their A game to keep the dining room in flux. Hi, guys. Yay! Sorry for the wait, but we're ready for you. Good! Let's go eat! Thank you. We have a lot of hungry people out there, and they have never sat close to 25 people in this restaurant. I don't know if they're going to pull it off. Unfortunately, my intuition is correct, because within a minute of taking the first order, the kitchen fell to pieces. They are inconsistent. It's five shrimp per dish. And are you happy with this, the presentation? Happy. Are you sure? The dishes coming out, they look sloppy, inconsistent, in terms of the amount of shrimp to the amount of noodles. Each plate looks different. I'm really worried. Yeah. Every dish has to be the same. It has to be perfect. That's far too much noodles. You're trying to be over ambitious, put everything too much in one time. All the noodles are stuck together now. Pour the sauce in. Pour the sauce. This here looks like a mess, yeah? The noodles are a mess. The noodles are soggy, they've been over-fried. The pressure of having a full dining room and a brand-new menu is clearly getting to Ming. But it looks like he's regaining his composure and starting to deliver well-executed dishes. Looking good. This is it! This is it! Now it looks good. He's turning it around. He's done a new batch. The noodles look better, the shrimp looks fresh. It smells good. They're executing this, and I didn't think they would be able to. Right here. What's the feedback? Really?! They really like the General Tso's Chicken -- the Ming's General Tso's Chicken. Yes. The General Ming's Chicken is definitely more of a gourmet-type of food. It's not like your regular takeout. It's much better. What do you think of the food? Huh? Yes. I haven't tried anything like that before. Hi, sir. Your food is ready. Great, thank you. I'm starving. You're welcome. Enjoy. Have a great day. The young, American customers that he's so afraid of are loving the food. This is a great, new direction for Ming. Hi. How are you? How's the food? How's the new look? We come here all the time, but it's great what you did with this place, because now we actually want to stay and sit and eat here. Oh, fantastic. Nice. It's a thumbs-up! Thumbs up! Thumbs up! With the kitchen running up to speed, Ming wants to show off a dining room full of happy customers to his two sons. Not much. Hey. This is what I wanted to show you, the makeover of Shiki Wok. Okay, let me move slowly towards all the customers here. Hey. [ Laughter ] Okay. This is the horse. Ms. Ching. Nice to meet you. Wow! What do you guys think of this place? Looks awesome! Yeah, take a look. Give them the virtual tour. Yeah! HUANG: It's really adorable to see Ming and Jenny video chat with their sons. They're really proud of their parents, and Ming and Jenny got to show off the new restaurant. You guys can't wait to come home to see it, right? All right. Bye! Wow! What an uphill struggle that was. A huge challenge! A rundown restaurant, a Chinese-American menu stuck in the 1980s. Restaurant owner Ming tried to wrap his head around what Chinese cuisine really is. And look at this place now -- completely transformed his restaurant, himself, his food. My job is done.