The founder of Taiwan-based restaurant Din Tai Fung, Yang Bing-yi, passed away at 96, Taiwan news media reported on Saturday (25 Mar).
Source: Din Tai Fung on Facebook
Born in Shanxi province in 1927, he came to Taiwan in 1948 and worked his way up from being a deliveryman to a business owner.
The world-renowned xiao long bao restaurant has outlets in at least 13 countries.
The family members have requested privacy, and a low-key funeral will be held for him.
After his move from Shanghai to Taiwan via boat in 1948, Mr Yang started work as a deliveryman at Heng Tai Fung, according to Din Tai Fung’s official website.
But after the company dissolved, he and his wife, whom he met at Heng Tai Fung, started their own oil retail business Din Tai Fung Oil Retail, in 1958.
They decided on the name Din Tai Fung, combining Din Mei Oils, the name of their supplier, and Heng Tai Fung, the shop where Mr Yang got his first job.
The business would later begin to suffer with the advent of bottled salad oil, and Mr Yang pivoted to selling xiao long bao instead.
After a businessman gave the couple advice, they devoted half of their cooking oil store on Xinyi Road to selling steamed buns.
The food ended up being so good that they focused completely on the food business, and the oil business was no more.
However, Din Tai Fung remained, and the original location on Xinyi Road still exists.
Source: Din Tai Fung
Mr Yang’s son Yang Chi-hua later took over the business in 1995.
The family did not offer a cause of death for Mr Yang. He is believed to have passed away recently, although no exact date is given either.
However, he did pass away peacefully, according to the statement on Saturday.
While Mr Yang did not invent the xiao long bao, he did help to popularise it around the world.
MS News offer our sincere condolences to Mr Yang’s family, and we hope he rests in peace.
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Featured image adapted from Din Tai Fung and Facebook.
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