SHUN CUTLERY BLOG: BEHIND THE BLADE

Chef Liu Fang on Flavor, Freedom, and Finding Her Voice

From founding China’s largest craft brewery to redefining what Chinese food means in the American Midwest, Chef Liu Fang’s story is anything but typical. Born and raised in Shandong Province, her culinary path wasn’t one of early apprenticeship; it was one of resilience, reinvention, and deep cultural pride. Now leading the kitchen at her own restaurant in Cleveland, Liu Fang brings Northeast Chinese traditions and global flavors to life, one dish at a time. We sat down with her to talk about memory, migration, and how the right knife can become a natural extension of the soul.

Tell us about yourself.

Liu Fang: I was born and raised in Shandong Province in the People’s Republic of China.

 
How long have you been in the culinary space?

Liu Fang: My husband and I founded China’s largest craft brewery, Great Leap Brewing, in 2010. We opened our first full-service brewpub with a full dine-in menu. By 2020, we had 240 employees, and I managed four teams of kitchen staff across three cities. When we relocated to the USA, I began my own personal journey as a chef as an attempt to maintain my connectivity with my culture and heritage.

 
What brought you into the kitchen?

Liu Fang: Whether it was introducing a new kind of beer to the world’s largest beer market, or offering an updated take on cuisines that are ubiquitous across America, I’ve always been driven by a desire to reinterpret familiar things for new audiences—and to offer an upgrade they didn’t even know they needed. That mindset has been in the passenger seat of my journey in hospitality from the start.

 
How did you learn to cook?

Liu Fang: I learned by not being allowed to learn. As a little girl in a family that had high expectations that I work smart, not hard, my time was better spent studying for exams than rolling dough or crafting dumplings and buns. As a child of the one-child policy, that pressure was even greater. Years later, during one of the most traumatic periods of my life, my husband was detained in a Chinese medical detention center during peak COVID hysteria. I coped with anxiety by teaching myself how to make dumplings and buns in my kitchen in the U.S., over video chats with my grandmother.

 
Were there any early food memories or experiences that inspired your love for cooking?

Liu Fang: My grandfather was my hero. His passion for not just surviving, but making the most out of life through flavors and aromas in our little house in Shandong, created a lifelong love of food that I will always associate with his laugh and the love he had for those around him.

 
Who were the biggest influences on your decision to become a chef?

Liu Fang: My grandparents, and then all the chefs I was privileged to work with during my time as a restaurateur in China. There aren’t a more fun group of humans than a team of Chinese chefs eating BBQ at their favorite after-shift spot at 3 a.m.

 
What was one of the most valuable lessons you learned during your culinary training?

Liu Fang: Don’t give up.

 
Tell us something you’re most proud of in your work.

Liu Fang: I’m proud that I’ve taken both an American product and adapted it for Chinese consumers, and a Chinese tradition and adapted it for American consumers. I would love to meet another person who can say they did that, so I know I’m not the only one dumb enough to try both. 

 
How important are the tools you use in the kitchen and why?

Liu Fang: A craftsman is only as good as their tools, and a chef is only as good as her knives.

 
How has your relationship with knives evolved over time?

Liu Fang: Once you start thinking with your hands, not just using them, you feel knives and steel differently. A great knife stops being a tool and becomes part of your body. It lets your hands explore and create, not just repeat.

 
What makes a great knife?

Liu Fang: A great design that puts the center of gravity at the right spot. Durable, smooth handle surface, and easy to take care of. 

 
What is your go-to knife?

Liu Fang: As a chef, my go-to is Shun Sora 8” chef’s knife , as well as various Taiwanese cleavers and European chef’s knives in my commercial kitchen.

What advice would you give to aspiring chefs?

Liu Fang: Don’t think it’s going to be easy. Don’t think you’re owed anything. Don’t quit. Try not to doubt yourself. Be open to criticism.

 
Are there cuisines or traditions you feel especially connected to?

Liu Fang: I’m deeply connected to the traditions of northeast and central coast China. But I also have a deep appreciation for any place where food is made with passion and a desire to bring joy and comfort to the community. I used to reset my mind through food by flying to Tokyo, Bangkok, Taipei, or Hong Kong. Now, recreating those memories for people who may never get to live that life brings me immense joy.

 
What do you love about the Cleveland food & beverage community?

Liu Fang: I love that the city is recognizing the work being done by chefs who’ve traveled the world and returned to Cleveland. I also love the support we give each other among independent restaurants. There are collaborations happening all the time, and at the end of the day, we all just want to make Cleveland an even better place for food and beverage.

 
What was a pivotal moment in your career that helped shape your culinary identity?

Liu Fang: Leaving my home behind and wanting to hold onto its memory for as long as I could.

 
What’s your go-to meal when you’re cooking just for yourself?

Liu Fang: A gin and tonic, a reverse-seared ribeye charred on cast iron north of 700°, and a simple fridge stir-fry of whatever didn’t get used that week. Preferably all prepared and cooked by my husband. 

 
If you could cook for anyone in the world, who would it be and why?

Liu Fang: I would cook a meal for Xi Jin Ping and then ask him to retire and take a load off. 

 
If you had to describe your culinary journey in one word, what would it be?

Liu Fang: Abundant.