Prodigal Daughter

Lydia Chang, daughter of the famed chef Peter Chang, makes a name for herself with Canton’s NiHao.

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Lydia Chang greets me with an offer of tea. She’s seated at table No. 22 in the empty dining room of NiHao, the revolutionary new Chinese restaurant she co-owns in Canton, and even on a cold December morning, her warmth is apparent. “It’s half pu’er, which is a Chinese black tea,” she says, as she sips from her own cup. “If it’s harvested today, you can drink it, but over time, it can last over 20 years. Something like this could be as valuable as a glass of vintage red wine.”

So, is this one worth big bucks?

“No, this one is pretty new,” she says, as she lets out a surprisingly substantial belly laugh considering her diminutive size. While the 5-foot-3inch Chang may be small in stature, her reputation in the culinary world has been growing since she opened NiHao in July, in the middle of the pandemic. In November, Esquire placed it fourth on its list of best new restaurants in America. An impressive achievement, for sure, but even in that brief, 104-word write-up, hers was not the first Chang name mentioned. That was her famous father, chef Peter Chang, described as “the elusive Mid-Atlantic legend of Szechuan cuisine.”

His would be rather gargantuan footsteps to follow. Luckily, his only child isn’t trying. She’s a key part of his empire, and at NiHao, she’s leading the charge. Lydia Chang, 33, is a manager, marketer, front-of-the-house designer, menu shaper, and visionary. Basically, she does everything in the restaurant business—except cook. At NiHao, which is a part of her father’s company, her business partner, executive chef Pichet Ong, mans the kitchen.