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Evelyn Chen

In China’s fine-dining circle, Jason Liu He-sen cuts an unusual figure.
Shy and soft-spoken with modelesque looks, the quietly ambitious chef commands attention both behind the pass and on the runway. Liu blurs the line between food and fashion, and his growing influence extends well beyond the kitchen.
He walked the runway at Hermès’ spring/summer 2024 menswear show in Shanghai and soon after became the first chef to partner with Nike for its “Yes, Chef!” campaign, during which he wore the sportswear giant’s C1TY trainers.
Now 33, Liu has emerged as one of China’s most prominent figures in French-Chinese gastronomy.
He recently opened a new restaurant, Ling Yun, near Beijing’s Forbidden City. Its name is inspired by the Chinese idiom ling yun zhuang zhi, which describes towering ambitions that reach the clouds.
Ling Yun comes almost a year after the closure of his original Beijing restaurant, Ling Long, which opened in 2019 and earned a Michelin star – and Liu a Michelin Young Chef Award – in 2022.

A deep-rooted passion for tastes of China
Liu, who is from Taiwan, initially dreamed of becoming an artist, but his ambitions gradually changed as his sisters began praising his home-cooked meals. He began to see the kitchen as a canvas on which he could express himself while building a stable future for his family.
“I grew up in a military dependents’ village in Taipei,” Liu says, referring to the enclaves built in Taiwan during the 1940s and 50s to house Republic of China Armed Forces servicemen and their families. “The village brought together people from across China. It grounded me in the flavours of traditional Chinese cooking.”
Liu took his first step into the kitchen at a Western restaurant when he was 14. Two years later, he enrolled at Taiwan’s Kai Ping Culinary School while working at the Grand Hyatt Taipei, and eventually gained experience at Taipei restaurants Paris 1930 and Bellini.
His big break came in 2017 when, at just 23, he was appointed head chef of Bistro 3 in Beijing. “Armed with a foundation in Western techniques, I saw it as an opportunity to challenge myself,” he says.
But Liu’s passion for Chinese flavours never left him, and he steered the Western cuisine at Bistro 3 towards a fusion style by incorporating local flavours and ingredients.
In 2018, he forged an even deeper connection with his Chinese culinary roots by embarking on a year-long pilgrimage across mainland China, tracing the Eight Great Traditions of Chinese cuisine through Guangdong, Sichuan, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Fujian, Hunan, Anhui and Shandong provinces.
The insights he gained from the expedition culminated in the opening of the original Ling Long in Beijing and, in 2023, the Shanghai outpost, which continues to wow diners at its location within Waldorf Astoria Shanghai on the Bund.

Ling Long Shanghai’s multi-course menu spotlights xian (or umami) dishes made with Chinese ingredients and French techniques. In 2024, it was awarded a Michelin star and debuted at No 36 on Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants list. In 2026, it came in at No 9.
“Ling Long, which means exquisite, delicate and transparent … symbolises my wish to present traditional cuisine with exquisite clarity,” Liu says.
One of Liu’s signature dishes, Shandong Wagyu, features Shandong beef cooked three ways (deep-fried, pan-seared and roasted), marinated in and served with home-made Fujian oyster sauce for added umami.
“Shanghai has always been a competitive market,” Liu says. “Opening there was a test.”
Modern Chinese cuisine with one foot in tradition
But Liu is not resting on his laurels with his latest opening.
“Ling Yun reflects another side of how I see traditional Chinese cuisine,” he says. “While the new space will continue to serve modern Chinese cuisine, it will carry a stronger imprint of traditional Chinese philosophy, style and aesthetics.”
The debut menu offers a glimpse of this evolution. Liu’s garlic-dressed toro is inspired by suan ni bai rou – a Sichuan dish of thinly sliced pork belly in a pungent garlic sauce – but swaps pork for silkier tuna belly flesh. The dish, which arrives in a pool of spice-laced soy sauce, is based on a recipe Liu picked up while visiting Chengdu.

Smoked sugar cane chicken is another dish that draws inspiration from classical Chinese preparation. What first appears to be a roasted piece of chicken has a layer of concentrated meat broth jelly tucked between the crisp, smoky skin and succulent meat. The jelly melts into the chicken as it warms up, amplifying the meat’s savoury richness.
Despite Ling Yun’s focus on Chinese cuisine, Liu insists his ambitions extend beyond it. A glance around the cavernous, chapel-like space – with its starched linens and all the trappings of a haute-cuisine restaurant – reveals the scale of his aspirations.


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Food and Drinks

How chef Jason Liu reconnects with his Chinese roots at his new Beijing restaurant

Taiwanese chef Jason Liu is no stranger to Michelin stars. He talks about cooking Chinese food with French flair at his Shanghai restaurant Ling Long, and continuing his philosophy at his new Beijing restaurant Ling Yun. Photo: Ling Long

The interior of Liu’s new Beijing restaurant, Ling Yun. Photo: Ling Yun

Shandong Wagyu (left), one of Liu’s signature dishes, and a dessert showcasing three varieties of wild Chinese honey, at Ling Long in Shanghai. Photos: Ling Long 

Smoked sugar cane chicken (left) and garlic-dressed toro (fatty tuna) at Ling Yun in Beijing. Photos: Ling Yun

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Wing Lok Noodle Factory’s ha zi mein are made by infusing the dough with a concentrated shrimp roe soup that is a secret recipe. Photo: Wing Lok Noodle Factory

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Chan and his father at Wing Lok Noodle Factory in 2018. Photo: Angus Chan

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Lifestyle

Food & Drink

Long before the Michelin stars, Jason Liu forged his path blending Chinese flavours and Western flair. He continues his journey at Ling Yun


Long before the Michelin stars, Jason Liu forged his path blending Chinese flavours and Western flair. He continues his journey at Ling Yun.


How chef Jason Liu reconnects with his Chinese roots at his new Beijing restaurant

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Long before the Michelin stars, Jason Liu forged his path blending Chinese flavours and Western flair. He continues his journey at Ling Yun

Long before the Michelin stars, Jason Liu forged his path blending Chinese flavours and Western flair. He continues his journey at Ling Yun