Chef Shirley Chung, who is the chef owner of Twenty Eight Modern Chinese Cuisine restaurant in Irvine, Calif., and will be a featured presenter at the Western Growers Annual Meeting in San Diego, did not discover her passion for the culinary arts until her late 20s. In fact, her restaurant name pays homage to the age she was when she began to pursue her dream.
Born and raised in Beijing, China, Chef Shirley, as she is called, came to the United States at age 17, graduated from college with a business degree and began working in Silicon Valley in the business world.