Bamboo Bistro

Born into an illustrious third-generation family who owned the famous Hoa Binh French boulangeries in the beautiful coastal town of Nha Trang, Vietnam, Chau Dang Haller was destined to make her mark in the culinary world. After the Dang family emigrated to America in the late 80s, they expanded their culinary expertise into successful restaurants, Brodard in Westminster, and Brodard Chateau in Garden Grove. Even with her family's distinguished restaurant background, early on Chau never thought she would follow in her mother's footsteps. One sunny day while enjoying her morning walk with a friend, Chau came across a charming diner in Corona del Mar that piqued her interest. The sunlit space appealed to her creative senses and it looked so "adorable and manageable," she recalls. On a whim, she bought out the failing business with all of her savings in 2001. Within the first six months, things began falling apart. The cooling system broke, the air-conditioning didn't work and the plumbing failed.

Chau felt like giving up. But having seen her mother built their family's famous Brodard restaurants into the most successful dining destinations in Orange County's Little Saigon district, she persevered to make it work. As a licensed dietician, Chau parlayed her nutritional expertise to create healthy menus for the calorie and body-conscious beachgoers of Newport Beach and the local coastal communities.