“I’m half Taiwanese and half Malaysian. In both cultures, food is a huge part of life. In Taiwan, there are night markets, and even the way you greet someone in Mandarin translates to, ‘Have you eaten yet?’ Food was always a love language in my house. My parents worked a lot, but meals were the time we came together.
I went to Barnard and studied sociology. Reading The Omnivore’s Dilemma really shifted how I thought about food, its provenance, and what we put into our bodies. That led me to a cooking class at The New School, where my instructor helped me land an externship at The Spotted Pig. It had just gotten its Michelin star, and Jay-Z was an investor, so he and Beyoncé were there every other weekend. I was a prep cook making things like devils on horseback, bacon wrapped prunes with tea-soaked pears, and lemon tarts—I always struggled to get the curd to set, so if you had a runny lemon tart, it was probably my fault. [Laughs] I realized pretty quickly that I wasn’t meant for a professional kitchen, but I fell in love with the culture—the intensity, the camaraderie.
I pursued nonprofit work in food for a couple of years, but when I wanted to get back into the restaurant industry, I applied—on Craigslist—to a chef assistant position at Momofuku. I got the job and worked under David Chang. By the time I left, I was the brand director.
About 10 years ago, I started Care of Chan as a culinary PR agency, representing chefs, restaurants, and food brands. But during COVID, I decided to pivot. It had become untenable to grow my business, and it didn’t feel right to build a business by taking money from chefs who were struggling, so I pivoted Care of Chan into event production. We’ve done everything from A24 premiere parties for The Farewell and Uncut Gems, to events with J. Crew, including recreating La Côte Basque at the New York Public Library with the Frenchette chefs and planning international influencer trips—the Puglia one popped off. But what’s most important to me is that everything we do is rooted in intention and hospitality.
Next, I’m launching a newsletter called Ready To Host—a play on ready-to-wear. I get so many texts asking about everything from my favorite caterers to my favorite restaurants, or even how we made branded ice cubes, so I’m putting it all out there. There will be newsletters about how to build a guest list, how to fold a napkin, and etiquette. Ultimately, I want to dedicate my life to helping people gather more easily. In a digital era, people are lonelier, working from home, and connecting less in person. I’m trying to solve the loneliness epidemic one dinner party at a time. [Laughs]
BEAUTY
I think what’s interesting is that in the future, when everyone starts to look more and more the same because of plastic surgery, looking different is going to become the thing that makes you stand out. It’s similar to social media now: Because everything is so manufactured and perfect, the content that performs best is often a little weird—the video that’s slightly off, or even a little scratched or poorly tuned. It makes you stop and pay attention because it feels human.
New York is a little forgiving in that sense. I don’t think there’s necessarily less Botox here than in LA, but because there are eight million people and you’re constantly around them, it’s easier to notice people who aren’t like you. In LA, everything feels more insular because you’re driving from place to place, so it can feel like you’re repeatedly exposed to the same aesthetic. And Hollywood is built around image. Whereas in New York, and I know I’m generalizing, there are just more paths. New York exposes you to more kinds of ambition. There are more industries, more ways to exist, which also opens up what you think is possible for yourself and how you can look.
WELLNESS
My philosophy around exercise now is consistency over intensity. I like to mix it up—I play tennis occasionally but I keep it less intense than when I was younger and a junior tennis player. I love Pilates because it combines stretching and strength. I’ll go to Gramercy Pilates or take Strength by Taylor with Taylor Isabelle at WSA. I also have a Peloton that I bought from a friend, which is great because I can just hop on for 15 minutes at home. Ally Love is my favorite instructor. And I love Fyra Yoga, formerly Modo.
For treatments, I love getting a massage at least once a month. I’ll go to Shibui Spa at The Greenwich Hotel, SAA, or Great Jones—I always ask for deep tissue if it’s available. And I really believe in gut health, but I prefer to get probiotics through food rather than supplements. One of my go-to weekday meals is a grain bowl with brown rice, different kinds of kimchi—I love the ones from Small Town Cultures, Lani’s Farm, and Hawthorne Foods—and pickled vegetables.
Once a week, I’ll take a bath with a mix of Minera sea salt, Dr. Teal’s epsom salts, and dried lavender. It’s such a nice way to unwind. And then lately I’ve been drinking Nocturn Sleep Tea before bed. It’s a new company founded by Sam Anderson, who used to be the beverage director at Mission Chinese Food. Restaurant people notoriously work late nights, and so you end up going out drinking and whatnot. Sam, who’s now sober and a pretty serious runner, realized that he needed some alternative ways of winding down, so he started Nocturn. It’s delicious.
SKINCARE + BODY
In the mornings, I keep it really simple—I just wash my face with La Roche-Posay’s hydrating cleanser, a good old French pharmacy staple. Then I do a layer of Damdam’s Mochi Mochi moisturizer and Sofie Pavitt's sunscreen. At night, it’s pretty much the same: cleanse, add Damdam’s Citrus Glow serum—I know people usually use vitamin C during the day, but the brand says you can use it at night too—then moisturize and tap on Laneige’s eye sleeping mask. That’s really it on a daily basis.
On Sundays, I’ll do a more thorough routine. I cleanse with my Clarisonic Mia and use Dr. Dennis Gross Alpha Beta peel pads—they’re such an easy way to exfoliate. I’ll also swap in Biologique Recherche eye cream instead of the Laneige mask—it’s a bit expensive for everyday use. And when I travel and my eyes get really puffy, I use Augustinus Bader eye patches.
My body routine is just as simple. Soft Services buffing bars are so good for getting rid of dead skin. They’ve come out with different scents, but I still prefer the original. I’m also hooked on Booda Butter—it’s just shea butter, cocoa butter, and a few oils, but it’s amazing. I use it everywhere, sometimes even on my face if I run out of my regular moisturizer. And it’s a bit pricey, but I love using Aesop’s Resurrection hand balm throughout the day—it makes my hands feel great and smells really good, too.
MAKEUP
These days I only wear makeup if I have an event or if I’m going out—and even then, sometimes it’s just mascara. I’m a diehard fan of Trish McEvoy’s tubing mascara. Every other mascara makes me look like a raccoon.
If I want a base, I’ll use the Saie Glowy Super Gel in Roseglow. I just hate having foundation on my face; it doesn’t feel good. Then I’ll go in with Westman Atelier Baby Cheeks blush in Dou Dou on the apples of my cheeks, and Super Loaded highlighter in Peau de Rose on my cheeks and nose. They’re so easy and intuitive to use.
If I’m doing eyes, I’ll do a cat eye with Stila’s Stay All Day liquid liner—and oh my God, I love it. It’s the only one I’ve found that applies well, doesn’t smudge, and actually stays on. I think because of my eye shape, a lot of liners move quickly, but this one really holds. I might also throw on a bit of Merit Solo Shadow in Midcentury, a warm brown. I like that they come in little pods—I don’t have to deal with a whole palette I’d never use. And I don’t need to do my brows because I got them microbladed at Funny Faces. I don’t really have a lot of hair on my body in general, so having them shaped really makes a difference in framing my face. It’s also just easy because now I don’t have to fill in my brows.
Then finally, for lips, I love Typology’s T40. They call it a lip oil, but it’s more like a stain and gloss in one. I used to wear MAC lip gloss, but it always looked a bit plastic-y, and I prefer something that feels more natural. Black Cherry is my favorite shade. I generally gravitate toward those tones for my skin. I also love Noto’s Multi-Bene stick in Genet—it sits in that same color family.
HAIR
I’ve been getting my hair cut by Megan Robinson, the founder of Pearlita in Nolita, for over a decade. It’s the only high-maintenance part of my beauty routine because my hair is so short and I have bangs—I need a cut every three to four months or it starts to feel overwhelming. I used to have long hair with a side part, but a friend suggested I try a bob with a middle part and I’ve never looked back. I cut it and immediately felt like, this is it for the rest of my life—or at least for now. [Laughs] It’s just so manageable, and Megan is so good at the cut itself that I don’t have to do much.
I wash my hair every day with OGX coconut milk shampoo because it gets greasy quickly, and I skip conditioner—it makes my hair too soft and fluffy. Meg actually told me not to blow dry it so I air-dry whenever I can. When I get out of the shower, I use Crown Affair’s texturizing air-dry mousse. If I’m going out and want more texture—my hair is really fine and thin—I’ll add Oribe’s dry texturizing spray. For my bangs, I’ll either use a tiny bit of Crown Affair finishing gel to keep them in place or quickly go in with my Dyson blow dryer to curl them so they frame my face better instead of just hanging there. I know it’s expensive, but it’s worth it—it dries my hair so quickly, and I don’t have a lot of time to spend on beauty, so I appreciate anything that works efficiently.
I used to dye my hair a lighter, more purple-y brown, but I don’t anymore. I have a few grays coming in and I think I’m going to keep it like that. I don’t do Botox and I have no intention to do fillers or peptides or any of that, and look, I know I have good genes so I’m very grateful and privileged to not feel the need to do that. But I’m also resolute to not do that because I want to look old when I’m old—I think that there’s something really beautiful to celebrate about that. So if my hair is all white? Awesome.
NAILS + FRAGRANCE
I’m trying to give my nails a rest after decades of ruining them with gel manicures… but I just got them done. [Laughs] I’ve been using an OPI crystal nail file, which is so much better for my nails than synthetic emery boards. I also started using the Epres ePhD nail treatment once a week—it’s supposed to help strengthen brittle nails like mine, but the jury’s still out. And I keep Soft Services Theraplush hand cream—the fragrance-free version—by my bed. I cook a lot, which means I’m constantly washing dishes, and it’s really changed my hands.
When it comes to fragrance, I want to smell like things you’d actually find in nature. Diptyque’s Eau Rose mixes so well with my own musk. I get so many compliments on it, and I think it’s because it’s not overwhelming—it doesn’t smell like fake flowers, just actual rose petals. That’s hard to find because a lot of rose scents can be so powdery, almost like potpourri.
That carries into my home, too. I love Byredo’s Burning Rose candle. It has these leather-y, woody notes that feel really grounding. I was also recently put on to Nonfiction by Suea Cho. Their Table Guest candle is another fresh scent, but a little greener. And if I really need to reset my mood, I’ll light incense. I gravitate toward Aēsop’s Sarashina Aromatique—it’s warm and spicy—and Astier de Villatte’s Marienbad, which has cedarwood, juniper, and oak moss. That one feels very me.”
—as told to Daise Bedolla
Photographed by Shana Trajanoska in New York on April 10, 2026