I don’t know how many you of noticed my newsletter missing from your inbox last Wednesday, but I put an indefinite pause on billing & payments last week so none of my subscribers will be charged moving forward!
I’m three weeks into Xiao Ye being open and it’s very clear to me that I’m needing and wanting to put all my efforts into operating and growing the restaurant. As much as I loved having this newsletter, time is coming and going way too fast for me to keep up. My reality has changed so much this past month, going from building a restaurant to running one has been one of the hardest things I’ve ever done. While I’ve felt like my personal time has shrunk to almost nothing, I’ve definitely felt like my community has grown exponentially. Two realities I have yet to really let sink in. On one hand, I’m so tired and exhausted, but on another, my heart is so full from meeting everyone in person and getting to know them over the course of their dinner. 🥰
It’s wild to think that I’m a real restaurateur. I’ve built and opened a restaurant with my partner and I’m so proud of everything we’ve put out so far. We made no compromises on things that really matter to us: the name, the design, the food, the drinks, the service, our story, and our values. Something Louis and I always said that we wanted to avoid was being lukewarm. Fighting the urge to please as many people as possible is SO important because when you want to please everyone, you please no one, including yourself. Being as staunchly us, even if it makes no sense to anyone else, has always been the best decision. With that said, we have so much we want to do with Xiao Ye and I can’t wait to get my head fully above water to execute all the ideas we have brewing.
A lot of you have asked what I’m going to do with design now that Xiao Ye is open and, truthfully, I’m not 100% sure. I’m wrapping up all my current design projects and holding off on any new projects. Louis and I talk a lot about our future ventures, even before Xiao Ye was fully realized, and I already knew there would be many more opportunities for me to put all this commercial design knowledge to good use! The honest truth: if I didn’t need to make any money off design, I’d never design for anyone else. There is nothing like designing for yourself and allowing your ideas to be unadulterated. Me, as the restauranteur/designer of Xiao Ye, it’s been so satisfying to watch people’s eyes light up when they first walk in and overhear them talk about the design details they notice.
So what’s next for this newsletter? I’m taking an indefinite pause on writing until I’m ready to share my next pivot or project :) Maybe it’s another concept. Maybe it’s our own future home remodel. Maybe it’s nothing for a long ass time, but as mentioned above, I’ve paused billing and I won’t start it back up without prior notice! Feel free to drop down to a free subscriber or unsubscribe all together. Either way, you can keep up with me on instagram OR come see me at Xiao Ye since it’s pretty much my second home ❤️