Alan Yau

Alan Yau Wiki/Biography

Alan Yau OBE is a Hong Kong-born British restaurateur, renowned for founding the Wagamama chain in the United Kingdom. He was born on November 11, 1962, in Sha Tau Kok, Hong Kong. His real name is Alan Yau OBE, and while his nickname is not public, the name “Alan” typically means “handsome” or “attractive.” Alan speaks English and possibly other languages. His religion is not public, but he is of Asian ethnicity. He identifies as a straight male and holds British nationality. Currently, Alan resides in the United Kingdom, and his zodiac sign is Scorpio.

Alan Yau Height, Weight & Physical Stats/Body Measurements & More

Alan Yau stands at 5′ 7″ (170 cm or 1.7 m) and weighs 58 kg (127.868 lbs). His body measurements are 34-24-34, and he has a fit body type. Alan does not have body hair and maintains a clean shave. His eye color and hair color are both black. He wears a shoe size of 7 (USA). Alan does not have any tattoos or piercings. Information about his bicep size is not public.

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Alan Yau has had a prolific career in the culinary and restaurant industry, marked by numerous notable ventures. Since November 2020, he has been the founder of Future Century London, a company dedicated to the food space market, involving consultancy projects, partnership co-investing, and co-creating startups. A year prior, in November 2019, he co-founded Koala Capital, a global crypto and e-money platform that facilitates buying, selling, and storing cryptocurrencies and traditional money within a fully regulated environment. Additionally, he has served as a board advisor for JULIENNE BRUNO, a food startup innovating in the non-dairy and meat-free space for direct-to-consumer, retail, and food service platforms, since December 2020.

In 2017, Alan founded YAMABAHÇE, a Turkish Pide pop-up in London, and before that, he established AYU Limited in January 2005. AYU Limited specializes in incubating and delivering diverse restaurant concepts across the industry, including Chinese Fine Dining projects in New York and Moscow, a Peking Duck restaurant in Beijing, and other ventures in Monaco, Singapore, and Tokyo. From December 2017 to August 2019, he was a board advisor for REKKI, an app revolutionizing communication between restaurants and wholesalers.

In 2016, Alan founded the tech startup Softchow, a qualitative taste aggregation and discovery marketplace that is community-driven, with the ultimate mission of “no food regrets.” For the last 15 years, he has worked on numerous projects across the globe through his consultancy company AYU, which specializes in incubating, uplifting, and delivering restaurant concepts transcending all verticals of the industry. Projects ranged from The Peking Duck Specialist Eatery, Jing Yaa Tang, at the Opposite House in Beijing to the bespoke Dim Sum House, Yaumay, in Marunouchi, Tokyo.

Alan regularly gives talks around topics such as “Is it worthwhile investing in branding in gastronomy (Impact & Residual Benefit),” “How to increase the soft power of a country through gastronomy,” and “Disrupting Taste through technology.” As of 2019, Alan co-founded Koala Capital, a crypto exchange and e-money platform that enables the buying, selling, or storing of cryptocurrencies in a fully regulated environment. Alan holds board advisory roles on numerous startups, ranging from food tech to dairy-free and meat-free D2C brands.

Alan’s earlier ventures include founding Softchow Life, a community-driven taste aggregation and discovery marketplace, from September 2016 to December 2017. In 2015, he founded Park Chinois, a Chinese fine dining and entertainment restaurant, and Duck & Rice, a Chinese pub offering comfort food in Soho, London. He also launched Babaji, a Turkish Pide concept, in 2014 and partnered with Princi, an Italian bakery in Soho, from 2008 to 2016, which was later acquired by Starbucks.

Further, he founded ST BETTY, an all-day brasserie in Hong Kong, from 2011 to 2014, Yauatcha, a Michelin-starred dim sum restaurant and patisserie tea house, from 2004 to 2008, and Hakkasan Group, a fine dining Chinese restaurant awarded one Michelin star in 2002, from 1999 to 2008. He also founded BUSABA EATHAI LIMITED, a casual dining Thai restaurant, during the same period. Alan’s journey began with the founding of Wagamama, a Japanese noodle bar, from 1992 to 1997, which was later valued at $800 million in 2018.

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