I'm meeting chef Alan Ji
and he's a master in Chinese cooking.
So, when you call out the order, do you call them out
in Mandarin or do you call 'em out in...
Cantonese. -Cantonese?
-Yeah. Cantonese, Mandarin,
and a little bit of English. -Perfect.
So, how do you say, "Pick up"?
-[Speaking Cantonese] -[Repeats Cantonese]
-[Speaking Cantonese] is "take." -Yeah.
-[Speaking Cantonese] is "away." -Yeah.
[ Both speaking Cantonese ] -Yes!
-How do you say, "Faster"? -[Speaking Cantonese]
-[Repeats Cantonese] -Yeah.
-Table 32 ready.
[Speaking Cantonese] -Yeah. [Speaking Cantonese]
-Well, show me the line; show me what we're gonna do.
I'm excited.
-I can make a ma po tofu for you.
-I'm here. I'm here. -Okay.
-Feed me, Chef. Feed me, Chef. -Let's -- Let's do it.
So, let's clean the wok.
[ Sizzling ]
-You know what I think is amazing, Chef?
-Mm-hmm? -A wok that has been around
for thousands of years.
You can't improve it.
This is the same wok that somebody created
about 1,500 years ago.
It's quick; it's super-hot. -Oh, yeah.
When a chef have no hair.
-Yeah. -They always burn it.
♪♪
We use a leg to turn it on. -Your knee!
-Yeah, the knee, like a...
-Like the twist. -like that. Yeah.
-Twist. -So, turn it on.
-Wait, wait, I want to -- -So, see -- see -- if you --
-Whoa!
Like that.
Thousand times a night, right?
♪♪
-Put some duck soy sauce.
-Duck soy sauce? -Yeah.
-Reason why I put duck soy sauce:
-Yeah. -make the color.
-Yeah. -Chili oil.
♪♪
Okay.
Ready to go.
-Wow! The smell of this is amazing.
-Yeah. It's not finished yet.
-No, I'm just smelling, Chef.
[ Laughter ]
So, it's blanched lobster
and then you're finishing off in the stir fry.
-Yes.
♪♪
-Watching Alan in the kitchen was absolutely amazing.
It's like watching a dancer.
And it's also the economy of the movement, right?
'Cause it's hot and he's gotta know what the next step is.
He's so quick and precise in his movement.
Whoo-oo!
-We put the lobster like that.
Lobster ma po tofu.
-Mmm.
-Hm?
Mix a little bit. Flavor. -It's so delicious.
The heat and the tofu for sauce and then the lobster on top.
Yeah, I'm keepin' this.
[ Romantic tune plays ]
It's a really theatrical vibe to Mott 32.
They have a open kitchen, they have a big bar,
incredible decor and design,
but, for me, the heart of the restaurant
is really this incredible Peking duck oven
where they then bring out the duck and carve it table-side.
Ohh, yes! I'm in heaven.
Peking duck has traditions that reaches back
hundreds and hundreds of years,
when it was a dish coming out of the Ming Dynasty.
-First part, the skin.
-So, this is truly a regal dish.
-Dip with brown sugar.
♪♪
-So good.
-Hoisin sauce with sesame and peanut.
-Oh, nice. Beautiful.
♪♪
-Just use your hands and pick
-Nice. -the cucumbers, [indistinct].
♪♪
-This must be one of the most popular dishes on the menu.
-Yes, it is.
-So, we have limited availability of these.
-Mm-hmm. -We only serve about 28
for each dinner service.
-Yeah, that's mostly [indistinct].
We have the only restaurant
with Peking duck direct from oven to the customer.
-It's the perfect dish.
It has everything.
-Great. -Crisp flavor.
-Juicy.
-Juicy. -And -- Yeah.
We have a lot of Chinese tourists here.
-Yeah. -They like traditional
Chinese food, so we try to introduce different regions,
from west to east, north to south.
-Yeah. -Before, everybody think
Chinese food is like cheaper, that's it.
That's why we need like
bring the high-level Chinese food
-Mm-hmm. -to the world.
When you come into this environment, there's no doubt.
You step your foot here for one second,
you're part of an experience
and, when you have this duck, it's absolutely amazing.
♪♪