Restaurateur Steven Yeng considers himself an Obecian even though he was born in Cambodia of Chinese extraction.
“My parents and grandparents were from Kwantung, China and they migrated down to Cambodia for a better life,” said Yeng, who co-owns OB Noodle House & Sake Bar at 2218 Cable St. and OB Noodle House Bar 1502 at 4993 Niagara Ave., as well as having recently acquired Gallagher’s Irish Pub, which is has been renamed The Holding Co., at 5046 Newport Ave.
OB Noodle House actually had its roots in Cambodia.
“My dad would go up into the mountains and hunt wild game and he brought it back and set up a grocery stand selling noodles and pork leftovers,” said Yeng, noting his mom also got into business “sewing clothes and selling them like at a swap meet.”
But the Yeng’s long-term plans got sidetracked by the Khmer Rouge who took control of Cambodia and instituted a tyrannical regime best known for the “killing fields” ethnic cleansing. That drove the Yeng family to a Thailand refugee camp where they lived for four years.
Yeng said the refugee camp was more like a prison.
“We lived in a hut,” he said. “We got robbed. Every day we feared for our lives. My dad bribed a general so that our hut could be near where they had armed guards and we felt safer.”
Then fate – and luck – interceded in the Yeng’s behalf.
“Our family was sponsored by an OB family who didn’t have children to come to the States,” Steven said. “We came here, literally with $20 in our pockets, and didn’t speak English.”
Yeng said he was welcomed to OB “with open arms,” which led to his lifelong commitment to the community.
His parents saved their money and started a successful donut shop where Steven cut his teeth early-on as an entrepreneur.
“I used to work there after school because my parents couldn’t afford to hire labor,” he said, noting his parents continue to work there seven days a week.
Then in late 2007, Steven got a chance to start his own business when a space opened up at Cable Street and Voltaire.
“They called it the ‘war zone’ because no businesses had ever survived there for long except for dive bars,” Steven said. “We started with just four tables, and then expanded next door when business exploded.
“Every business I’ve taken over is in a spot where everyone else had failed,” Yeng added.
Yeng said OB Noodle House’s success, with long waiting lines out the door, was a combination of being in the right place at the right time with the right concept.
“We had healthy, inexpensive food made quickly,” he said. “It was a good combination. Once people tasted it – they liked it.”
A couple of years ago, Yeng expanded his operations to include Bar 1502 on Niagara. Now he’s acquired The Holding Co., which he intends to redevelop.
“Right now it’s only for ages 21 and up,” he said. “I prefer having a restaurant to a bar, so we want to downgrade to serving 50 percent food and 50 percent alcohol, and turn it into a nice family restaurant where people can bring their kids.”
Yeng believes strongly in giving back to the community. So much so that, in 2015, he was voted OB Citizen of the Year. An Ocean Beach Elementary alum, Yeng, a big Chargers fan, hosts monthly concerts as fundraisers benefiting the school. His next benefit concert, with guest Charger lineman DJ Fluker, is Sept. 2.
Yeng remains bullish on OB.
“It’s revitalizing with lots of new restaurants and other businesses,” he said of the beach community adding, “I think this is the beginning (of something bigger). We’re starting a revolution bringing more businesses to the community, and getting existing businesses to step up their game creating better food, etc. We’re pushing each other to be better.”
Yeng even has a better drink he’s concocted, a blend of peanut butter, perhaps his favorite American food, and Jameson Whiskey. Surprisingly smooth, Yeng plans to bottle and market it and split the proceeds with his bartenders.
“Maybe this is something we can all retire on,” he said half-jokingly.
For more information on Yeng’s restaurants, call 619-255-9858 or visit www.bar1502.com.