Restaurateur wants to eat well, do good
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E-mail People's Daily, September 12, 2012
Another of Ensminger's staff, Wei Jian, says he's hoping to take the skills to university and then into a career as an accountant.
"This experience has transported me to another world," says Wei. "I want to help others with the skills I learned."
Ensminger hopes hiring the three orphans is just a start, saying there are a lot of opportunities for such philanthropy.
For now, however, Ensminger says he's primarily focused on getting Ahava on stable financial ground - a process he thinks might take a year or two - and interest more Chinese in Western-style food.
Not yet ready to start a career, when he first came to China, he enrolled in Chinese classes at a school in Qinghai. After a year of studying, he returned to the US for work, but was sent to help his company's operation in Hebei province not long after returning.
Ensminger says good eats are scarce around his company.
"We weren't even in a city. We were in a little factory town," he says. "Even the Chinese people complained about the food."
The idea of starting a restaurant was daunting at first.
"The difference between going to a restaurant and starting a restaurant is astronomical," he says. "Two years ago, I didn't even know where to find salt in China."
Ahava's menu reflects his American roots. It consists of a variety of salads, sandwiches, and specialty drinks. The cafe bakes its own bread, and desserts range from snickerdoodle cookies to homemade chocolate cake.
Ensminger says many of the items are modifications of recipes he's made at past restaurants, and others, like the Cuban panini, timeless classics.
Ensminger still splits his time working as an engineer, and says that background comes in handy in the kitchen.
"I can get into the science of it a little bit," he says. "I try to understand why exactly things are happening."
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