Restaurant Unstoppable Episode 1239 Summary

Guests: Willet Feng & Diane Wu Feng, Co-Owners of Burger Chan
Host: Eric Cacciatore
Air Date: December 22, 2025

Overview

This episode features Willet & Diane Wu Feng, the husband-and-wife co-founders of Houston’s acclaimed Burger Chan. The discussion explores their personal and professional journey building, nearly burning out at, and eventually partially stepping away from their burger concept to make space for a healthier, more balanced life — and to pursue new creative culinary projects. They share honest insights on the struggles behind restaurant success, navigating partnerships, industry evolution, and the deep personal costs and rewards of restaurant ownership.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Success, Transition, and Mantras (05:44–08:28)

• Diane’s Inspirational Quote (05:44):
  "It takes a lot of courage to release the familiar and seemingly secure to embrace the new. But there is no real security in what is no longer meaningful. There is more security in the adventurous and exciting. For in movement, there is life, and in change, there is power." — Alan Cohen
  • Diane shared how her own cancer diagnosis forced a reevaluation of priorities and belief in embracing change (06:32).
• Willet’s Kitchen Mantra:
  “Blood, sweat, and respect. The first two you give, the last one you earn.” — The Rock
  • Willet adapts this for the kitchen and jokes, “Please don’t get the first two...into our food” (08:09).

2. Burger Chan & Borrowed Goods: Concept Development & Operations (08:40–14:15)

• Burger Chan founded in 2016; Borrowed Goods is a creative, evolving pop-up project inspired by Singaporean multicultural cuisine.
• Financial Snapshot (10:23):
  • Food cost: 30–35%.
  • Labor: Around 30%.
  • Past revenue: Just under $1M/year; anticipated to break $1M with expanded hours.
  • Profit: “Not sure there is any profit right now;” most income is reinvested in upgrades.
• Borrowed Goods: Represents philosophy that “everything is borrowed” creatively, going beyond just food.

3. Reflections on Knowledge Sharing & Restaurant Knowledge (14:15–16:17)

• The hosts/guests discuss widespread industry practice of guarding recipes and “intellectual property.” Willet’s take:
  “If you steal a recipe, you steal a recipe. I don’t care...I’m not a one-trick pony. If you steal this recipe, I’ll just do another recipe.” (15:24)
• They express the idea that authenticity and execution matter more than secrets.

4. The Journey: From Teaching & Culinary Training to Opening (16:34–27:10)

• Diane’s background as a math teacher, how her “support role” became essential after launch-day chaos.
• Willet’s culinary path: sushi chef in Seattle, manager at Renaissance Hotel, line cook at Oxheart, private chef for Tracy McGrady. Realized he wanted creative freedom only restaurant ownership allows.
• Both highlighted the importance of community and building a network through “working for the best” in the local industry, and how these roots provide support when opening your first place.

5. Opening Burger Chan: Struggles, Privilege & Early Challenges (29:23–47:15)

• Opened first “turnkey” location by buying out another struggling burger spot for $60k (from family/personal savings).
• Immediate staffing challenges, miscalculating labor needs; Diane had to jump in unexpectedly on day one.
• The couple emphasized acknowledging their privilege: family in Houston, financial help, and support networks.
• Key early lesson: “No one’s going to love your business as much as you. That’s your baby.” (37:27)
• Rapid early learning curve, especially on developing systems (order ticket management) and finding the right menu style.
• The essential support of industry connections: former co-workers showing up just to help during early busy and chaotic days.

6. Building Culture & Correcting Course (47:29–56:00)

• Story of a late-but-essential kitchen manager (Jose): Showing “tough love,” sending him home for chronic lateness — “It actually hurts me more than it hurts you, because we’re so under-staffed.” (50:00)
• Result: He turned it around and became kitchen/general manager nine years later.
• “[In] restaurants, you’re also a teacher — constantly giving people the benefit of the doubt, meeting people where they are, and helping them grow.” (27:10–28:23)

7. Pre-Pandemic Growth & The COVID-19 Impact (56:01–58:15)

• Gradual, steady ramp-up at first location; landlord invested in new food court space.
• Closed their original location due to pandemic shifts and opened new flagship in 2022 (after major construction and COVID delays).
• Significant “Great Resignation” and staffing shortages made the new opening even harder.

8. Surviving the Lean Years & The Good Morning America Effect (67:34–71:44)

• Turning Point:
  “There was a singular moment that really helped us survive... We got this email...to be on Good Morning America.” (67:41)
  • They lost the on-air burger competition, but being on TV triggered lines out the door for months: “We were cooking 30, 40 minutes after closing...running out of everything.” (71:12–71:44)
• This upswing bought them time to rethink their business.

9. Burnout, Family, Work-Life Balance & Evolving Priorities (62:12–64:46)

• Diane: “I’m making all these people happy and the one person that matters is like, ‘When can we go home?’” (62:10)
• The cost: Struggling to reconcile business needs (growth) with family needs (time, health).
• Emphasis on the necessity of evolving goals and giving oneself permission to change priorities over decades.

10. Partnership & Letting Go: Silver Lining Hospitality (74:06–90:07)

• By late 2024, Willet & Diane knew they needed a change: “Partnering with Ryan [Stewart, Silver Lining Hospitality] allowed us to step away, to really kind of do the things we knew we should do both personally and professionally, but just didn’t have the time.” (45:59)
• The Deal: Sold a majority; now own 15% of Burger Chan and (collectively) 15% of a second future location — with caveats about profit distributions (89:02–90:45).
• Candid reflections on lawyers, contract vulnerabilities, and the emotional challenge of “handing off your baby.”

11. Lessons Learned & Industry Reflections

• Systems: “You need a system-dependent operation, not a people-dependent operation...learn every role before you delegate it.” (110:43)
• Teaching parallels: Both see their restaurant as a place of growth and teaching (“It’s about people”; 28:25).
• Sustainability & Industry Threats:
  • Third-party delivery platforms: “Third parties own consumer happiness habits. That’s scary. We don’t talk about this stuff because we’re ignorant to it.” (95:01)
  • Marketing/list culture & awards: “It’s like a drug addiction...you get on a list...and then there’s this anxiety tied to, ‘I need it.’” (103:24)
  • Ultimate industry challenge is educating consumers about the true cost and value of food: “We make other industries rich. The restaurant industry is not the beneficiary of its hard work.” (102:39)
• The importance — and cost — of honesty in an image-driven world.
  “Social media is necessary for a business...[but] it definitely has its cons because you feel like, ‘oh, they’re super successful, they have it all together.’ And it’s like, we don’t.” (106:54)

12. Personal Growth, Legacy, & Wisdom (111:14–115:14)

• Willet: “Every day is a chance for continual self-refinement. We are stones, and we have to keep polishing, or else we don’t have any value.” (111:49)
• Diane’s “Three Pieces of Wisdom”:
  1. “No matter how much research you do...you will scramble to make things work. Things won’t go to plan, but you still have to jump.”
  2. “It’s okay to not feel like you have all the answers...You learn as you go. Don’t be afraid to be vulnerable and lean on others.”
  3. “Take a breath if you need it...All that hard work only means something if it positively affects someone else.” (113:34–114:49)
• Their shared wish: “Leave things better than it was when you got here.” (115:25)

Notable Quotes

• “If you steal a recipe, you steal a recipe. I don’t care...I’m not a one-trick pony.” — Willet (15:24)
• “You’re constantly training people...it’s not just like skills...but how to be a better person.” — Diane (26:41)
• “Privilege...shouldn’t carry a negative air...What you do with your privilege is what you should be determined or judged by.” — Eric (39:11)
• “No one’s ever going to love your business as much as you. That’s your baby.” — Diane (37:27)
• “We survived because of the community, not just our family, but the restaurant family.” — (46:55)
• “Owning the business started to feel like a prison...Is this really worth doing?” — Diane (87:13)
• “You need a system-dependent operation, not a people-dependent operation.” — Eric (110:43)
• “All that hard work only means something if it positively affects someone else.” — Diane (114:49)
• “The best we can do is to leave things better than it was when we got here.” — Willet (115:25)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Success Quotes and Cancer Revelation (05:44–06:50)
• Burger Chan Snapshot: Finances, Concepts (08:40–13:04)
• Knowledge Sharing & IP (15:08–16:17)
• Origin Stories/Transition from Teaching to Food (16:34–18:49)
• Buying Their First Restaurant (29:23–33:08)
• Staffing Struggles and Early Challenges (36:41–39:48)
• Friends and Industry Community Support (44:09–46:58)
• Correcting Staff Issues / Leadership (48:36–52:47)
• Growth, COVID, and Second Location (55:42–58:48)
• Burnout, Family Sacrifices (62:12–64:46)
• Good Morning America’s Impact (67:41–71:44)
• Partnering with Silver Lining Hospitality (74:06–90:07)
• Reflections on Industry Issues (95:01–105:32)
• Wisdom & Legacy (113:16–115:25)

Tone and Takeaways

The episode is open, honest, and deeply personal, marked by vulnerability and humor. Willet and Diane’s story is candid about the realities and emotional weight of running a much-lauded restaurant — sharing how “success” can look different inside and outside, and the importance of evolving for health, family, and happiness.

Takeaway:
Building and operating a successful restaurant is never a solo journey; it requires community, humility, continual growth, and the courage to let go and change. Unstoppable doesn’t mean doing everything yourself — it can also mean knowing when and how to partner, ask for help, and care for yourself and your people.

How to Connect

• Instagram:
  • @burgerchanhtx
  • @borrowedgoodshtx

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