Chef, author, and filmmaker Eddie Huang is returning to his roots in New York City—this time in the kitchen at The Flower Shop, the Lower East Side bar that has built a loyal crowd over the past decade.
Beginning November 11, Huang will serve as executive chef, debuting a menu that blends his personal history with the bar’s already-established downtown personality, according to Eater.
Huang, known for BaoHaus and for writing the memoir that inspired Fresh Off the Boat, recently moved back to New York from Los Angeles with his family. Over the summer, he held a residency at The Flower Shop, where he tested dishes rooted in Chinese flavors and neighborhood nostalgia. That short-term collaboration turned into a full-time partnership.
“I adore a personal touch and like everything I’ve ever done, this menu is extremely personal,” he said in a statement. “We are embracing my personal history as well as The Flower Shop family and are excited to serve you.”
The Flower Shop, located at 107 Eldridge Street, has long been a gathering spot for artists, designers, and musicians. Before Huang’s arrival, its menu leaned toward familiar bar staples, such as tacos, rigatoni, and cauliflower steak.
With Huang taking over, the food direction shifts toward a lineup grounded in American bar culture but filtered through his background growing up in Florida and cooking alongside his family.
As he explained on his Substack, a coconut shrimp dish nods to his teenage years working at Coco’s Floribbean Grill, his father’s restaurant. A fried fish sandwich reflects local seafood traditions from the Gulf Coast. His Primanti-style mortadella sandwich pays homage to his time in Pittsburgh, complete with coleslaw and fries layered inside the bread.
Huang also incorporates elements learned from close personal relationships, including steak tips influenced by time spent with Greek family members.
The new offerings are not intended to replicate BaoHaus or strictly adhere to traditional Chinese cuisine. Instead, the menu draws from the regional bar and diner foods Huang encountered across the country, reinterpreting them through his cooking style. A spinach dip, for example, replaces the typical artichokes with pickled mustard greens and adds his own chile oil.
“I love bar food,” Huang said on his Substack. “I’m just taking dishes that you would see on bar menus, but then cooking them the way I would.”
The Flower Shop’s team—led by Eldridge Hospitality founders Dylan Hales and Ronnie Flynn—welcomed Huang based on working chemistry rather than a traditional pitch or partnership proposal. The collaboration developed after both sides recognized shared sensibilities in how the space could evolve.
Huang is still working toward opening a separate restaurant, Gazebo, anticipated for 2026. His time at The Flower Shop is a way to continue cooking regularly while searching for the correct long-term location. The new Flower Shop menu will be served nightly from 5:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m., with reservations available through Resy.