David Liao is petitioning for stinky tofu to be allowed on the menu at his Taiwanese restaurant in Los Angeles
NEED TO KNOW
- David Liao, owner of Golden Leaf restaurant in San Gabriel, has been forced to stop selling the Taiwanese dish stinky tofu
- Liao told the Los Angeles Times he’s received multiples notices and fines since a neighbor began complaining about the smell of the food
- “Keeping this unofficial national dish alive is crucial,” Liao told the outlet. “For our customers, this isn’t just another menu item, it’s a connection to their roots”
A restaurant owner in Los Angeles is petitioning for the return of their signature dish after complaints from locals about its odor led to a ban.
In an interview with the Los Angeles Times published on Monday, March 23, David Liao explained that his Golden Leaf restaurant in San Gabriel had been selling stinky tofu for three years before receiving the first of several complaints in the fall of 2017.
The popular Taiwanese street food — also known as chou doufu in Chinese — is known for its eye-watering stench that comes from fermenting tofu for weeks or months in brine with vegetables…