Aaron Song

Aaron K. Song was born on November 19, 1959 in Inglewood , California to Louis and Rose Song. Aaron's father, a commercial artist and toy-maker, was the first Art Director for Mattel Toys and is most noted for his logo designs of Barbie and Hot Wheels. Aaron's mother, an actress and restaurateur, appeared in Anna and the King as well as The King and I. Aaron's mother opened her own restaurant, The Tea House in Torrance, California shortly after he was born. This would be the segueway to his life-long career.

Aaron graduated Rolling Hills High School and entered Columbia University with a major in economics. After two years he would return home and enroll at Loyola Marymount University in West Los Angeles where he graduated with a bachelors in business administration. After graduation Aaron began to manage the family restaurant with his father. Aaron's early influences were Wolfgang Puck, Sam Choi and mentor Roy Yamaguchi.

In 1987, after a brief hiatus from his family's restaurant, Aaron returned and remodeled The Tea House establishing a new style of Asian food. Some of Aaron's signature dishes included Cambodian carpaccio, Vietnamese spring rolls, duck lettuce wraps and ahi tostadas.

In 1990, Aaron opened China Syndrome in Manhattan Beach fusing his Pan Asian cuisine with jazz music. He would later open Joey Tai's in Redondo Beach where he brought Thai food to the beach. Both restaurants were an instant success.

Recently, Aaron has been a feature character on the FOX television show Hells Kitchen. He has also been featured on the Today Show, VH1 and E! Entertainment. Aaron can be seen in the July 2007 issue of In Touch magazine where he was called the "most exciting personality on reality TV." Aaron was nominated for a reality television emmy in 2007.

Aaron combines his passion for food and a cutting edge style to ensure an enjoyable experience to be had by everyone all while considering the needs of his clients and audiences.