Meet Chef Chu

Chef Chu, a native of Honolulu, was raised with both Eastern and Western influences in a home that often united three generations around the family dinner table. Many influences from such an upbringing are apparent in his unusual Eurasian cuisine - namely the central Taoist principals of simplicity and living in harmony with the universe.

At Chu's restaurant INDIGO, in Honolulu's Chinatown, the food is inspired by the diversity of cuisine and abundance of tropical produce available in his native Hawaii. Over the years Chu has fine-tuned an eclectic style bursting with fresh vibrant flavors to produce delicious creations.

Creating surprising twists on traditional favorites has become Chu's hallmark. For example, you may find his grandmother's wonton recipe on the menu, but the filling is a cross-cultural delight of goat cheese, sun-dried tomatoes, and sweet peppers, served with a four-fruit sauce. This nod to his Chinese roots, combined with an interest in the foods of other cultures, results in a Eurasian cuisine that Bon Appetite's Tanya Wenma Steele described as "indigenous to nowhere except Glenn Chu's imagination." She discerned the Tao in each dish, noting that "there were no culture clashes." In particular, "there is much harmony in the griddle salmon cakes with sweet peppers, red onions, and kaffir lime leaves."

Chu continues to reach for exciting ways of satisfying his guest's experiences. One of these methods is the introduction of his bottled sauce line, Heaven and Earth. With seven original sauces and more to come, Chu is reaching out of his own domain and allowing many more people to experience his vision of cuisine.