Chicago Family Serves Chinese-Cambodian Fusion

- The family's patriarch and matriarch are ethnically Chinese and settled in Cambodia before fleeing the Khmer Rouge genocide in the late 1970s. Their son, Ethan Lim, was born in a refugee camp in Thailand before the family resettled in Chicago. - A key ingredient in their Cambodian-influenced dishes is "kroeung," a spice paste made from ingredients like lemongrass, galangal, and lime leaves, which is hand-pounded in a mortar and pestle. This paste is featured in dishes such as the "Spicy Chicken" at Kim Long and a sour beef noodle soup at Googoo's Table. - One of the family's sons, Ethan Lim, operates Hermosa, which has gained national attention. By day it's a sandwich shop, and at night it transforms into a tasting-menu restaurant focusing on Cambodian cuisine. - Ethan Lim is an acclaimed chef who has received the Jean Banchet Rising Chef of the Year Award for his work at Hermosa. Before taking over the family's first restaurant location, he trained in classic French techniques and worked in prestigious Chicago kitchens, including The Aviary and NEXT. - In addition to their restaurants, the family is connected to Somethin' Sweet Donuts, a family-owned bakery with a Chinese and Cambodian heritage. The co-founder learned to bake in California, bringing a unique "California-style" donut to Chicago. - Googoo's Table, run by Ethan Lim's sister and brother, is located next door to Hermosa and operates at the site of the original Kim Long restaurant. - The Lim family's restaurants are concentrated on Chicago's Northwest Side, with Kim Long in Belmont-Cragin and both Googoo's Table and Hermosa in the Hermosa neighborhood, located within a half-mile of each other.