ang lost the civil war to the communists and fled to the island. He found his first job here as a delivery man for a cooking oil shop, and within a decade, in 1958, had opened his own store, called Din Tai Fung, selling peanut oil.
Business soured in the early 1970s thanks to the mass production of soybean cooking oil and so, following the advice of friends, Yang decided to convert half the store into a restaurant.
As the elder Yang did not know how to make steamed dumplings, he hired a cook -- who later passed on the craft to his son, the current Yang -- and the small family business gradually took off. It now employs more than 500 staff.
The younger Yang helped out at the family store for two years, until at age 17 his culinary passion was kindled when he beat an experienced cook to get his first paid job as a steamed bun maker for another restaurant.
"My father didn't want me to follow in his footsteps because of the hardship involved in running a restaurant," he said, adding: "Today he is still telling me to slow down a little and try not to be a perfectionist."
Yang's cooking skills earned him an appearance in Oscar-winning Taiwanese director Ang Lee's 1994 hit movie "Eat Drink Man Woman" as a double for the male lead Lung Sihung's character, a retired chef in a bun making scene.
For an acclaimed restaurant, Ding Tai Fung's menu is simple with steamed dumplings, sweet buns, chicken soup, chicken marinated in Chinese wine, fried rice and vegetables.
A standard portion of 10 steamed dumplings costs NT$180 (US$6).
"The taste is basically the same as the early days, only slightly lighter to meet customers' needs," said Yang.
He has introduced a computer to ensure the dumplings are steamed to perfection, and to minimize serving errors, he said.
But one thing remains unchanged -- Din Tai Fung never advertises.
"We have relied on word of mouth to bring in customers and we plan to stick to that," Yang said.
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