Statesboro businessman shares family’s culture & cuisine

STATESBORO, Ga. (WTOC) - This month marks Asian American/Pacific Island Heritage Month. We’re spotlighting people in our region who bring their background to their community.

Adam Tsang turns into a whirlwind in his kitchen. He’s first-generation American and Statesboro native, but a second-generation restaurant owner.

“Back in the day, there weren’t a lot of opportunities for immigrants to go into professions other than what they knew,” said Tsang.

His parents started a Chinese restaurant when they came to Statesboro. After high school, he went to college in California, then returned.

“People ask me all the time, ‘why did you do that?’”

“You leave the small town, then come right back,” asked WTOC reporter Dal Cannady.

“Exactly,” said Tsang. “For me, the chance to take the helm of a restaurant was an opportunity I couldn’t pass up.”

He branched out from his parents and opened Soyumi and introduced Asian fusion to Statesboro. But he says being away made him notice things when he returned.

“When I came back, if I went out to eat with my family I felt people staring. It wasn’t a bad stare. I wondered if they’d just never seen Asian-Americans before.”

He says there’s less of that toward him now with two restaurants, a video production company and his own online cooking show, and his involvement in community efforts like Dancing with the Statesboro Stars. He says he feels more accepted as people see him and know him, but he wants to see that for other Asian-Americans who might not be as well known.

“At the end of the day, I’m an American and what affects one of us affects all of us and we just have to come together and move past it.”

He just hopes to help make his community a better place any way he can.

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