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Taste With Tori: Hunan Style

ARDMORE, Pa. (CBS) --  Chinese tradition blends with modern-day physics making for a combination of Kung Pao meets Big Bang at this Hunan style restaurant owned by a physics professor.

In this Taste With Tori, Vittoria Woodill goes to Montgomery County for the story of how a restaurant star was born.

Hunan in Ardmore has existed for four decades thanks to loyal  customers and a loyal son.

This story is as colorful as the items on a Chinese menu.

Mastering the art of great Chinese food is a science and sometimes it takes a scientist to make it happen.

Meet Dr. Eni Foo who is a physicist with an Ivy League education.

He is the mastermind behind dishes like wok fried tilapia with ginger scallions and a tofu roll on a bed of mustard greens.

"This is the mu shu chicken, it's amazing, it's the best in the world," said long-time customer Linda Mui.

So how did a physicist end up owning a restaurant?

Well, there's a little story here.

Eni, who grew up in Taiwan, wanted to go to college in America.

It started when two Chinese scientists received the Nobel Prize back in 1957.

Eni was still in high school in Taiwan.

"All students in Taiwan got excited, everybody wanted to be scientist, especially the smart ones," he said laughing. "When I applied to schools somehow Princeton accepted me, I don't know why.

His humor matches his humility.

In fact, he was given a full scholarship to the Ivy League school.

Eni went on to get his doctorate in 1967 and became a physics professor at Temple University.

Much of his family was still in Taiwan then but his parents decided to come to America.

His dad who was a textile executive was retiring.

"He's working all his life non-stop,  ok,  when he came here he couldn't stay still at home so I had to find something for him to do," said Eni with a laugh. "So we started to make hoagies.

The small luncheonette in Wayne that Eni started for his dad turned into a busy Chinese restaurant.

Some time after that,  it was his mother who needed him after his father passed away.

Eni said he had to keep her busy.

He kept her occupied by taking her to art classes to learn to paint.

But his mother couldn't understand english.

"So I have to sit with her and paint with her," he said.

He had to be the translator and in doing so he learned to paint.

Today his artwork decorates Hunan's walls.

Many have of his paintings have even been shown in exhibitions.

"I admire what he did," says Chris Foo who is Eni's son. "He's a pretty incredible guy."

Chris, a Cornell graduate, is now overseeing the daily operations at the restaurant.

"We've been serving the community for over 41 years which is really nice to have all the families that still eat here loyally," said Chris.

Eni and wife Betty who have been married since 1967 love that loyalty.

Betty says customers who have grown up now come back with their own babies.

"We call them Hunan babies," she said. "Sometime I carry them around and let the parents eat"

All of which makes Hunan so special for Professor Eni Foo.

A special thanks to viewer Vernyce Dannels for recommending we have a Taste With Tori at Hunan restaurant.

We've set up link here so you can check it out in Ardmore, PA.

http://www.hunanardmore.com/

And you can let Vittoria  know about your favorite places and why you like them at https://www.Facebook.Com/vittoriawoodill/.

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