Today we’re interviewing Mai Bach, Co-founder and CEO of Oochacha, one of the first vegan restaurants in Taiwan that serve raw smoothies. She’s a social entrepreneur who walks the walk and talks the talk.
Mai and her husband/business partner did a 6-month trip around Asia and then settled down in Taiwan to start a vegan business. Sound familiar?
Mai is an amazing conversationalist. I didn’t even edit this episode all that much because she just spoke so eloquently and was just full of knowledge.
She talks about Taiwan being this small but big city and why she decided to set up shop here. Mai also goes through her vegan experience in Taiwan and talks about how hard it was to get nourished as a Vegan. So like all great entrepreneurs, she recognized a problem and then developed a solution which was green smoothies.
Also, why don’t Asian vegans eat garlic, onions, leeks, shallots, all the alliums? I was so confused by Mai demystifies it, it‘s apparently a Buddhist practice because alliums flare up the emotions. So if you’re ever entering the vegan Asian market, you might be at a disadvantage if you’re using garlic and onion. Wow, I don’t think I could ever cook without those.
Vegan is a relatively new term in Asia and it’s also super diverse so it’s been amazing unearthing on just how nascent the industry is
Overall, Mai’s journey building Ochacha is a masterclass example of finding a niche, finding out how to build something in a foreign country, and just being persistent in the decade in building this amazing concept
We have a really good discussion before we actually started the podcast so I kept that in.
What’s up with Adam
I’m starting to feel like I belong. I’ve joined a few unique groups in San Francisco and San Jose and I actually feel like because I see the same faces and do the same hobbies, I feel like I might actually have friends now. Moving to a new city, I’m always reminded that the best way to be a friend is to be helpful and reliable and that if you’re with someone, as long as they have a good time, then they’ll most likely ask you to do stuff with them. It’s something I think about a lot, and I realize that in every city I’ve moved to, it actually did take a while to get a group of friends.
I also, however, have an unhealthy obsession with meeting new people. I don’t know if that’s a good thing or a bad thing but I really enjoy venturing off to a new group of people, introducing myself, and telling people I’m interesting. I think it’s an ego thing.
Anyways, let’s talk about my time in Taiwan.
So I personally don’t know much about Taiwan. I didn’t even know it existed until college. As I grew up, I learned more and more about Taiwanese people and the dynamics between Taiwan and China and all that. It gets extremely complicated.
Anyways, I never really had Taiwan on my bucket list while traveling. In fact, after Japan, I wanted to go to the Phillipines. Taiwan, like China, had a pretty strenuous and intense lockdown period and it was up in the air if they decided to let foreigners in. Luckily, they did! When I was in Okinawa, Taiwan opened up so I took a quick island-hopping flight to Taipei.
I would describe Taiwan as a combination of all of the Asian countries I’ve been to. I would say it’s distinctly Chinese but has the chaos of Vietnam, the politeness of Japan, and the modern feel of Korea.
Anyways, the small city of Taipei is full of interesting little nodes. From giant tech centers to the little pockets of night life called the night markets. It’s so cool stumbling upon the chaotic activities in Taipei.
The night markets in Taiwan are famous for a reason. Apparently, every night, vendors pop out on the street and sell all sorts of crazy food. My favorite are the black pepper buns which are oven baked in a tandoori oven and filled with this peppery beef filling. I miss it already!
Next week, I’ll talk a little bit about the tech and the places outside of Taiwan. My most memorable day there was actually a small trip to Beitou, where they had a beautiful hotspring city and I spent $300 dollar for a nice hotel to soak in a private hotspring.
Enjoy this interview with Mai Bach, we do this in her restaurant Oochacha in Taipei
Links
Vegan Eggs Benedict
Oochacha Taipei
Eating Animals, book
Taiwan Safety
Tofu
WuXing – 5 pungent spices
David Yeung
Greenvines – beauty product, B-corp
Can’t have raw vegetables in Taiwan
Green Monday
Gen Z Intersectionable Activists
B-corp
Peloton
TSMC
Foxcon
Kaohsiung
Wade Giles
PingYing
Chang Kai-shek Memorial
Taipei 101-101 floors
Yongkong night market
Shelin night market
Instagram: @kissmylemongrass
End of Episode
A Decade of Ups and Down
When I was editing this episode, I realized that Mai and her husband worked on Oochacha for 10 years. I find this unfathomable and amazing. 10 years is a long time, it’s longer than I’ve been a professional and in the restaurant space, I would imagine it’d feel like a century. And with so many ups and downs, building, and closing, it’s extremely taxing, but they persevere.
I do notice that couples or partners, especially romantic ones have a better chance of sticking it through when it comes to ventures like these.
I guess a kid is kind of like having a buisness? I dunno, I have neither so I can’t relate.
I’ve discussed this before but I’ve always admired the ability to persevere and find ways to just persevere during the bad times. I’m not good at having the intestinal fortitude of preserving so I always leave things when things look bad. Is this the wrong way to look at life or not? I guess there are always different angles to look at it
I know I’ve discussed this previously in the podcast. I’m just in awe listening to Mai’s story on the decade of building a restaurant in a foreign country, and the uphill battle of convincing people about raw smoothies. With events like COVID and other business-changing environments, I’m just shocked that Mai and her husband just power through,
Maybe it’s the partnership, or the mission, or just the thrill of living your dream every single day.
Or maybe it comes with age? I guess I’m still trying to figure it out.