Houston native Evelyn García is the chef/co-owner of byKin HTX and JŪN restaurant. Having cooked throughout NYC with stints at Jean George Spice Market under Chef Anthony Ricco, Masak with Chef Larry Reutens & Kin Shop, Chef Harold Dieterle, Evelyn honed her skills, passion and drive for Southeast Asian food and culture.
A graduate of the Culinary Institute of America, Chef Evelyn worked in New York City for 10 years before moving back home to Houston. With strong family ties and love for her hometown, Evelyn knew she wanted to build a Southeast Asian inspired concept. In 2020, she convinced her good friend Henry Lu to move to Houston, and together the two formed byKin HTX, navigating through pop ups, chef residencies, and a product line, before opening their first restaurant, JŪN in the heart of Houston’s Heights neighborhood. In 2021, Evelyn had a successful run on season 19 of Top Chef, set in Houston, representing her hometown all the way to the finale. Since opening JŪN in February 2023, the restaurant has been met with local and national acclaim, while Evelyn continues to evolve and showcase her passion for South East Asian flavors & local agriculture.
New York City native Henry Lu was raised in the Bronx and started his career as a young boy at his parents’ Chinese restaurants. After attending the French Culinary Institute,Henry worked his way through some of NYC most notable restaurants, including stints as Sous Chef at Manhattan’s Pearl and Ash, during which it earned two stars from The New York Times and graced Bon Appetit’s Top 10 Best New Restaurants 2013 and Williamsburg hit spot Llama Inn, which also earned two stars from the Times. From 2017 to 2020, he was the Executive Chef of Four Happy Men Hospitality Group, which included Loosie’s Kitchen, Loosie’s Rouge, Etiquette Space & Cafe, and Sauced. During that time his work was featured on Eater New York’s 2018 Best Dishes, Food & Wine 2019 list of things You Won’t Want to Miss, and Gotham Magazine. In 2020, Chef Henry Lu moved to Houston Texas to become chef/partner at byKin HTX with Chef Evelyn Garcia and to open their first restaurant, Jūn, located in the heart of the Houston Heights neighborhood.
Generously supported by Victoria Gutierrez and Nick Pierce