Julie Shih – DD Mau

**Lauren Healey** (0:08)
Hey, St. Louis, Lauren Healey with Sauce Magazine here. On this week's episode of The Sauce Podcast, we have Julie Shih, owner of DD Mau. So Julie, why don't you tell us about yourself?

**Julie Shih** (0:19)
Yeah, so I'm Julie Shih, I own DD Mau. I opened in 2018 The first location was in Maryland Heights, and then in 2021, I opened the Webster location.

**Lauren Healey** (0:29)
Okay, and what gave you the confidence to open a second location?

**Julie Shih** (0:33)
I think, you know, well, one, I think we just needed to expand DD Mau and give more love to other communities in St. Louis. And I fell into the Webster Groves location, like a little bit after COVID, fell in love with this space and yeah, we just kind of continue to grow there.

**Lauren Healey** (0:53)
Okay, and you've got a relocation coming up. Tell us about that.

**Julie Shih** (0:56)
Yeah, so we're relocating down the street on Big Bend. We're planning to open by fall. Not sure on a date yet, but we are excited.

**Lauren Healey** (1:05)
Okay, what's that new location going to look like? How is it different from the current?

**Julie Shih** (1:08)
Well, it'll definitely be a bigger space and it'll just be our home for right now. All the decorations will be obviously different, but we're super excited about it. Okay, cool.

**Lauren Healey** (1:19)
And tell us about your background. How did you get in a restaurant?

**Julie Shih** (1:23)
Well, I grew up in the restaurant industry. I started working when I was nine at my parents' restaurant in Baden, Missouri. So a little small shop in Baden.

**Lauren Healey** (1:32)
Where's Baden?

**Julie Shih** (1:33)
Baden is like on the way to Illinois. So if you go on 270 and the Riverview exit, it's right there.

**Lauren Healey** (1:41)
Gotcha.

**Julie Shih** (1:42)
So did that when I was nine, started folding crab and goons. And then as I was like 10, 11, take orders and then as I got older, I was able to work in the kitchen. But yeah, that's how I started there. I honestly hated my life because I didn't have summers, no weekends. It was a lot of work, work, work because it was family business. Right. And I even told, I remember telling my parents, I was like, I'm never going to be in the restaurant industry. So I moved away. I moved to LA, did merchandise marketing for Nordstrom and Levi's. And somehow 10 years later, I was like, I miss it. I miss the hustle and bustle. I miss the craziness. I miss like just engaging with people. I mean, I was on the sales side of the business, but I just miss the restaurant industry. So I moved home in 2018 and opened DD Mau.

**Lauren Healey** (2:40)
Okay. So why don't you run us through some of your favorites at DD Mau?

**Julie Shih** (2:46)
Yeah. So our favorite is for sure, like the banh mi. It's a very quick, easy snack that you can take to go and anywhere. Our staples though are the pho, which is the Vietnamese noodle soup, which everyone knows. It's made with beef broth and lots of collagen. So very healthy, gluten free, and you can make it vegan as well. Another awesome staple that we have is the vermicelli bowls. So rice noodles, lots of vegetables, and your choice of protein. You know, I wanted to kind of build this menu so that way, it's approachable to a lot of people, people that haven't had Vietnamese food and people have had. And then every day, you have a different experience. So you can have it one day having a bao, banh mi, vermicelli bowl, or rice bowl. So different ways of eating. And then there's lots of sauces that you can choose from. Because not a lot of people are familiar with Vietnamese vinaigrette, so which is the traditional traditional fish sauce. And that's why we have like all these like peanut sauces, sweet chili, that way, you know, you don't have to feel intimidated when you come in. Something that is familiar to you.

**Lauren Healey** (3:51)
Okay, so on my recent visit, I loved those roti shell tacos. I think they're my new favorite tacos.

**Julie Shih** (3:58)
Yeah, thank you. Yeah, thank you for, you know, having us on the Sauce Magazine.

**Lauren Healey** (4:03)
Yeah, that's our ethos for our August issue. So, tell us why they're so good.

**Julie Shih** (4:08)
Well, I think, you know, they have a lot of different textures to it and a lot of different flavors when you take that first bite. So you take, you have the flavor of the roti shell, which is a nice, buttery flake, also vegan. And then you have your choice of protein. And then the pickle medley and the red cabbage gives it that balance of flavors, that crunchiness, and then the pickled vegetables kind of counteracts with the richness of the tacos.