I Know A Place: Mushi Ni W/ Michael Le
Season 3: Episode 1
Have you ever reached into the pocket of that old coat and found some extra cash that you weren’t expecting? Maybe you’ve ordered a six-pack of nuggets and found a seventh in the box? Ever gone thrifting and found the thrift of a lifetime? It’s hidden treasures such as these that spark joy in our lives. They’re something that once they happen, we have to tell someone about. We say things like, “You’ll never believe the story of how I found this.” We post to social media with the hashtag “blessed.” We even consider buying a lottery ticket, though that hasn’t worked out for me yet. Well, there’s a spot called Mushi Ni located in Atlanta that happens to be a hidden treasure of its own. I first discovered them when they were located in EAV, dishing out asian breakfast on my way to work. Then they moved into the bar just beneath my barbershop (RIP Little Trouble). Most recently, they found their way to the Chattahoochee Food Works located near the Upper-Westside of Atlanta, but will soon have a home located in Inman Park for their flagship location. I still remember when I first met the owner, Michael. His original hidden treasure to me was a free ube muffin found with my order. Mushi Ni specializes in Bao buns; these perfect little buns filled with hidden treasures of all kinds. I recently sat down with Michael to talk about the story and inspiration behind Mushi Ni.
The Place: Mushi Ni
1. What’s the story?
2. Why Bao Buns?
3. First-time Order?
4. What inspires new dishes?
What’s the Story?
Well, my wife and I moved from New York to Atlanta. I began getting into restaurant consulting, mainly in hotels, which had me traveling a lot, but my wife wanted me at home more. That’s when I started focusing on local consulting down in Peachtree City and the Senoia area, where I was doing consulting for this one restaurant in particular. They were like, “Man, I'm just having a hard time making it. We've implemented everything, sales are up, but I just need like a little more juice.” So, I was like, “You should rent out to somebody at night.” (It was a breakfast place.) “You can rent it out to somebody at night and then take a percentage of the profits.” I was just giving him some ideas, and he said, “Well, I don't really trust anybody.” Then my wife said, “I'll do it!” So, it became “We'll do it.”
We started at Senoia Coffee and Cafe. We did it there, and then we got offered an opportunity to go to East Atlanta. Things then just grew from there. We would always want to do our own place, but getting the startup capital for a restaurant is extremely difficult. A lot of times, people who open restaurants just want to do it. They may not really have experience. They just want to have a place to hang out, right? Those are the kind of places where it’s really hard for them to make it, but if you're experienced and you're in the industry, you have better luck.
After EAV, we then moved over to Little Trouble. We had a Manager from Victory come, and he really liked our food and recommended us to Ian when they lost their head chef. But once Little Trouble closed down, we moved again and are at The Works now. However, this stop is also only temporary until we open in Inman Park.
So, at the end of the day, Inman Park is gonna be the brick-and-mortar flagship location for us. Our space is big, but it's not big enough to fully express ourselves.
Why Bao Buns?
So, Bao actually means hidden treasure. They're usually like these buns that are wrapped. Then they're filled inside. I went to Momofuku a long time ago, and I remember eating them. I was like, “Wow, this is a really great idea! There are so many little things you could put in this little bun!”
The idea just kind of took off, and I started making them at my house all the time. I think the family was tired of me inviting them over to eat them. I loved it to the point where we got crazy good at it, and when I was thinking of a concept to build a restaurant around, there was nothing like it in Senoia. So I thought, “Let’s just try it!” And we ended up doing really well.
First-time order?
Everybody has different tastes, of course. Our food is Asian-American, if that makes sense. As a first-generation American, you're always caught between what your parents eat and what your friends are eating. So, I would recommend that they try a little bit of our American and a little bit of our Asian offerings. I would recommend the soft-shell crab bao if you like something spicy. We have great dumplings that we make as well. I really like our soft-serve ice cream. It's oat-milk-based, so it's vegan, and we’re always changing the flavors. I would say the lycheeade is a big hit, too.
What inspires new dishes?
It's hard because we've been open for so long. So we just try to draw inspiration from different places. I would say a lot of times, it’s just what's around. We buy from local vendors when we can. So right now, we're buying from this mushroom place called Bella Vita Mushrooms. They're located up north. So anytime she tells us, “I have this kind of mushroom or that,” it's like, “We’ll try it!” Right now, we're really into lion's mane mushrooms. So, we work with what we have and what we see around us. Sometimes, I'll just peruse the aisles at H Mart and see what looks kind of fun. Then also basically just what I’ve been craving. All those things combined make for a good dish.
The Person: Michael Le
1. Who is Michael?
2. What keeps you going?
3. Hobbies?
4. Menu Revivals
5. Aesthetics
6. Dogs
Who is Michael?
I grew up in St. Louis, Missouri, and from there, I went to culinary school. I worked in the best restaurant in my town, and I was like, “Okay, I've done that.” Then, I was offered an opportunity to live in France with my uncle. So, I lived there for a while and honestly just cooked sausages and duck and learned how to do things the old way. After a year, my visa was up, so I came back. I didn't want to live back at home, so I moved to Florida and did the hotel thing for a while. I worked at the Ritz-Carlton for several years, then from there, I moved to New York, where I met my wife, and then we moved to Georgia after that. My wife worked for Gordon Ramsay for five years, so she went from being so sweet and nice to, you know, a seasoned line cook now [laughs]. I worked at some great places myself, but in New York, it's really cutthroat work. You're always looking over your shoulder. The guy next to you might get fired at any moment. Then you have to replace him. So, I mean, you learn to deal with pressure and deal with expectations. It was good training, but I'm glad we moved to Georgia because it helped me become a normal human again. I came to Georgia specifically because one of my mentors that I worked with at the Ritz-Carlton, his wife, got cancer, so he really needed our help. He had been to a lot of the best hospitals around, and he was just like, “All the food there is terrible.” So we went, and we were down in Newnan, and we opened this hospital, which was completely foreign to me. I'd never worked in a hospital before. So we worked there and cooked organic food with fresh ingredients. I got to learn a lot about allergies and dietary restrictions. That's why at Mushi Ni, we now use all gluten-free soy sauce. Not everything is gluten-free, but you know, we try. Like the bao buns, we can’t. We've tried so many times. It just doesn't work. But for a lot of the items, we can and try to make them gluten-free.
What’s kept you going through all the constant change you’ve faced?
I think it's just like the love of doing it. People are like, “Why are you always working?” I like to cook. You don't really have to like to cook for the customers, but I just enjoy doing it. So even if something happened, like I didn't have a space, I would try to find another one the next day. I like interacting with the customers and getting their feedback, whether it's positive or negative. I think it's all I know how to do.
How do you spend your time away from the restaurant?
Mostly play with my dogs. I like to go out to eat, of course, and I read a lot. I like hiking, which helps clear my mind. That's mainly it. I don't have a lot of hobbies. When you own a small restaurant, that is your hobby.
Will you ever bring back breakfast?
The breakfast thing was cool. It was fun during COVID, but it was a COVID thing, basically. People didn’t have anywhere to go in the neighborhood, really. You know what I mean? So we just thought we might as well just try this breakfast thing. I think breakfast will come back eventually. I don't know if there are any other Asian breakfast places.
What draws you to making your dishes look so aesthetic?
Making it look pretty is just the fun part of it, you know? Anybody can cook well, but presentation is important as well. It makes people happy when you buy something, and you look at it, and it looks like there was actually care put into it. Even just little garnishes. It makes it look pretty, and when you add a little something, it makes it taste better, too. Basically, when you arrange a plate, you want everybody to get a little bite of everything, though.
Tell us about your dogs.
Their names are Droopy and Rocky, and they're just two fat, lazy bulldogs. They're very loving, but they don't expect a lot. When you come home after a long day, they're just happy to see you. I'm sure it's a positive that we smell like food all the time. We’ve had them for six years. The dogs that inspired our logo were our two original dogs, Tofu and Bacon. They've since passed, but they're still with us in the heart.
Recommendations:
1. Weekend in ATL
2. Ingredients Worth the Venture
How should someone spend a weekend in Atlanta?
I would say if you have a couple of days, I'd start breakfast. I live in North Decatur, so I always go to The General Muir. Another good recommendation that I like is Star Provisions. If you want to go something a little more ethnic, but it's still in that area. I would go to Buena Gente. I really like Victory Sandwiches for lunch. If I want Asian, I'll go to Kamayan. My wife is Filipino. We’ll also go to Mamak on Buford Highway. I also really like Your 3rd Spot, just to hang out. I honestly go hiking a lot, too. So go to Chattahoochee, like Cochran Shoals.
What are some ingredients people should venture into more?
Honestly, a lot of fresh veggies. People always leave the veggies off. For me, vegetables are so interesting, even though I'm not vegan myself. Every single vegetable has a different flavor profile. I would just say eat your veggies. If it looks weird, try it.
I also really like sesame-based sauces. It's kind of savory and nutty because I'm allergic to nuts. So, for me, that's my replacement right there. Also Sunflowers. I love sunflowers. That's kind of what I've been into lately. Such as sunflower pepitas and sunflower butter.
“Learning is a treasure that will follow its owner everywhere.”