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Tao Wang is closing his restaurant, Yuan Asian Cuisine, after nine years in business in Ridgefield, Conn.
H John Voorhees III / Hearst Connecticut Media
RIDGEFIELD — For nine years, Tao Wang has watched children grow up, rejoiced with families on happy occasions and learned about the lives of his customers at Yuan Asian Cuisine.
But on Sunday, the restaurant, which serves Asian cuisine, will be closing its doors for good.
Wang, the owner, said he’ll miss his customers.
“They are like family,” said Wang, 38, who opened the business, at 470 Main St., in 2012.
Wang, who opened another location called Yuan II Asian Cuisine in Dobbs Ferry, N.Y., said one reason he’s closing the Ridgefield location is that he’s having a tough time finding qualified employees to staff the restaurant.
His entire staff commutes daily from New York City, he said.
Additionally, as a resident of Flushing, N.Y., Wang said the commute to Connecticut is long.
“If there isn’t too much traffic, it takes me an hour and 10 minutes,” said Wang, adding that it has taken as long as 90 minutes to get home.
“I work seven days a week,” said Wang, who is the father of two young children.
Additionally, he said it’s a 45-minute drive from the Ridgefield location to the Dobbs Ferry location.
“Every night at 1 o’clock, I get home to sleep,” he said, adding that he’s become “so tired.”
Wang said he has enjoyed getting to know his customers over the past nine years, delivering food to their homes and seeing them at the restaurant.
Business in Ridgefield has been very good, he said.
“From Monday to Wednesday, there are about 50 orders a day. On Thursday, there are 60 to 70 orders, and Friday Saturday and Sunday, there are 130 orders,” he said.
Wang added he hopes he can establish the same relationships with his Dobbs Ferry customers as he did with his Ridgefield customers.
A recent Facebook post announcing the restaurant’s closing had more than 200 reactions and nearly 100 comments.
Ridgefield resident Kalea Grau said she’ll greatly miss the restaurant.
“They make the best food in town,” Grau said. “Their food was always reliably delicious. Our go-to favorites (were) the cold sesame noodle, sesame chicken, Szechuan crispy shredded beef and the honey walnut shrimp.”
Felicia Nowling, another Ridgefield resident, called the closing “heartbreaking.”
Ridgefield resident Quinn McGuire said the restaurant is the “go-to” for Asian food in town.
“The ambiance of the store always drew me in, and their quality of food was always some of the best I’ve had,” McGuire said.
Wang said he was thankful for the support of all his customers over the years.
“I hope everybody remembers me,” he said.
sandra.fox@hearstmediact.com 203-948-9802