Meet Zahra Yang, owner of YiLan Halal Chinese Restaurant, Atlantic Canada’s only Halal Chinese restaurant.
Zahra moved from China to Halifax in 2008 to study electrical engineering at Dalhousie University. After working in the tech industry for eight years, she decided to follow in the footsteps of her family and start her own business. Not only does Zahra come from an entrepreneurial family but so does her husband. His family owned and operated a Halal Chinese restaurant in for 20 years in China and are the current chefs at YiLan.
When the family realized there was no Halal Chinese in Halifax, they saw it as a business opportunity and opened their doors at 1335 Barrington Street in July 2023. Their entire menu is made fresh daily, using local, Halal-certified meat. A selection of dumplings, buns, noodles, and fried dishes are available, with new menu items coming this July. Since opening, it has maintained a five-star Google review rating.
“As a small family business, our focus is and always will be quality. Nothing is pre-cooked, so customers can expect fresh, homemade made food, every time”, says Zahra.
Open Tuesday – Sunday, 12pm – 8pm, YiLan has dine-in and to-go options, including their popular frozen goodies, homemade chili oil, and prepared meat to-go! The outpour of support — not just from the Muslim and Chinese communities, but from people of all backgrounds — has helped assure Zahra that she made the right decision. She hopes to expand her operations in the future and welcomes customer feedback as she nears her first year in business.
Photo credit: Chris Geworsky