Maria Li Bao, the great boss of Chinese cuisine

Luck and resilience.

Or, what is the same, Maria Li Bao (1971).

In the curriculum of the one who is today

"Luck has always been with me and I never give up. If they tell me that it's not possible, I'll make a hole in the wall and go through.

."

And to succeed.

She is the owner of China Crown, with which several decades ago she revolutionized the concept of the Chinese restaurant in the capital;

(seven in Madrid, the last one opened a few weeks ago in Las Tablas, and one in Toledo);

(in Madrid and Alicante) and

, in the Canalejas Gallery in Madrid.

So far those that are already underway, although the tireless mind of this creator of concepts -founder of the China Crown Group- does not give a truce: in February Le Petit Dim Sum will arrive in Lagasca and in June according to forecasts it

The businesswoman in the China Crown room, the flagship of her hotel group. Antonio Heredia

-Where are you going to arrive?

To infinity and beyond?

-It is not for opening restaurants.

Thinking about creating concepts cheers me up.

In hospitality almost everything is written, and you have to bet on new and little-known things here.

(executive chef of the China Crown Group and "the artist in the family who makes haute cuisine, but with the feeling of my mother"), the general director, the strategic director, the marketing and me.

-What do you attribute your success to in a sector where women work hard and well, but few enjoy recognition?

-I am very constant and I pursue things.

I have ideas and I like my team to follow me.

, lead.

And at that I am very good.

Felipe Bao, executive chef of the hotel group.

When he had barely passed the age of majority, he had to deal with the occasional head chef who found it difficult to accept being sent by a young and petite Chinese woman.

"I still remember two cooks, 1.80 meters or more, well-known in China. They believed that since I was not a cook I did not know about this and they seemed to say 'you are going to send me...'. I was the businesswoman and

".

With patience and leadership skills, she convinced them that "she knew a lot about this."

It is not boasting, but empirical science, because if María has experience in anything, it is in the world of hospitality (she had more than twenty dining rooms).

(a small town in Zhejiang, China), without knowing Spanish and with another name, Baoli ("little treasure"), which the concierge of the house where they lived in Madrid changed to María.

The dining room of Sushi Bar Tottori Madrid.

Every day, when they returned from school, she and her sister Paula helped out in the family dining room.

As they got older, they got more involved: they talked to suppliers, employees... And they even

.

This is where the new China Crown began to take shape, which was born when María, at the age of 24, took the reins and turned the Infanta Mercedes dining room into a benchmark for the authentic cuisine of the Asian country.

Status that she has always maintained, except between 2016 and July 2020, when it was closed.

Beijing imperial duck, China Crown's signature dish.

The rebirth of China Crown

In August of that year, during the hardest part of the pandemic and

-in Don Ramón de la Cruz, 6- as

.

"I have gone through many crises and I know how to handle them well. I always say that these are for prepared people.

. I am very proud of China Crown; my parents started and we continue, just like many clients who now come with their children and grandchildren", explains this delicate woman and at the same time a torrent of strength who often visits her stores.

"I go to Alcalá and Toledo a couple of times a month. In all of them

. 80% are Spanish and the rest are Chinese, especially in the kitchen", where they do not stop making quarry.

Also, when he starts a project

Tuna sashimi, at Sushi Bar Tottori.

Maria does not doubt, does not dizzy.

"I know what I want and what I have to do to get it", something that she has to do with being a woman, she says.

"We are more on top of things, in

I think we have things clearer. I see a good possibility and I went for it. It's very nice, you set up your business, you do well and on top of that you create jobs".

But she always has her head:

The group, with more than 300 employees, includes 25 catering, management and logistics companies

("the quality control we do daily is key").

In the board of directors "80% of us are women, very quarrelsome girls," he says without hiding his laughter.

In Shanghai Mama they update the traditional Chinese recipe book.

María, as those "strong cooks" assumed, does know about this and not only because of her career.

While she worked, she studied "in a business school to improve.

. "

And, by the way, if a dream can come true, even better.

"I always wanted to be an Interior Designer and I did my degree. Although I don't practice, the decoration of Tottori Madrid is mine," says

Le Petit Dim Sum, in Canalejas Gallery.

with Spanish tastes

"I take them to Benidorm, Toledo...

. Since my daughters no longer want to come with me, I take my parents and we go to Segovia for example to eat suckling pig.

".

And live in Spain.

"Friendliness and joy come from here; serious and meticulous work, from oriental culture.

The Bao celebrate Christmas and New Year's Eve together, with typical dishes from their town, shellfish and lacquered duck, and Chinese New Year, at China Crown, where there is no shortage of sweet nian gao as a wish that this one be better than the previous one

Dim sum cart, in Canalejas Gallery.

-Since we're talking about wishes, what wouldn't you do again?

I would do everything the same.

.

In life not everything can be excellent, there are good and bad things.

The key is not to stop fighting.

That is the small -great- treasure of Mary;

Baolin's girl, the Sugus candies that Luisa gave her, the concierge who renamed her.

According to the criteria of The Trust Project

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