Tag Archives: Shirley Chung

by Steven Doyle | April 16, 2026 · 5:05 pm

Shirley Chung Was Told She’d Never Taste Again, Then She Opened a Restaurant in Dallas

In May 2024, doctors told Shirley Chung that the best chance of saving her life was removing her tongue. She said no.

Chung had just been diagnosed with stage 4 squamous cell carcinoma — tongue cancer that had already spread to her lymph nodes. She was 47. She had built a career around taste, around the specific memory of her grandmother’s cooking in Beijing, around 20 years of working kitchens alongside Thomas Keller, Guy Savoy, and José Andrés. Two runs on Top Chef, a devoted following in Los Angeles, restaurants she had poured herself into. Losing her tongue was not something she was willing to accept.

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A Look at Night Rooster, an Upscale Chinese Experience

From the team behind The Saint, Hooper Hospitality Concepts introduces Night Rooster, a modern Chinese restaurant in the Design District that feels considered rather than hurried. After a long-anticipated arrival, it lands with confidence—polished, intimate, and distinctly its own despite sharing an address with its sibling concept.

The room, designed by Greg O’Neal, leans into mood without excess: low light, deep reds, and restrained gold create a space that feels quietly cinematic. The dining room reveals itself just beyond the bar, tucked behind drapery, adding a sense of arrival that matches the experience.

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Night Rooster, Chinese Fine Dining, Opens Jan 31st

Night Rooster, the modern Chinese fine dining restaurant from Hooper Hospitality Concepts, opens Friday, January 31 in the Dallas Design District. Led by acclaimed chef Shirley Chung (Top Chef finalist and Food Network personality), the restaurant presents a personal, Texas-influenced expression of Chinese cuisine rooted in heritage, resilience, and hospitality. Night Rooster is located at 1000 N. Riverfront Blvd., Dallas, TX 75207, on the ground floor beneath Hooper Hospitality’s Italian steakhouse, The Saint.

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