Yongsheng Li

The Path

Yongsheng Li has served as Chinese Executive Chef at Yu Yue Heen in Guangzhou, China, since 2023, and the role fits a style built on control rather than noise. Born in Yunfu, Guangdong, he works from the grammar of Cantonese tradition without treating it as fixed copy. At Yu Yue Heen, that gives the cooking its balance: rooted in lineage, but open enough to let the cuisine move.

The Work Today

At Yu Yue Heen, Yongsheng Li presents authentic Cantonese cuisine with a modern approach, keeping the core language of the tradition intact while allowing for revision. His own view is plain: "As there are no limits to creating new dishes, it is sometimes difficult to define what a good dish is while using innovation and retaining the characteristics of traditional dishes." That position shapes the work—less about novelty for its own sake than about holding innovation and inherited character in the same frame.

Signature

Yongsheng Li's signature dishes include Char Siu with Aged Black Vinegar and Boiled Pearl Rice, Crab Roe, and Crab Meat with Black Truffle Sauce. The combinations point to a chef working from recognizable Cantonese foundations, then adding contrast and depth without pushing past the dish's identity. Char Siu meets the sharper note of Aged Black Vinegar; crab is paired with black truffle sauce for added weight. The effect is measured rather than loud.

In Their Words “As there are no limits to creating new dishes, it is sometimes difficult to define what a good dish is while using innovation and retaining the characteristics of traditional dishes.”

Acclaim

In 2024, Li received the MICHELIN Young Chef Award. The recognition tracks with a kitchen practice defined by restraint, curiosity, and close attention to Cantonese cuisine as something inherited, tested, and still in motion.