When Shawn Chen decided to learn to cook Chinese food, he went to the source – the culinary program at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China, where government officials and visiting dignitaries dine and where chefs are schooled in the country’s many cooking styles.

Shawn, chef-owner of Beijing Garden in Twinsburg, began cooking as a way to earn money while attending business college in Beijing, where he grew up. He was good at it, and eventually landed a job in one of the city’s best restaurants.

Shawn hung up his apron when his wife Gwen, whom he met in college, won a scholarship to study at the University of Akron. Shawn finished his degree there, too, and worked as a salesman and then in the insurance industry. He missed cooking, though. So in 2009, at age 40, he combined his college job with his college degree and opened a Chinese carry out.

As word of his authentic little gem spread, Shawn’s business grew beyond the bounds of the tiny waiting room and counter. This year he expanded into the space next door to create a modern, spacious sit-down restaurant.

Shawn is proficient in the cooking from many of China’s provinces, but his favorites are the dishes of Shandong and Sichuan. Chicken-stuffed eggplant with garlic sauce is an example of the flavorful Shandong cooking style.

Diners have been surprisingly open to trying some of the lesser-known items the restaurant offers, such as Shawn’s signature dish, Ziran Lamb from Xizang Province, which we know as Tibet.

“You can taste the Indian influence,” he explains.

Shawn admits he misses his friends back in China, but feels he has found his niche along a country road between Hudson and Twinsburg, Ohio.

“The opportunity – that’s the best part,” Shawn says. “Here, you can do whatever you like.”

Beijing Garden is at 7995 Darrow Road. The phone is 330-425-9795.