Born in China, Mei Lin and her family immigrated to the US when she was an infant. They planted roots in Dearborn, Michigan, where Lin grew up working alongside her mother and father at their family-owned and -operated Chinese restaurant; and where she learned the fundamentals of being a well-rounded cook and how to run a restaurant.
In January 2019, she opened Nightshade in the Arts District of Los Angeles, which was the culmination of her personal culinary history and was been met with rave reviews. Since opening, the restaurant has earned much critical acclaim: being named one of Food & Wine’s Best New Restaurant, along with the shrimp toast being highlighted as Dish of the Year; and earning a spot as one of GQ Magazine and Eater National’s Best New Restaurants in America as well as 2020 JBF Best Chef California & Best New Restaurant Nominations. Lin also recently opened her fast-casual Szechuan Hot Fried Chicken restaurant, Daybird, to critical acclaim.