Dee’s parents grew up in Shandong, China, immigrating to Korea in the 1940s when Japan invaded eastern China. Dee was born the second of five children in South Korea as a 华侨 (huaqiao) or overseas Chinese before moving to Osaka, Japan at the age of 19.

In Japan, she learned how to run a restaurant to the highest standards and she lived there for several years before immigrating again to Chicago to pursue the American Dream.

After working at various restaurants across Chicagoland, Dee and Rocky opened Dee’s Restaurant in 1983. Since then, the menu has grown to represent dishes from all of the different cultures they represent.

Dee is proud to have served the Chicagoland community amazing food for nearly 40 years.