Irene Li
UPCOMING EVENTS
RESTAURANT
HOMETOWN
Boston, MA
Irene Li (she/hers), co-founder of Mei Mei, is dedicated to driving the restaurant industry forward in ethical sourcing and fair and transparent employment practices with tools like open book management. Now, Mei Mei is evolving into a packaged dumpling company while Irene launches Prepshift, a tool for restaurant owners who want to professionalize their people operations and improve retention. She founded Project Restore Us in 2020 whose mission is to serve working immigrant families by raising funds and paying restaurants to package and deliver culturally relevant grocery staples to their doorsteps. She sits on the boards of The Food Project, Haley House and Project Bread and is a 2022 James Beard Foundation Leadership Award winner. She lives in Brighton with her husband and too many plants.
Awards & Accolades
- James Beard Foundation Leadership Award - 2022
- James Beard Foundation Rising Star Chef Nominee- 2015-2020
- Eater Young Guns - 2016
- Zagat 30 Under 30 - 2015
- Best of Boston - 2012, 2015