ST PAUL, Minnesota — During a time focused on gratitude, Yencheed Fang said she has much to be thankful for.
"I'm very thankful for just family, and for the community, and for everyone that has supported me thus far," Fang said.
Fang started baking as a hobby and as a way to recreate the sweets she savored during her travels that were then hard to find back in Minnesota.
For example, the brioche donuts she ate in London.
"I just couldn't find anything like this. Being Asian, too, our culture, we don't eat very sweet cream as well for filling. So buttercream isn't really a filling that I could stand eating a lot of and so I decided that I wanted to create a donut with a lighter filling where it's not as heavy," Fang said.
In 2019, Fang started holding pop-ups. Then in March 2024, she took the leap and opened a storefront in Lowertown — straight across from the St. Paul Farmers' Market.
"I was at Medtronic... I'd been there for 10 years and honestly, I thought I was going to retire from there," Fang said. "But this year, I put in my notice and I quit."
On SoYen Dessert's opening day, Fang said, "The line was wrapped around the whole entire building."
By that time, Fang had developed a following for her hand rolled brioche donuts, crepe cakes and savory bowls like their chicken congee.
"My mom used to always say that back then in the Hmong culture, they didn't have a lot of money. A bag of rice can make a lot," Fang said. "So this was kind of a dish that they would often make when they had bigger families that would come around. They would make congee. This is something my brother made inspired by my parents and he kind of added his own twist to it."
It's not the only part of Yen's culture that is baked into the business. SoYen Dessert's motto is "Eat Good, Live Well."
"In Hmong translation it's noj qab nyob zoo. That has always been something that stuck with me because in our culture, we would do hand blessings. As a young kid, they would tie strings around our hand and often times they would say, 'noj qab nyob zoo.' I never really cared for that statement... but these past few years I've been sick. I had mental health issues, anxiety, and I started thinking about that blessing and it started being more meaningful to me," Fang said. "I truly hope and wish that for everyone who steps foot into this store is that I hope they always just eat good and live well in their life."
SoYen Desserts will make its European Christmas Market debut on Friday, Nov. 29. and will be there every weekend from Nov. 29 to Dec. 22. They're offering European hot chocolate and fresh Beignets.
The storefront will be closed Nov. 29 and Dec. 20-Jan. 12. Normal hours are Friday-Sunday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. or until sold out
SoYen Desserts
275 4th St. E
St. Paul, MN 55101