Wen Raiti: Fusing health and activism through food and tradition

By Cristina Rodgriguez, Saira Gonzalez and Hayley Ross

Wen Raiti is an entrepreneur, chef and activist currently living in Jacksonville, Florida. Her personal health journey stirred her passion for lifestyle medicine, which led her to open her restaurant House of Leaf & Bean, where she aims to build community and educate people on different ways of making food. Wen strives to bring simple, fresh and organic meals that are affordable, delicious and healing to her community. She also works with Kailo Nutrition and Synergy Lifestyle Center to create meals that help patients improve their health. As an activist, Wen promotes principles of peace and respect.

Moving from East to West

I grew up in the Hakka mountain region of the Guangdong Province in Southeast China. After the Chinese Civil War, my grandfather chose to return to the mainland instead of fleeing to Taiwan in order to be with his family. He was arrested and sentenced to 10 years in prison. My grandmother and her children stayed in the countryside with her in-laws. As a result of the political conflict and instability, my family faced much hardship.

We lived on rations growing up. Each month, my family received ration tickets for things like rice, oil, cloth and meat — though, eating meat was a rare treat for us. We would only have meat on special occasions, like birthdays, holidays and other celebrations. My parents would put a small portion of meat into the sautéed vegetables as a special treat for us. Even though everything was rationed, meat was always more expensive than vegetables, so our meals mainly included rice, vegetables and tofu.

Whenever I visited my grandparents, though, they always offered me the best food they had — including the Hakka chicken rice bowl. It’s a traditional dish that I still make for my family today. It’s and easy meal that has balanced nutrients, and makes for a quick family dinner when we are busy working and raising children.

Wen and her husband Jon (Photo Credit: Wen Raiti)

I moved to the United States in 2000 with my husband and son. My husband and I met in Saipan where I was working as a legal secretary and my husband was an art teacher. After our son was born, we decided to move to Pittsburg, Pennsylvania so that my husband’s parents could be part of our son’s life.

As an immigrant, I faced the same obstacles many immigrants face when resettling in another country: language barrier, cultural differences, unfamiliar environments, and strange foods. For the most part, I especially enjoyed American food and beverages. My husband and I often indulged in a lot of junk food, like nachos, buffalo wings and burgers.

My biggest challenge was raising my son. Since I am Chinese and my husband is American, it was difficult to know how to balance the two cultures. We tried our best to compromise on different traditions and parenting techniques, but we still had arguments and disagreements on how to act with our son. It was a clash between the American and Chinese way of raising children. As if the West was colliding with the East.

It wasn’t always easy, especially since all three of us were busy in school. My husband was pursuing his master’s degree in East Asian Studies and Economic Development and I was studying Business Administration and Accounting at Carlow University in Pittsburgh. After graduating, I started working for the same accounting firm that recruited me as a tax intern during my senior year. I began climbing the corporate ladder and soon began working for one of the largest internal accounting firms, Ernst & Young LP.

However, I found myself wanting to escape the corporate world. Our family moved to Jacksonville, Florida and I inoticed a change in pace. It was much slower, which I enjoyed because it allowed me to spend more time focusing on my son and my health. These things led to my decision to leave my corporate job and become an entrepreneur.

A lifestyle change

In 2008, I was diagnosed with Irritable Bowel Syndrome. I visited many doctors and had many examinations, but I was told there was nothing wrong with my body. Still, I knew something was not okay. I decided to take charge of my own health and fate. I did extensive research on digestive system issues and found several symptoms that resonated with me. I began learning more about selecting the right food combinations that use less processed foods and more fresh ingredients that enable the body to digest food properly. I found that other important factors for maintaining our health includes regular exercise, a thorough sleep schedule, meditation, and co-existence with nature.

In the journey of improving gut health, I believe we must let the food do the healing. Let food be the medicine. A holistic healing process is what helped me recover from my IBS. There is no quick fix to lifestyle medicine. It is a journey to good health and a happier life.

Once I started a regular, healthy routine, I noticed my condition improved. I’m happy to say that my IBS has been gone for several years now, and I believe this is because of the changes in my lifestyle. But there are still more than 50 million people in the US living with IBS, and millions of others are diagnosed with conditions that can either be prevented or treated with lifestyle improvements. Knowing this, I began to wonder how I could make healthy living and its benefits accessible to more people.

I founded House of Leaf & Bean to share my journey with the community, especially with those who are suffering like I did and feel like they cannot see a light at the end of the tunnel. I wanted to show the community how to eat healthy and live a healthier lifestyle without breaking the bank. At House of Leaf & Bean our mission is to make simple, fresh and organic food affordable and accessible for everyone.

Dishes from Wen’s restaurant. From left to right: crispy tofu bites, lucky bites, pizza bites, pasta with vegan meatballs, tofu/potato dumplings and scallion pancake (Photo Credit: Wen Raiti)

Fusing East and West

I found inspiration in my childhood meals, especially soy products like tofu and soy milk. People in Asia have been eating these types of bean products for over 3,000 years and coincidentally have been enjoying long, active lives. Coming to the US, I found that not many Americans know much about tofu. With the help of a few friends, I started experimenting with organic, non-GMO soybeans to make fresh soy milk and tofu. It took a number of tastings, but we finally found the right texture. It was surprising how different our tofu and soy milk were from store-bought products.

We started selling our products at the Beaches Green Market in Neptune Beach, Florida. It was encouraging to receive such a warm welcome from the community, so much so that I soon began envisioning an organic cafe where east meets west. We would offer a space for people to destress in a zen-like environment where they also had access to affordable, healthy food. We would serve high quality and organic foods, fresh-brewed teas, and our special soy products. Thus, the House of Leaf & Bean restaurant and cafe was born!

Our motto, “Health living and healthy dieting, affordable and accessible for everyone” keeps me motived to work hard every day.

Leading the community forward

In China, my family did not have the opportunity to be part of the political process and instead were oppressed by their own government. Here in the US, I understand that I have the privilege to vote, to engage in the political decision-making process, and to give voice to others who are not citizens. I cherish the civil rights I have that my parents did not have.

Since moving to the US, I have actively participated in my communities. I’ve held many leadership positions in organizations like the National Asian American PAC FL, Jacksonville Mayor’s Asian American Advisory Board, Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association, and United Chinese Americans — to name a few.

In fact, I was a founding member of UCA in 2016 when a friend in Washington DC asked me to help establish a national civic organization to educate Chinese-Americans on how to engage with their communities. Our initiatives included supporting youth running for office, sharing cultural heritage with others, and collaborating with other minority groups to address social issues. It was exciting to be part of such an impactful organization.

In light of recent events, I’ve felt burdened to highlight the crimes and injustices happening to Asian Americans across the US in the shadow of the COVID-19 pandemic. It’s undeniable that the pandemic has impacted so many people around the world; however, Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders have suffered an extra layer of anxiety due to a hostile political environment and ignorance. Our seniors have been attacked on the streets, our brothers and sisters harassed in their neighborhoods. Our children are called “China Virus” and “Kung Flu”. When the Atlanta Spa Shootings happened earlier this year, I feared for my own safety since I often work at my restaurant past midnight. I was afraid I would be attacked in the parking lot because I am Asian.

Yet in the midst of these difficult times, our restaurant has received tremendous support from the community. Our customers continued to visit us daily and encouraged us to stay positive. They reminded us how much they appreciated what we do for the community. One retired scientist even began to send us support money every month. When we asked what we could do for him, he responded, “Just keep doing what you’re doing!”

Back in March 2020, the Jacksonville Chinese Association was able to raise $40,000 to purchase PPE for local hospitals. That May, UCA also started the national campaign “Food for Love,” which House of Leaf & Bean participated in. We even provided free lunches for front line workers throughout the springs, delivering over 350 lunches for healthcare workers at the University of Florida.

I firmly believe that democracy requires everyone to participate in it. We can all pinpoint the issues that are most important in our lives and communities. Once you find something you’re passionate about, start engaging with organizations that share your interests. Volunteer and get out of your comfort zone and you will soon find yourself part of the solution.

From left to right: Basma, Rafid and Wen at House of Leaf & Bean (Photo Credit: Wen Raiti)

More about Wen

Watch WeaveTales’ Hearty Table video series featuring Wen to learn more about Wen and her passion for everything she does and indulge in some delicious Hakka Chicken Rice Bowl in your home.

Watch Wen speak at an event featuring WeaveTales’ Journey to Jacksonville exhibit.

Disclaimer: The views, information, or opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of WeaveTales and its employees.

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