Kerby & Cristina’s Favorite Valentine Traditions – Restaurants

Chef Ann Ahmed’s love for cooking started at a very young age, working in the kitchen alongside her mother whenever she could. She and her family left her birth country of Laos when Ann was two years old. They lived in a Thai refugee camp until she was four, at which point they were sponsored by her great uncle to come live with him in Minnesota, which has been home ever since. Upon their arrival, her mother took multiple jobs to support their family. Because of her mom’s busy schedule, Ann rarely had time to spend with her, so whenever she was home, Ann was glued to her mother’s side, especially in the kitchen! This is where Ann’s love of cooking began, with the little time they spent together in the kitchen. After years of hard work, her mother had saved enough money to invest in a grocery store and deli with her siblings and they purchased the Lao Market on Nicollet Ave. When Ann was in fifth grade, she started working at the Lao Deli in Minneapolis. She loved it so much that in the sixth grade, she wrote her very first ten-page menu for her future restaurant..