The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 59

DINING | NEED A SUBTITLE

Melted & Sauced
The Distinct Pleasures of La Petite Fondue
Ming Cao and his wife, Haiquing Ren, tried hard to retire from their 30 years
together in the restaurant industry. Their failure is our pleasure.
BY SHARI DRAGOVICH | PHOTOGRAPHY BY JOHN PARK

FOR AS CHIC AS FONDUE (from the French word fondre-to melt)
is today, one might not guess its humble beginnings. During the Middle
Ages in Burgundy, France, it is said that vineyard workers invented
what we know as meat fondue. They set a boiling pot of oil in the
middle of the vineyard so workers could cook pieces of raw meat during
short breaks. In 18th-century Switzerland, cheese fondue developed as
a means for the peasant classes to eat their aging cheeses and stale bread
through winter. During the mid-20th century, Americans decided to
melt chocolate, and voila!, another version of fondue was born.
At La Petite Fondue, diners experience the full gamut of fondue history in a
warm, artful, unhurried setting.
La Petite owner Ming Cao and his wife, Haiquing Ren, have been
restaurateurs together for 30 years. Cao, an oil painting teacher by
THEROANOKER.COM

trade, came to the United States from China at the age of 36. He began
American life as a dishwasher at a Chinese restaurant in New York City.
He laughs remembering that time,
"For 10 years I am a teacher. Then I come to America and work as
a dishwasher!" Cao, with his enduring smile, laughs while moving his
hand through the air in a plummeting fashion. But Cao was a quick
learner. Within six months he earned the position of head chef. Within
a year, Ren, also a teacher in China, joined him. They married, moved
to Roanoke and began their joint entrepreneurial restaurant careers.
For decades, Cao and Ren offered Roanokers Asian cuisine in small
family-style settings. They started with Chinese restaurants. However,
when the informal Chinese buffets came to town, the couple couldn't
compete, nor did they care to abandon their commitment to the intiJANUARY/FEBRUARY 2017 | 59



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The Roanoker - January/February 2017

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of The Roanoker - January/February 2017

Front Cover
Letters/Worth a Click
From the Editor
Lunch With . . .
Streets of Roanoke
The Gist
Events
25 Great Things in Roanoke, 2016
Five National Best-Selling Authors Right Here?
Making it in Roanoke
The “From-Scratch” Bullington Home
Blue Apron, La Petite Fondue: Two for Distinctive Dining
The Dish
SPECIAL SECTION: Valley Life
SPECIAL SECTION: The Menu Dining Guide
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - Intro
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - Cover1
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - Cover2
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 3
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 4
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 5
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 6
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 7
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 8
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 9
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - Letters/Worth a Click
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 11
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - From the Editor
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 13
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - Lunch With . . .
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 15
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - Streets of Roanoke
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 17
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - The Gist
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 19
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 20
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 21
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - Events
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 23
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 24
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 25
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 26
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 25 Great Things in Roanoke, 2016
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 28
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 29
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 30
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 31
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 32
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 33
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - Five National Best-Selling Authors Right Here?
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 35
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 36
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 37
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - Making it in Roanoke
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 39
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 40
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 41
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 42
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 43
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - The “From-Scratch” Bullington Home
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 45
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 46
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 47
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 48
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 49
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 50
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - SPECIAL SECTION: Valley Life
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - VL2
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - VL3
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - VL4
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - VL5
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - VL6
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The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - VL10
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The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - VL33
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The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - VL35
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - VL36
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The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - VL39
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - VL40
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - VL41
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - VL42
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - VL43
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - VL44
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - VL45
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - VL46
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - VL47
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - VL48
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - VL49
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - VL50
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - VL51
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - VL52
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - VL53
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - VL54
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - VL55
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - VL56
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - VL57
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - VL58
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - VL59
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - VL60
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - VL61
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - VL62
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - VL63
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - VL64
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - VL65
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - VL66
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - VL67
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - VL68
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 51
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 52
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 53
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 54
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 55
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - Blue Apron, La Petite Fondue: Two for Distinctive Dining
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 57
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 58
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 59
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 60
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 61
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 62
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 63
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 64
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - 65
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - The Dish
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - Cover3
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - Cover4
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - SPECIAL SECTION: The Menu Dining Guide
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - M2
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - M3
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - M4
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - M5
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - M6
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - M7
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The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - M9
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The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - M11
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The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - M27
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The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - M35
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The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - M41
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The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - M43
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - M44
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - M45
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - M46
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - M47
The Roanoker - January/February 2017 - M48
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