Entrepreneur Brandon Ting Selected as Inaugural Distinguished Alumni Awardee

Receiving the Distinguished Alumni Award at Bellevue College’s 60th Anniversary Diamond Jubilee fundraiser was a significant milestone for Brandon Ting, who credits the college with his success as an entrepreneur in the United States. He is the founder and CEO of the popular Kizuki Ramen & Izakaya chain, combining authentic ramen flavor with modern Asian style, and more recently expanded his business with Supreme Dumplings.  

“It was such an honor to receive the first Distinguished Alumni Award, and it carries a lot of responsibility,” the 44-year-old Ting said in a recent interview. “I feel I need to lead by example.” He pledged to continue supporting the college and helping the next generation of students succeed. 

Already, Ting makes a point of employing Bellevue College students in his many restaurants. Not only are they terrific employees, he said, but it also gives him pleasure to help others achieve their goals.  

“It’s quite a joy for me to cultivate the younger generation,” Ting added. “To pass my knowledge to them gives me a sense of achievement.” 

Ting often tells the story of how his enrollment in the college’s English Level 2 for non-English speakers made his subsequent success possible. Today, his restaurant chains include more than 20 locations.  

But when Ting arrived in Seattle from Taiwan, he felt he was falling behind his peers. After completing his education and mandatory military service, he came to the Pacific Northwest looking for the opportunity to start a business. His aunt lived in Bellevue, so he enrolled at the college.  

“I was five years older than my classmates,” he recalled, which made him wonder if he was too old to start over in college. “So, I really felt the pressure and was nervous.” 

Although English was always his worst class in Taiwan, he found the teachers at Bellevue College friendly and supportive. His English improved so much that he was able to test out of the next stage of learning English and start taking business classes. ​But he continued to rely on the​​ ​Academic Success Center ​for assistance.​     ​​​​ 

“I remember, for one essay, going to the Writing Lab seven times. I received tremendous help from the college,” he said. “I passed two very difficult writing exams for UW because of the great education I received at Bellevue College. The school prepared me to succeed.”  

Ting graduated from Bellevue College with an associate degree in business in 2009 and entered the University of Washington’s Foster School of Business. There, he received two Bachelor of Arts degrees, one in economics and another in finance.  

While at the UW, Ting helped a friend develop plans for Bellevue’s first Asian grocery, the Baijia Supermarket. Eventually he would manage the supermarket while planning to launch his own ramen restaurant. 

From the beginning, Ting wanted Kizuki Ramen to be different. He traveled extensively to learn how to create authentic Japanese-style ramen. Beyond fabulous flavor, Ting wanted the entire dining experience to reflect modern Asian style. He imported a Taiwanese interior designer to create the look of his restaurants, with every one being slightly different and all gorgeously outfitted with authentic Asian art. An emphasis on superb customer service, including small touches like providing mouthwash for after the meal, also added to the chain’s popularity and were part of Ting’s original plans.  

While his first restaurant chain was based on Japanese traditions for ramen, his second chain was a tribute to the food culture of his childhood home city of Tainan. With dumplings being both popular and incredibly varied in Taiwan, he wanted to invoke a great comfort food atmosphere in Supreme Dumplings.  

“We are known in Tainan for caring about food so much. I wanted to bring that to America,” he said about his restaurant chains. “Food is always where my passion is. Our back-of-house line cooks can feel how much I insist on delivering [a high] level of quality to our customers.” 

Whether it is developing the best broth for ramen, which includes slow boiling for a day and digitally measuring the density of the soup, or creating the perfect dumpling, Ting wants his customers to enjoy the Asian food that he loves best. He also wants them to experience a “wow” of visual pleasure from the interior design, just as they would in the leading restaurants of Hong Kong, Tokyo, Taipei, or Shanghai.  

While the business landscape has changed significantly since he graduated, Ting said he still believes there is room for other Bellevue College students with big ideas. The impact of AI alone means both more opportunities and more challenges on an almost daily basis. When he’s talking to Bellevue College students, he advises them to look for those opportunities as well as be ready for the changes. He firmly believes that their education will give them the foundation needed for attaining their goals.  

Ting added there is never a better time than now for working on your dreams, no matter what your age. It’s advice that he would give to his younger self, sitting in an English language class and wondering if he was too old to start something new.  

“Really it is never too late as long as you are willing to start today,” he said. 

Now, more than ever, Ting remains committed to Bellevue College, regularly engaging with students through speaking opportunities, contributing to alumni events, and supporting scholarship and campus initiatives. His business journey also is part of the college’s coursework, providing students with a real-world model of entrepreneurial success.