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Greenwood Life
Sean Lin AN AMERICAN SUCCESS STORY
STORY BY Scott Cutlip
For 18 years, Lin’s House has been the one and only Chinese restaurant in Greenwood. To people in Greenwood, it’s also been one of the best restaurants in town. So much so, that when it was closed for two months because of the coronavirus and lack of supplies, people put notes on the restaurant’s doors asking for it to be opened. And when it finally did open again in May, cars lined up around the block to order food from the drive-thru and the phone line got overwhelmed.
Sean Lin, the owner of Lin’s House, moved to America in 1992, when he was 19. Born and raised in China, he said he came to the USA in search of “the American dream.” At the time, he came over with the expectation that, because China was so poor at the time, he would come back in 10 to 15 years with a savings of $15,000 and retire in China with the money he earned in the States. Circumstances changed, of course, and Lin said that now $15,000 in China is pocket change.
He came to America with a hundred dollars in his pocket. A cousin got him work at a restaurant in
PHOTOGRAPHY BY Sharla Derry
New York City, where he worked for 10 years. Lin originally had no interest in the restaurant business, but quickly began to take to it. While there, Lin also attended class and improved his English skills, mainly at the restaurant.
“I can learn English more quickly that way,” Lin said. “When you work in a restaurant — and this was a to-go restaurant, not dine in — you have a lot of customers come in. They stand there and watch you cook, and I always say something, you know, pick out little by little, ‘hello,’ ‘how you doing.’”
After 9/11, Lin and his soon-to-be wife, Angela, decided they wanted to move to a small town and, after helping friends at a restaurant in Mississippi, Lin went on a road trip, sleeping in his car as he searched.
His intention was to find a town with fewer than 10,000 people, which also didn’t have a Chinese restaurant. He found that in Greenwood, as well as a closed Sonic restaurant for sale. Lin negotiated a multi-year lease and opened the restaurant in
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Sean Lin OWNER OF LIN’S HOUSE
2002. At first, he utilized the original layout of the Sonic restaurant.
“At first it was just drive-thru, no dining room,” he said. “Two years later, we saved money, did good business, and we made a nice dining room buffet. Because we found people here still like all-youcan-eat. A lot of people don’t order off the menu.”
Lin’s business grew, as he expanded parking at the restaurant and at one point had five restaurants in Arkansas, although Lin’s House is his only current restaurant.
While Lin has had many impactful moments while living in Greenwood, nothing was more important to him than when he became a citizen. China doesn’t allow dual citizenship, so, in large part because he owned property in China, which he wouldn’t have been able to do if he were a US citizen, he hadn’t made an attempt to receive his citizenship. Finally, he decided to make the leap.
“I told my wife, ‘I’m ready, I want to vote,’” Lin said. “I always wanted to be American. It’s such a great country. I love it here. Nice people, especially down here in the Greenwood community. Everybody knows me; I know everybody.”
Lin sold his property in China and prepared for the citizenship test. He was sworn in as a citizen by Mayor Doug Kinslow in May 2018.
Lin’s love of being an American is emphasized by his love of the small-town values of Greenwood.
“Greenwood is kind of an old town,” Lin said. “It’s been here a long time. It’s still got the old generation, they’ve lived their whole lives here. Eighteen years and we’ve gone, well, we’re from Greenwood now. The last 18 years, how many new people
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Greenwood Life
have moved in? A lot of people, now they ask me all kinds of questions. When I first started here, I didn’t know anything. And a lot of people help me, whatever I need to do, plumbing, electrical, I just ask people. It makes you feel comfortable. Here, you’re like a family. And a lot of new customers, they just moved here, because the school’s good. We’re the same way. It’s just such a good community, good school. Good people. Look at how clean everything is. I love it.”
Although Lin’s House closed for two months, it didn’t free up any time for Lin. For years, he has purchased real estate, sometimes to sell and sometimes as rental properties. He has been working on building two houses, one in Chaffee Crossing and one in Greenwood. And when he’s not working at the restaurant or with real estate, he’s spending his time in his garden, covering three acres, including a vegetable garden and a variety of trees. He also enjoys biking, working out and hiking, but hasn’t
had much time recently.
Lin has been a member of the Chamber of Commerce, Advertising and Promotion Commission, and Economic Development Committee. One of the items Lin has been interested has been in expanding hours in Greenwood.
“We talked about the city’s pool, keeping it open a little late,” he said. “Pretty much right now everything at 4 or 4:30, it’s shut down. We’re like, well, maybe open to 6, let people after work come in.”
Lin lives in Greenwood with his wife and two children, Cheryl and Eason. Cheryl will be a high school senior this year.
Lin’s House is located at 400 W. Center St. Its regular hours are 11 to 10 daily, but times may vary due to COVID-19. Information and specials can be seen at the Facebook page, www.facebook.com/ Linshouse.
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& with SEAN LIN
WHAT DO YOU BELIEVE GREENWOOD’S FUTURE LOOKS LIKE?
Th e city, the mayor, the city council, we get together all the time, talk about Greenwood’s future. Like the bypass stuff .
We’ve been dealing with that traffi c. We’ve been over many, many times about it. We try to get the thing done. We’ve been meeting at least 10 times, trying to get it passed. A month ago it passed. I hope it can get installed in a couple years. As soon as we get a bypass, son, get ready, I tell you what, Greenwood is going to be booming. It’s gonna be booming, people are going to move in on the east side of town. I guarantee it’s going to be happening. You wait for about 20,000 people.
And the 20,000 people need food and gas, they need all kinds of stuff , insurance offi ce, body shop. We can handle that.
HAVE YOU THOUGHT ABOUT RUNNING FOR OFFICE?
Probably not. I know too many people. I like to deal with people. I do very successfully with the restaurant business, and people say, ‘Hey, you need to run for mayor.’ I say, ‘Hey, when I run a restaurant, I make everybody happy. As soon as I get elected, half the people are going to get mad at me.’ It’s a hard job.
WHAT WAS IT LIKE WHEN YOU FIRST OPENED AFTER BEING CLOSED TWO MONTHS DUE TO COVID-19?
Th e fi rst week, we worked 16 to 18 hours a day. We stayed here to 11, 12. Even I stayed here to 1:30 or 2, to get everything ready for tomorrow. Because we don’t do a lot of frozen stuff , everything we make on our own. We make our own eggrolls, own sweet and sour chicken. Th e fi rst couple weeks, no fair (laughs). I, my wife and daughter were working here. We set out a computer, and then the phone was so busy I told my wife to pull the phone line out. People order food at the window, and wait at least 10, 15 minutes. Th en we put numbers in the parking lot. Soon as they order and pay, we send them to the parking lot. DO YOU THINK YOU’LL EXPAND YOUR BUFFET BAR?
I wanted to keep it small in the buff et bar. We only have two bars. Most have much more. Maybe I’ll have a sushi bar, but we’re not going to expand our buff et bar. We’re busy enough, and we want every item to turn quickly, not just sit there for hours. We make 80% of what we serve here. Every two or three days, trucks return. My walk-in cooler is always empty.
WHAT ARE SOME OF THE CUSTOMERS’ FAVORITE DISHES?
Th e buff et is a favorite here. General Tso’s chicken. Black pepper chicken.
HOW OLD ARE YOU?
48. In the Chinese year, I’m 49 already. I was born on December 29, 1972. So three days later, it’s 1973, and a threeday-old baby is a two-year-old. Th ey count by the year.
HOW DO YOU SPEND YOUR VACATIONS?
I go on vacation with the kids. Sometimes my wife goes with the kids, sometimes I go with the kids. At least one or two times a year. Th e two kids have seen probably 30, 40 countries. Th ey’ve seen a lot of stuff . Just a few years ago, me and my two kids fl ew to Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan and
China for fi ve weeks. My wife has taken the kids to Europe to see Italy, London, Paris. Th ey love Italy. I go back to China to visit every four, fi ve years. My daddy still lives there.
Q&A with Scott Smith • Photo by Sharla Derry
