A MAN who has worked in a variety of industries said he can't believe the "mental" reaction to his first food stall in St Helens.
After starting his own carpet cleaning business and trying his hand in a number of different jobs, Anton Simpson said he always looked forward to a Chinese takeaway and his favourite go-to dish, Sui Mai dumplings.
In fact, the traditional pork dumplings became such a takeaway habit for the dad-of-three that he would instantly know if he was eating a sub-par one - and so decided to start making his own instead.
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With a love of cooking and Chinese food, Anton's delicacies were only intended to be for one, but he was encouraged to share his recipe after family and friends were bowled over by his succulent Sui Mai.
As more people tasted Anton's cookery, the more his Sui Mai dream became a reality and he launched the 'Sui Mai Shack' with his wife Steph and younger brother Lewis late last year.
After renting space out of a restaurant in Liverpool and testing the products at his local pub in Whiston, Anton took the Sui Mai Shack to St Helens to start his first-ever food stall at Imperial Food and Drink Quarter.
Selling a selection of steamed pork, prawn, and vegetarian sui mai as well as loaded fries and 'hangover boxes', Anton has been blown away with the reaction as the family business has been flooded with five-star reviews.
"It's all gone a bit mental to be honest", Anton said.
"We have had about 80 odd five-star reviews and not one bad review! That's for both the food quality and the customer service which I'm so pleased with.
"I know how easy it is to do one thing wrong and get a bad review, so all three of us are on top of everything to make sure each dish is perfect."
After being put off from pursuing a career as a chef as a teenager, things have come full circle for Anton after working in a range of industries and now experiencing success with his street food stall.
While there may be avenues to expand the Sui Mai Shack in the future, the dad-of-three said that his main focus is growing the business' reputation in St Helens and keeping up the quality of each Sui Mai dish.
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