M Resort’s Jayde Fuzion chef is living the American Dream

The first two guests walked through the entrance of Jayde Fuzion to their seats just after it opened for the first time.

After about a month of setting up the restaurant — along with several weeks fighting to win it on Food Network’s “Restaurant Express” — Seonkyoung Longest’s dream was finally real.

“I couldn’t help but cry,” she said. “I’m the type of person who needs to cry when I feel overwhelmed to get it all out.”

She finished crying and started her first official shift as the executive chef.

Jayde Fuzion opened inside the M Resort, 12300 Las Vegas Blvd. South, Dec.17 featuring a mixture of Japanese, Chinese and Korean small plates.

“This is really happening,” Longest said. “This is the American dream.”

Longest’s story starts in South Korea, where she was born and raised.

She was the youngest of her siblings and was determined to be a cartoonist.

“I was really good at it,” she said. “I think I got cocky at it.”

Despite having talent, Longest didn’t have anyone to mentor her.

“I didn’t have someone to push me, so I just gave it up,” she said.

From there, she began a career in belly dancing.

“It was good because you just had to focus on your next move,” she said. “It was a stress relief.”

While performing, she met her future husband, who was American and in the military.

They married in Las Vegas and moved to Mississippi, where her husband was stationed.

Her first few months were good as she embraced her new life.

“It was hard for me to make friends because people didn’t have patience dealing with my English, which was a lot worse,” Longest said.

With the language barrier and adjusting to new foods, Longest sank into a depression.

“I couldn’t get out of bed,” she said.

Her mother, who also lived in America by then, flew in to try to help her. But Longest couldn’t kick this feeling.

Around the same time, she decided to start watching Food Network to help her learn English and how to cook.

“The first person I saw was Rachael Ray and ‘30 Minute Meals,’ ” she said. “I decided to make her lemon risotto, and my husband loved it.”

She worked her way through Food Network chefs, learning Paula Dean’s desserts, Giada De Laurentiis’ pasta, Ina Garten’s French cuisines and Bobby Flay’s techniques.

“I learned so much because they are the best,” she said.

Before she knew it, her depression had subsided and cooking skills had developed in its place.

She didn’t want simply to learn anymore. Longest was ready to share her skills.

She created a YouTube Channel called “Asian at Home,” where she demonstrates different traditional dishes.

Longest had auditioned to be on another cooking show. However, she didn’t make it through to appear on television.

Fortunately for her, one of the producers liked her personality and made a note of it.

When it was time for “Restaurant Express” to debut, the producer called Longest.

“I couldn’t believe it when they called,” she said. “I didn’t care what it was. I was a yes. They could have asked me to lay down in a parking lot, I would have been down.”

She met her other competitors from the show and felt intimidated.

“Everyone had a culinary background or had a restaurant before,” she said. “I thought, ‘There is no way I will win this.’ ”

But with blood, sweat and tears, Longest made her way through each challenge.

“I watched the season on TV and cried watching,” she said.

She remember her first challenge and going into a restaurant supply store for the first time.

“It was overwhelming,” she said.

When it came to the semifinals, she thought for sure she would be sent home.

She said she was more distraught when a teammate went home than she was to find out she was in the top two.

The finale premiered Dec. 15, and Longest tearfully watched from her restaurant.

Her prize for winning the show was getting her own restaurant at the M Resort.

“We’ve had a relationship with Food Network since before we opened the property, but for this particular opportunity, Food Network approached us,” said Rina Foster, director of public relations. “We discussed the show internally with the network and determined it was a great fit for us.”

Foster said the hotel had worked with other networks such as Bravo, which featured the M Resort on “Top Chef.”

She added that being featured on shows has helped create increased traffic. She is excited to see the impact from being on “Restaurant Express.”

“We anticipate it being a favorite among all our guests,” she said. “We see this restaurant as an opportunity to bring new people to the property and as an opportunity for Seonkyoung’s fans to meet and taste her food. If our grand opening was any indication, we’re looking forward to a successful restaurant.”

Longest puts on her white chef’s jacket with her name inscribed on one shoulder and her restaurant on the other.

“I’m still processing this,” she said. “I’m still accepting this is really happening.”

Contact Henderson/Anthem View reporter Michael Lyle at mlyle@viewnews.com or 702-387-5201.

BEHIND THE SCENES

The name Jayde Fuzion comes from executive chef Seonkyoung Longest’s name, which means jade.

The easiest task for the executive chef was coming up with recipes.

“I can come up with recipes all day long,” she said. “Putting me in a kitchen is like putting a kid in a playground. I have fun.”

Along the way, she has also learned other aspects of being an executive chef, such as management.

“But I have a team of people helping me,” she said.

Her family flew in to support her on her restaurant’s first night — since her husband is still in the military, he wasn’t able to join her.

“It’s really sad,” she said.

But Longest has plenty of work to distract her.

She is enjoying being in Southern Nevada just from the amount of options she had compared to living in a smaller town before.

Longest occasionally makes YouTube videos teaching people items from the menu and from the show.

When a lull hits at her restaurant, she will walk around to the tables to ask the customers’ their opinions of the food.

“Someone told me I make better kimchi than his mother,” she said. “That’s crazy. I asked if they were just saying that to make me feel good.”