Crazy Rich Asians Is Coming to HBO: Eat Where Director Jon M. Chu Grew Up

The Crazy Rich Asians TV series is officially happening. On October 8, 2026, HBO announced an eight-episode Crazy Rich Asians series that picks up after the events of the 2018 blockbuster, the highest-grossing Hollywood studio romantic comedy at the North American box office in nearly a decade. For fans who have waited years for a Crazy Rich Asians sequel, the news is better than a movie: more time with Rachel, Nick and the Young family, on HBO and HBO Max.

And if you live on the Peninsula or in Silicon Valley, there is a delicious local twist. The director of Crazy Rich Asians, Jon M. Chu, grew up in one of the most famous Chinese restaurants in the Bay Area: Chef Chu's in Los Altos, just over the Palo Alto line. Here is everything we know about the new Crazy Rich Asians HBO series, plus why a dinner at Chef Chu's is the best way to celebrate.

The Crazy Rich Asians HBO series: everything we know

HBO has given a straight-to-series order to a one-hour Crazy Rich Asians drama. Here are the confirmed details so far:

• Format: eight one-hour episodes, an HBO original that will stream on HBO Max.
• Story: the Crazy Rich Asians series continues the story after the 2018 film, drawing on Kevin Kwan's bestselling Crazy Rich Asians novels.
• Returning cast: Constance Wu (Rachel Chu), Henry Golding (Nick Young) and Ronny Chieng (Eddie Cheng) are series regulars. Oscar winner Michelle Yeoh returns as Eleanor Young in a recurring role.
• Showrunner: Adele Lim, who co-wrote the Crazy Rich Asians movie, is showrunner and executive producer.
• Executive producers: director Jon M. Chu, author Kevin Kwan, and producers Nina Jacobson and Brad Simpson all return.
• Production: filming on the Crazy Rich Asians series begins in 2027.
• Release date: HBO has not announced a Crazy Rich Asians premiere date yet.

What about Gemma Chan (Astrid) and Awkwafina (Peik Lin)? Neither was named in HBO's announcement. That doesn't rule them out, but nothing has been confirmed, so fans will have to wait for more Crazy Rich Asians casting news.

Why a TV series instead of a Crazy Rich Asians sequel movie?

A big-screen Crazy Rich Asians sequel based on China Rich Girlfriend was announced soon after the original film's 2018 success, but it stalled for years. An eight-episode HBO series gives the story room to breathe: more family drama, more lavish parties, more of Kevin Kwan's world of old money and new money, and, we hope, more of the food scenes that made the movie so hungry-making. Bringing back Adele Lim and Jon M. Chu keeps the heart of the original intact.

Meet Chef Chu's: the Los Altos restaurant run by Jon M. Chu's family

Long before he directed Crazy Rich Asians, In the Heights and the Wicked movies, Jon M. Chu was a kid growing up in his family's restaurant. Chef Chu's, at 1067 N. San Antonio Road at the corner of El Camino Real in Los Altos, was opened in 1970 by his father, Lawrence Chu, when he was 26. The first Chef Chu's was a 12-item takeout counter in a former laundromat in a strip-mall storefront.

Lawrence Chu was born in Sichuan during World War II and came to the United States at 19. He learned American restaurant service at Trader Vic's in San Francisco, then built Chef Chu's dish by dish. The menu grew to cover four regional Chinese cuisines, the dining room grew until the family took over the whole building, and Chef Chu's became a Silicon Valley institution. In 2017, CNN ranked Chef Chu's #3 among the 50 best Chinese restaurants in the United States. Today Lawrence's oldest son, Larry Chu Jr., runs the restaurant day to day.

Fifty-plus years of history hang on the walls. Chef Chu's has served Silicon Valley legends like Steve Jobs, Gordon Moore and Paul Allen, world leaders including Margaret Thatcher, Mikhail Gorbachev and Jimmy Carter, and stars from Serena Williams and Justin Bieber to Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo of Wicked.

How Chef Chu's shaped the director of Crazy Rich Asians

Jon M. Chu has talked often about growing up in that dining room, watching his parents work, he once said, "their butts off in the kitchen, out in the front." His parents never made him work in the family restaurant. Instead they bought him books on filmmaking. "My family catered my first short screening," he has said. That love of a crowded, joyful table runs all through Crazy Rich Asians, a movie where some of the most memorable scenes happen over food. When Chu went on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert to promote Crazy Rich Asians, he made sure to plug his dad's restaurant, and his movie posters now hang at Chef Chu's.

What to order at Chef Chu's

Chef Chu's serves classic Chinese-American favorites alongside dishes from four regions of China. To eat like a regular, start with these:

• Peking duck: crisp-skinned duck wrapped in thin pancakes with scallions and hoisin, widely considered one of the best Peking ducks on the Peninsula. Call ahead, because it's made to order.
• Chef Chu's Famous Chicken Salad: the dish that regulars order more than any other.
• Minced chicken in lettuce cups: a crunchy, shareable starter for the table.
• Sichuan dry-braised prawns: a nod to Lawrence Chu's Sichuan roots.

The best way to eat at Chef Chu's is the way the Young family would: family style, with a big group, and with plenty of dishes spinning on the lazy susan.

Plan a Crazy Rich Asians watch party, Peninsula style

There is no Crazy Rich Asians premiere date yet, and filming starts in 2027, so there is plenty of time to get ready. Rewatch the movie, read Kevin Kwan's China Rich Girlfriend and Rich People Problems, and gather your own crew for a family-style feast at Chef Chu's. When the Crazy Rich Asians series finally lands on HBO Max, you'll already know where the premiere-night dinner is.

Looking for more Chinese food in Palo Alto, Los Altos and Mountain View? Find Chef Chu's and more Peninsula favorites on Outside Eats.