Michelle Ye came to Northeast Georgia looking for a place her family could call home.
After spending several years in Tennessee, she and her husband found themselves making frequent trips to Atlanta. Eventually, they began searching for a community somewhere in between — a place that felt welcoming, quieter and close enough to the city while still offering a slower pace of life.
That search led them to Habersham County.
Today, Michelle and her husband are the owners of AJ House, a relatively new restaurant in Clarkesville that blends Chinese and Japanese cuisine while also telling the story of the family behind it.
Originally from Fujian, China, Michelle said both she and her husband have spent nearly two decades working in restaurants. Over time, they developed a dream of eventually opening a place of their own.
“My husband, he’s the one who really likes cooking,” Michelle said. “He likes making homemade stuff.”
The restaurant’s name itself is deeply personal. AJ House is named after the couple’s two sons — Austin and Jaden.
The family first visited the location in Clarkesville in April of last year and quickly became interested in the spot. By August, they had relocated from Tennessee to Habersham County to begin building the business. AJ House officially opened in November.
Inside the restaurant, Michelle’s story reflects the balancing act familiar to many small business owners — especially parents.
The couple’s sons are just 5 and 7 years old. Michelle laughed while describing the challenges of raising two young children while running a restaurant.
“When my husband said he wanted to open another restaurant, I was like, ‘Are you sure? You just sold one,’” she said.
But for her husband, cooking was never just a job.
“He said working for someone else gets boring,” Michelle said. “But when customers tell him, ‘It’s good, I like it,’ then he wants to keep improving his food.”
That passion shows up throughout the menu.
While AJ House focuses primarily on Japanese hibachi, sushi and a selection of Chinese-inspired appetizers, many dishes carry personal touches developed over years in the restaurant industry.
Michelle said one of the restaurant’s most popular dishes is the hibachi chicken, while the top-selling sushi item has become the “AJ Roll,” which includes shrimp tempura, spicy crab, crunchy flakes and eel sauce.
Another item gaining attention is a Japanese curry chicken katsu dish that has not yet officially made its way onto the printed menu.
Michelle said the curry recipe was inspired by a friend who owns several restaurants in Chicago.
“She told me, ‘You better serve curry here,’” Michelle said with a laugh. “She said they sell a ton of curry every day.”
For now, the family is intentionally keeping things manageable by focusing mainly on Chinese and Japanese offerings instead of trying to expand too quickly into additional cuisines.
“We just get so busy sometimes,” Michelle said. “Especially with two little boys.”
AJ House currently operates primarily as a takeout restaurant, though Michelle said the family hopes to continue growing in the future. AJ House is located at 1193 Historic Highway 441 North (set your GPS to Demorest). Customers can place online orders through the restaurant’s online ordering page.
For Michelle, though, the restaurant is about more than food. It represents years of experience, a leap of faith into business ownership and a family beginning a new chapter together in Habersham County.
“We like it here,” she said simply.
