Chinese restaurant in the 1940s | Gwulo: Old Hong Kong

Chinese restaurant in the 1940s

Does anyone have any info on a Chinese restaurant called 金城酒 in the 1940s? Did it have an English name?

Thanks,

Jane.

Forum: 

Can you tell us more ?  Where would it have been? What have you found so far and why you are looking for it ?  It will help us to search better.

The emphasis is on the date, the 1940s. Would it be called Golden City Restaurant then? According to one Wiki page I found, it's at 124 Des Voeux Road Central in 1961. Apparently some time late 1945 or early 1946, the HK police department held a reception on the third floor to feast over a hundred civilians for help keeping law and order right after Japan surrendered to the Allies.

 

Jane.

It sounds like a newsworthy event. You might get lucky with a search through the English-language newspapers of that time for a mention of the reception.

Can anyone suggest how to find out what business was registered at that address in 1946?

Regards, David

Searched on: 金城酒家

http://hkclweb.hkpl.gov.hk/hkclr2/internet/eng/html/welcome.html

There are English language newspapers for those dates that you can check, or search the Chinese yourself and find someone to translate for you.

金城酒家 - 大公報, 1941-02-06
Title :     大公報, 1941-02-06
Creator :    
Publisher :     香港:大公報(香港)
Publishing Date :     1941-02-06
Description :     寇里訪華昨日抵港小作勾留即將飛渝,松岡猶作狡辯圖掩飾日對美妄念,赫爾證實美使調任,我將發行戰時公債,荷日談判荷...
Category :     Newspaper

 

 

Title :     香港工商日報, 1946-07-13
Creator :    
Publisher :     香港:工商日報
Publishing Date :     1946-07-13
Description :     沉悶局面無法打開,和平談判僵持,馬歇爾分別晤見俞大維周恩來,杜林會面將談軍事問題,傳林彪要求釋放張學良。…
Category :     Newspaper

Title :     香港工商日報, 1946-07-15
Creator :    
Publisher :     香港:工商日報
Publishing Date :     1946-07-15
Description :     蔣主席赴廬山避暑,國共談判擱淺,主席謂俟氣候稍畭時再行繼續,馬歇爾日內亦將飛牯嶺,周恩來及隨員昨日赴滬。…
Category :     Newspaper

Title :     香港工商日報, 1947-02-27
Creator :    
Publisher :     香港:工商日報
Publishing Date :     1947-02-27
Description :     東北共軍向吉長線突進,長春一度緊張,竄抵長春外圍後竟又ǐ趄不前,國軍保衛長春頗有把握。…
Category :     Newspaper

Being a translator myself, reading Chinese text (which I can) is the least of my problems. :) I assume, it being the 1940s, a Chinese restaurant, no matter how good and famous, would only aim at a Chinese clientele, so an English name is not a priority. It can be anything from a translated "Golden City" to a transliterated "Gam Sing" or even something totally unrelated. Re David's comment that what I mentioned could be a newsworthy item, I'm not so sure, considering the times, i.e., the situation in China. It might be relevant in the social page, perhaps. :) But I can still try searching the English language newspapers. Now if only someone would follow up on the business registration of that era, that would be nice.

 

Jane.

I don't read Chinese.  Jane, what does the ad/article in my post above say ?

Did you check out the other Chinese newspaper links to see if they have an address in the text ?

The ad says that the restaurant has good reviews for the 6th new menu. (I assume a restaurant put out a new menu annually, so it probably means it had been around for at least 6 years then.) It boasts that the location is good, the decor is elegant, and business has always been excellent. It also mentions that at a time of inflation, they are keeping the old price. Oh, and the ad must have been around Chinese New Year, as it claims that people gather there for Spring feasts. Back to the new menu, it adds that people specify the new menu for catering.

As for the other items, the last three are all about the situation in China, they were fighting a civil war, after all.

I haven't gotten around to checking out any links yet, but will definitely follow up.

 

Jane.

I did spend a few minutes this afternoon trying to follow up on those links, but it's confusing because the words of those links are all about fighting in China.  However, those links in fact lead on to different pages of the newspaper, so the restaurant could be mentioned in an inner page.

It was rather difficult to navigate and find those references, so I gave up.  But someone with more time than myself can try to locate those little snippets.

 

I just had a thought. The police holding a reception for civilians at a Chinese restaurant might not be particularly newsworthy, but it  definitely could be something the owner(s) would be proud of. Wonder if they would push that fact in any future ads.

 

Jane.