Mixing business with pleasure
WHEN C.F. Chong, presently manager of the new Yangtsze Hotel situated at the corner of Hankow and Yunnan roads and scheduled to open about first of next month, left his native home in Canton some 36 or more years ago to go abroad and seek his fortune, he had little idea that he would become one of the outstanding Chinese restaurant proprietors in Europe.
It is possible that he had little idea that he would enter the restaurant and hotel business. Yet after a few years in Europe, he became the owner of a number of Chinese restaurants, designed to cater to the jaded appetites of foreigners in search of something new in the way of food and at the same time to cater to the tastes of his countrymen living abroad seeking orbits from their native land.
Today, Mr Chong is the head of five large Chinese restaurants in Europe, two of the best known being the Chinese Restaurant in Piccadilly Circus and the famous Restaurant Chinois, 2 Rue de l’Ecole de Medecine in Paris.
Both of these establishments are famed for their cuisine and to anyone who has been in them, the reputation of Mr Chong as a restaurant man must speak for itself. The establishment in Piccadilly Circus is a large place which caters to both Chinese and foreigners and is widely known throughout London.
Returning to China two years ago, Mr Chong mixed business with pleasure and decided to open a similar establishment in Shanghai. The new Yangtsze Hotel has been the result of his endeavor and the establishment will be patterned after his places in Europe.
While Chinese food cooked under the guidance of expert Chinese chef will be served, the gourmet will be able to find dishes and viands of western countries at his disposal.
A French chef is being brought from Paris and an English chef from London to cater to the appetites of Shanghai patrons.
In regard to the kitchens of the new hotel, these are modern and furnished with all latest equipment. They are designed to attain the utmost in Sanitation while a cooking system has been installed in the dining room.
Mr Chong is not just an ordinary restaurant man. He has had an unusual career in Europe and is one of the best known in England. And England has honored him.
At the British Empire Exhibition in 1925, Mr Chong was honored for his achievement as a maestro in the serving of foods of many nations. In this connect, the citation states “For contributing to the development of the Arts, Sciences and Industries of the British Empire.”
— Excerpt from The China Press (October 19, 1933)