Can you tell me a little bit about Jing Fong’s history as a banquet venue? Whenever I think of Chinese banquet culture here in New York, I think of Jing Fong. Photo courtesy of Jing Fong The doors to Jing Fong’s former location on Elizabeth Street. The doors to Jing Fong’s former location on Elizabeth Street. She transformed it so much with the lighting, and by adding a bar and a dance floor, and treating the ceilings, that when my aunt came up the escalator, she said, “Holy crap, I don’t remember this place.” At one point, that same aunt who’s been eating here for more than 30 years asked me, “Where’s the bathroom?” It just goes to show you how long we’ve been there. She actually bought out the restaurant on a Saturday, and hosted this wedding for 300 people. And the crazy thing is that the last big event that my family did at Jing Fong was when my sister got married in 2017. I remember my uncle getting married at the new place on 20 Elizabeth Street in the early 90s. Some of our employees who have been with us from way back when, like our bookkeeper - she’s been with us for probably more than 30-plus years - they tell me they remember me when I was a little kid, following my grandfather all over the place. I remember going to the old restaurant, in the office and crawling around or drawing. My grandparents babysat me on a daily basis for a little bit when I was really young, and my grandfather would take me out to the restaurant pretty much every day with my grandmother. I actually have some memories from the very first location, on 24 Elizabeth Street, before we moved to 20 Elizabeth Street. What are some of your personal memories of Jing Fong? You pretty much grew up in the restaurant over the years. Everything was a little bit different from normal, but at least we got one last chance to go up that escalator. I’m glad that people got one last chance to go there, even though the service wasn’t the same. He’s 13 years old now and I remember coming here before he was born, while I was pregnant, and, you know, after baseball practice, every Sunday, we’d bring him every weekend.” There were so many stories like that. But I didn’t realize how many non-Chinese customers we’ve had who have been regulars more than 20 years.ĭuring the last few days we were open, I was walking around and talking to people who came in to walk around and take pictures, and I didn’t realize how many people have been coming to us weekly for so long. I knew that it meant a lot to the local Chinese people and the Chinese community. Truman Lam: I was definitely a little bit surprised. Resy: Were you surprised by how emotional people were about the closing of Jing Fong’s 20 Elizabeth Street location? We spoke with third-generation owner Truman Lam about the move, and about the challenges of relocating a legendary restaurant like Jing Fong. Luckily for us, although Jing Fong closed the doors to its Elizabeth Street home (pictured below), they’re planning to reopen this October in a new, smaller location on Centre Street, that can host up to 125. Or they might find themselves right in the middle of multiple banquet parties - celebrations for weddings, graduations, birthdays, retirements, and Chinese family associations. There, they were surrounded by staffers explaining the daily dim sum offerings in Cantonese, pushing around carts filled to the brim with har gow, siu mai, and phoenix claws. Jing Fong, the Manhattan Chinatown stalwart that had occupied a 25,000 square-foot space at 24 Elizabeth Street for 28 years (and 15 years before that in a space just down the block) was a beloved institution among New Yorkers and tourists alike who loved setting foot onto its steep, three-story-tall escalators and eventually finding themselves in its massive, crimson-colored banquet hall that could hold up to 800 diners. This March, one of New York City’s most beloved dim sum palaces closed its doors and the city lost a shared piece of its culinary history.
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