Memories of China Lion and Tung Hoy

While researching a recent article about the best pizza in Mamaroneck, I passed by the site that had most recently housed Tung Hoy Chinese Restaurant and, previously, Bob Poon's China Lion. The original structure was being flattened to make room for, I guess, another bank, chain drug store or perhaps another Asian fusion restaurant.

(Editor's note: this writer's gut is right. Scroll down to find out what will replace Tung Hoy.)

I decided to park across the street at Gusano Loco and collect my thoughts while watching the construction crew through the window. This sight of the demolition brought back many fond memories of a time when Chinese food was basically Cantonese, the old-time religion, as I have referred to it in the past, among foodies.

Bob Poon was a personable, knowledgeable host who ran the original China Lion for many successful years through the '70s, '80s and early '90s before selling the location to the group that ran Tung Hoy. He was ahead of his time, offering not just traditional Chinese American dishes, but venturing on occasion to other regions of China such as Szechuan, Hunan and even over the border to Singapore and Hong Kong.

One morning when I arrived for a business meeting, Poon invited me to have breakfast with him at the bar. "I want you to try a typical Chinese breakfast," he said. Out came two steaming big bowls of soup loaded with meats, noodles and vegetables. There was a poached egg floating inside as well, waiting to be broken. On the side we had several house-made Chinese buns. It was delicious!

Bob Poon later went on to open groundbreaking and highly regarded A Taste of China in Bronxville, which was the first to serve a modernized version of the typical Chinese menu, along with American pastries, espresso and cappuccino. The New York Times awarded it three stars back then, a first for a Chinese restaurant.

The syndicate of four or five that ran sprawling Tung Hoy Chinese Restaurant out of a strip mall in Larchmont moved into the China Lion space in the '90s. Initially, they brought their popularity with them. It was typical Cantonese and quite good. We're talking great Shrimp with Lobster Sauce and Moo Shu Pork.

I can remember driving up from New Rochelle just to get take-out. It was my daughter's first taste of Chinese food. And if my family and I decided to take a table inside, invariably we would run into neighbors we knew from surrounding towns. Tommy, the long running barkeep at Tung Hoy, knew how everyone liked their cocktail prepared. And the camaraderie between the staff and their patrons was legion.

Well, time did seem to pass them by and the American palate kept moving forward as well. Eventually, Tung Hoy, their surviving ownership aging as we all do, decided to vacate the premises. And though the structure remained empty for a couple of years, my memories of both restaurants remained intact.

I would like to hear your memories, too. Send your comments along.

(Morris Gut is a restaurant consultant and former restaurant trade magazine editor. He has been tracking and writing about the dining scene in greater Westchester for mover 25 years. He may be reached at: 914-235-6591. E-mail: gutreactions@optonline.net.)

Editor's Note: A Bank of America is in fact coming to 1160 W Boston Post Rd. The bank has already come before the Village of Mamaroneck Planning Board and construction has begun. Donald Mazin, the attorney for the bank, says he does not know when construction will be completed, but estimates "a couple of months."

To see the "I remember Tung Hoy Chinese Restaurant" Facebook page, click here. Tung Hoy fans have been wondering about the restaurant's whereabouts since Feb. 2007, as evidenced by this blog post. Former customers mourn the loss of the "best" wonton soup and egg rolls that the restaurant offered.