First Chinese restaurants in Sheffield

[hillsbro]

The Rickshaw was the first Chinese restaurant in Sheffield; it opened in 1955. The Queens (Fitzalan Square) and the Oriental (Langsett Road) followed in 1956. The Zing Vaa & Peacock opened in 1957-58. Here is a scan of an advertisement for the Rickshaw in the 1956 Kelly's Directory.

...when the first Chinese arrived in the city...?

The first Chinese in Sheffield were most likely the ones who opened laundries in the early 1900s. The 1925 directory lists seven Sheffield laundries whose proprietors had Chinese names, while the 1911 directory lists just two (Harry F. Wong, 499 Ecclesall Road and Percy Wong, 90 Abbeydale Road). These laundries must have opened after 1904 as they are not shown in the directory of that year. One notorious event in 1922 was the murder at Crookes of a Chinese laundry owner by one of his workers - see here.

[TORONTONY]

The first one that I remember was the Peacock in the Wicker.

 

Yeah, I remember that one. Did it turn Indian, mid sixties, or am I thinking of two different places? Reason I ask is that my first taste of Indian food was in the Wicker, around 65/66. not too far from the Station or was it Railway the pub near the arches across the street from the Cinema.

[crookedspire]

The Rickshaw was the first Chinese restaurant in Sheffield; it opened in 1955. The Queens (Fitzalan Square) and the Oriental (Langsett Road) followed in 1956. The Zing Vaa & Peacock opened in 1957-58. Here is a scan of an advertisement for the Rickshaw in the 1956 Kelly's Directory.The first Chinese in Sheffield were most likely the ones who opened laundries in the early 1900s. The 1925 directory lists seven Sheffield laundries whose proprietors had Chinese names, while the 1911 directory lists just two (Harry F. Wong, 499 Ecclesall Road and Percy Wong, 90 Abbeydale Road). These laundries must have opened after 1904 as they are not shown in the directory of that year. One notorious event in 1922 was the murder at Crookes of a Chinese laundry owner by one of his workers - see here.

The first Chinese to arrive in Sheffield was early 20 th century I'm guessing most would have come from the Crown colony Hong Kong. Thanks for the murder story very interesting.

[hillsbro]

Hi crookedspire - yes,the majority would have come from Hong Kong, and to judge from entries in directories there were a number Chinese families living at Crookes in the 1920s. Crookes Cemetery contains several Chinese graves, one of them being that of Yun Bun, a prominent member of Sheffield's Chinese community who left Canton via Hong Kong with his parents as a teenager in the early 1900s. They had a laundry at Heeley (47 Chesterfield Road) and later Yun Bun also owned the "Goldfish Bowl" takeaway just off The Moor.

Edited July 28, 2015 by hillsbro

[DUFFEMS]

My uncles all wore white collarless shirts with very stiffly starched white collars which were all laundered at Yun Bun Laundry Chesterfield Road. The clean ones were collected weekly and came in a rectangular cardboard box with the collars curled up inside it, the dirty ones were taken for laundering at the same time so it was a weekly "errand" of mine.

This was late 50's early 60's.

 

Regards,

Duffems

[soft ayperth]

There was one (Chinese restaurant) on Division St., near where the vacant land was (now developed) and on a street corner. As university students, we used to go there at lunch time and get a 3 course meal for 3/6d.

[hillsbro]

There was one (Chinese restaurant) on Division St., near where the vacant land was (now developed) and on a street corner...

That would be the Rickshaw, on the corner of Devonshire Street and Broomhall Street. Here is a link to a picturesheffield.com photo, taken in 1976 after it had closed..

[fleetwood]

That would be the Rickshaw, on the corner of Devonshire Street and Broomhall Street. Here is a link to a picturesheffield.com photo, taken in 1976 after it had closed..

 

I remember that one hillsbro, I think the Zing-Vaa down the Moor had to be up there as an early one also.

[stpetre]

What was the one on the Surrey Street/ Norfolk Street corner 'Hudson's Chop Suey' or something? that must have been one of the earlier ones.

[Leah-Lacie]

I know the one next to Highfield Library on London Road (Golden Lee?) has been there a fair few years, my nan worked there in the 60s - That opened in 1957 apparently

Edited July 29, 2015 by Leah-Lacie