Ngan Lung Restaurant

Ngan Lung Catering (Holdings) Limited (Chinese: 銀龍飲食集團有限公司) is a cha chaan teng restaurant chain founded by Lau Choi Lung in 1963 in Hong Kong.[2] The chain currently has 18 locations, primarily serving Kowloon and the New Territories.[1] It also operates three restaurants on Hong Kong Island. Food items offered at each outlet varies, although most of the available food choices are standard, and are reminiscent of Hong Kong traditional cha chaan teng and bing sutt food culture.[3]

Ngan Lung Restaurant at Choi Tak Shopping Centre.
Ngan Lung Catering (Holdings) Ltd.
TypePrivate
IndustryRestaurants
GenreCha chaan teng
Founded1963 (1963)
HeadquartersKowloon Walled City, Kowloon, Hong Kong
Area served
Hong Kong, Zhuhai (formerly)
Key people
Tang Bing-hung, Chairman
ProductsChinese food  • Hong Kong-style Western cuisine
Number of employees
850 (2016)[1]
Websitenganlung.com/index.html

History

Ngan Lung Restaurant was founded in 1963 by street vendor Tang Bing-hung as a bing sutt, which were restaurants that offered inexpensive Hong Kong-style Western cuisine.[4] The bing sutt was located in Tung Tau Tsuen. Due to the low standard of living in the area at the time, the inexpensive food offered at the bing sutt was very popular, and the business experienced rapid growth.[5] However, the government planned to redevelop Tung Tau Tsuen, and in 1984 the business moved to Lok Fu, Kowloon.[5] It was located near Kowloon Walled City, an area which was rife with crime at the time.[6] Due to its proximity to the area, as well as various high-profile actors acting as villains in television dramas frequenting the restaurant, Ngan Lung gradually received more public exposure. As the business grew bigger, its owners started focusing on how to expand it elsewhere.[7] In the 1990s, Ngan Lung started setting up restaurants in Tsuen Wan, an area where it continues to maintain a heavy presence with 8 outlets.[8]

The business continued expanding at the turn of the century, and as of 2016, the restaurant chain operates 18 outlets. In addition to operating restaurants, the chain also operates two bakeries in Kowloon.

Sai Yeung Choi Branch controversy

On January 24, 2013, the chain's branch on Sai Yeung Choi Street, Mong Kok announced that it would cease operations after the end of the Lunar New Year celebrations, due to a rent increase from 900,000 to 2,000,000 Hong Kong dollars. This outlet became the first branch to cease operations since the relocation of the original bing sutt, and caused considerable public uproar. With stories of shops closing down due to increasing rent almost ubiquitous in Hong Kong, the closing down of this restaurant only served to fuel public anger. Ngan Lung has decided to open another branch on Carnarvon Road, Tsim Sha Tsui.[9]

References
  1. "九龍城寨起家 「江湖飯堂」銀龍50年揭秘 - 時事 - 城中人．事". Eastweek.my-magazine.me.
  2. "香港品牌發展局". Hkbrand.org. Retrieved 2016-07-12.
  3. "Hong Kong food culture" (PDF). Heritagemuseum.gov.hk.
  4. "Thomas Crampton – Traditional Hong Kong Dai Pai Dong, RIP". Thomascrampton.com.
  5. "龍情‧濃情50載 銀龍塑造茶餐廳獨特文化". Hkfew.org.hk.
  6. Carney, John (16 March 2013). "Kowloon Walled City: Life in the City of Darkness". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 12 July 2016.
  8. "銀龍粉麵茶餐廳 Ngan Lung Restaurant 所有分店地址電話信用卡飲食優惠餐廳食肆資料. Allcook.com食之網". Archived from the original on 2016-08-18. Retrieved 2016-07-12.
  9. "新聞透視-租約期滿". Archived from the original on 2013-02-28.
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