Chinese Restaurants ( Cont . from Page 7 )
From 1968 to 1976 , QHL operated both locations , 156 and 134 Castro [ Source Note 4 ]. The family dubbed them the “ old ” and “ new ” restaurants . The 156 Castro site was then closed . In the 1980s when their children expressed no interest in taking over the business , On and Rose sold the 134 Castro property , closing QHL at the same time , March 1984 .
On Liu died four months later ; Rose lived until 2015 . Two of their adult children , David Liu and Sally Lau ( both born in Mountain View ), live today in adjacent towns .
Margie still lives a few blocks from both QHL sites . Her parents bought the house to be near their employment at the restaurant .
Andy ’ s Chinese Restaurant lasted through the 1980s [ source note 5 ], when the Chans opted to retire . The 1986 newspaper advertisement pictured to the right includes it . This advertisement by the downtown area ’ s business group ( CBA ) is notable for some details . The hopeful subtitle “ Paris on the Peninsula ” predates Castro Street ’ s 1990 reshaping to two traffic lanes plus outdoor seating . The then-current restaurant-industry buzzword “ Continental Cuisine ” is stretched considerably to embrace Mexican , Mongolian , Japanese , Indonesian , even American Soul Food , plus three nominally European-cuisine restaurants . “ Chinese ” is a large category of listed restaurants ( only Kirin , opened 1979 , remains today ).
Top : 1986 Downtown Mountian View advertisement . Bottom Left : 1970s QHL specials menu . Bottom Right : Margie Opaterny and Li Zhang in 2023 . ( Photo : Max Hauser .)
Legacy That two Qui Hing Low locations and Andy ’ s all thrived on one Castro St . block for several years reflects these restaurants ’ remarkable popularity . The Lius ’ son David recalls “ lines stretching down the street ” at times , and customers of all ethnicities , including many from local Japanese-American families , among whom he had many childhood friends . The restaurant successes are more remarkable because these restaurants preceded Castro Street ’ s 1990 reconfiguration to a more restaurant- and pedestrian-friendly format .
Source Notes
In 2018 , on the Lost Mountain View Facebook page , Mountain View resident Alan Okuno featured a 1970s QHL Specials menu pictured to the left . It triggered fond memories from locals to whom QHL was a weekly family treat or favorite take out place . Comments cited favorite dishes , some of them Chinese with American twists ( this article ’ s coauthor Li Zhang , who grew up in Beijing , recalls no such dishes there as “ Peking Beef ” or a pork and fish-patty specialty “ with a sardine strip ”).
Looking back at difficulties Chinese immigrants faced in the first half of the 20th century , the saving graces were their hard-working culture and determination to provide a better life for the next generation . These values are well demonstrated in these restaurants ’ history . Chinese restaurateurs were also adaptable , tailoring their offerings to local taste and ingredients . Thus did Chinese restaurants flourish nationwide , establishing one of the most popular cuisines in the US today . Within Chinese culture , food indeed has historically played a special role . An informal greeting in China is “ Have you eaten yet ?”
Acknowledgments : Several people gave generously of their time and memories during our research . We ’ re especially grateful to Margie Opaterny , Judy Gee , David Liu , and to Mark Jack of the Mountain View History Center at the Mountain View Public Library . Unless otherwise noted , all images are from the History Center .
[ 1 ] Nicholas Perry , Mountain View ( Then and Now series ), Arcadia Publishing , 2012 , ISBN 0738595764 , page 28 .
[ 2 ] Aubrey Drury , in 1935 , traced the then-booming Santa Clara County pit-fruit industry to Louis Pellier ’ s original 1856 experimental prune grove . California : An Intimate Guide , chapter 19 . New York : Harper and Brothers , 1935 .
This article ’ s authors have encountered many echoes of that popularity among residents old enough to recall the three restaurants . Decades after QHL ’ s closure , its dishes , like Ginger Beef , are still fondly remembered and recounted , as in the 2007 Mercury News article , “ Home Plates : Memories of Chinese restaurant ” ( https :// bit . ly / 3puyGzS ).
[ 3 ] Census data : City of Mountain View Census Data ( http :// www . bayareacensus . ca . gov / cities / MountainView . htm ) and “ 2020 census shows Mountain View grew fast , driven by increase in Asian population ” ( https :// bit . ly / 3XCLukb ).
[ 4 ] Dates for QHL locations : Pacific Telephone directories , 1976-1982 .
[ 5 ] Listed in 1989 Haines Directory , vacant in 1990 volume .
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