A familiar Collingwood restaurant owner who retired in 2001 has died.
King Chung (Gen) Yuen on died on March 4. He was 88.
The restaurateur was known in Collingwood as the owner of Bamboo Terrace, a Chinese/Canadian restaurant on Hurontario Street. He operated the restaurant with his wife Betty for 36 years, closing up shop in 2001 to retire in Scarborough.
Born in Taishan, Guangdong, China, Gen arrived in Canada in 1949, sponsored by his grandfather Charlie Yuen.
Gen’s son, Alex Yuen, is a co-owner of Collingwood Olive Oil Co.
“We moved to Collingwood in 1966. I was one month old,” said Yuen. “He worked at several restaurants in town including the Arlington Hotel and the Talisman Resort. He worked in the kitchen. In 1969, he started the Bamboo Terrace.”
Yuen said he and his sisters all grew up working in the restaurant with his mom and dad.
“It was a family business, for sure,” he said. “Everything had to be done to perfection. Suppliers that came into the kitchen would always say we had one of the cleanest kitchens in Collingwood.”
Yuen said his passion for cooking comes from his father.
“Everybody says their father is the best, but he was certainly my mentor,” said Yuen.
Yuen said there were certain milestones in his life his parents would have to miss because of restaurant responsibilities.
“He would always feel bad about that, but I understood,” he said. “The thing that was always important to him, was his family.”
After selling the restaurant in 2001, Gen moved to Scarborough to be close to his family and friends, however he would regularly still come back to Collingwood to visit.
“Being on the main street for so long, he and my mother built a very successful reputation for being good, kind people who were always looking out for their customers and supporting the community,” said Yuen.
Yeun points to his father’s real estate dealings in Collingwood as an example of his kind nature.
“We owned other properties in Collingwood as another source of income for the family. When renting them out, my father always said he didn’t care what fair market value was. His rent would always be lower than everybody else’s,” said Yuen. “His philosophy always was, if they do well, then he’d do well. If he could help somebody else, then he would do that.”
“As long as his expenses were covered with a little bit in his pocket, and the other guy could make money, he was happy,” said Yuen. “My father was an honest man. He was hardworking. He had a good sense of humour.”
“He was a wonderful man and a wonderful father, and he will be missed,” said Yuen.
Family has asked that visitation remain private, however a webcasting of the funeral service will be taking place on Mar. 13 at 1 p.m. through the York Cemetery & Funeral Centre’s website.
