97-99 Water Street, Stapleton - 1931
When I was a kid Chinese restaurants were not that common and many tended to be of the Jade Island "Polynesian" variety. Today, of course, they're everywhere and some are quite good. My first memory of eating in one was in Stapleton in the very early seventies. It struck my five-year-old self as very exotic and very great. I remember the food was like nothing I had had ever had before and I liked it.
You can't see the restaurant's name but you can see the wonderful Chinese-style awning and the curtains and decorations on the second-floor window in detail.
I can't remember its name right now, but it was originally located up on the second floor of a building on Water Street in Stapleton two storefronts down from the late and lamented Woolworths.
At some point, it moved half a block away to Beach Street and remained there into the eighties. Eventually, it closed and was replaced by a hair salon. You can still see the outline of the Chinese style entrance and small windows that marked its existence.
View Larger Map NOTE: I'd like to know more about the history of Chinese-Americans on Staten Island. Growing up I didn't encounter too many but from my readings I know that at one point there were like a dozen Chinese laundries on Jersey Street with more about the Island. The restaurant above was opened in at lest 1931 and remained open for more than fifty years. That's a remarkable history. I'd like to know who these immigrants were, what drew them here and what happened to them.
You can't see the restaurant's name but you can see the wonderful Chinese-style awning and the curtains and decorations on the second-floor window in detail.
I can't remember its name right now, but it was originally located up on the second floor of a building on Water Street in Stapleton two storefronts down from the late and lamented Woolworths.
At some point, it moved half a block away to Beach Street and remained there into the eighties. Eventually, it closed and was replaced by a hair salon. You can still see the outline of the Chinese style entrance and small windows that marked its existence. 
View Larger Map NOTE: I'd like to know more about the history of Chinese-Americans on Staten Island. Growing up I didn't encounter too many but from my readings I know that at one point there were like a dozen Chinese laundries on Jersey Street with more about the Island. The restaurant above was opened in at lest 1931 and remained open for more than fifty years. That's a remarkable history. I'd like to know who these immigrants were, what drew them here and what happened to them.
9 comments:
I think the name was Ying Wah.
If it was the Chinese Restaurant a few doors from Woolworth's, it was called "ChopSuey". You can see the sign on an earlier facebook posting. It is a picture of a young girl, leaning against a car with the sign behind her.
Elizabeth is correct the name of the restaurant was Ying Wah's
Hello. It was really a nice surprise when I googled Ying Wah Restaurant and came upon your blog. Ying Wah was owned by my family. My grandparents, my mom and her brothers and sisters first immigrated to the US in the early 60's and Staten Island played a big part in shaping their lives in America. That building on Beach Street was our family home for over 50 years. Attached is a video of my Uncle Tzi Ma, now an actor, who briefly talks about growing up as one of very few Chinese boys on Staten Island. While many of us in my generation have since settled all over the country, Staten Island will always be home for us.
KEITH
https://youtu.be/KBhlKGcnjUA
Omg I use to love that restraunt when I was a kid and I remember Bill very very well......then your right they moved down to beach street across from the big bank"
Uncle Bill was awesome. US Vet who fought in the Korean War. All the kids loved him and he remembered everyone and everything and always talked about the regulars at the restaurant. He and his wife moved to CA after the restaurant closed to be closer to his kids and grandkids. He passed in 2009. He was 85 years young.
Keith, I hope you see this. I didn't have notifications turned on and I have left this blog alone for 18 months. Thank you, so, so much for the information and the video link. I've been incredibly curious about the Chinese experience on Staten Island and I haven't found anything useful so far. When I was researching Jersey Street, I discovered several Chinese laundries along the street, and it set me to wondering. There can't have been that many Chinese people here (even in the eighties, Curtis High School had very few Asian students of any nationality) in the forties, and yet right there on one major commercial strip were several stores. If you, or any members of your family, have any idea of a direction to point me in, I'd be so very grateful.
Hello The Wasp! I'm glad to see you are coming back to this blog. The only place I can think of where there might be any kind of research would be the Museum of the Chinese in America. They may have something in their archives about Chinese immigrants on Staten Island but it is probably a long shot as their focus has been primarily in the Manhattan area. From the stories I heard from my grandparents, it did sound like there was a small tight knit community of earlier generation Chinese immigrants prior to the arrival of my family in the early 60's. I can't say I know how they settled there as the Chinese Exclusion Act that denied entry for Chinese immigrants since the late 1800's was in effect until 1943 when very small numbers of Chinese immigrants were allowed in the US. My guess is those who settled in the 40's on Jersey Street were lucky enough to be in that first wave, had arrived in the 1800's prior to the exclusion act or were families of "Paper Sons" who kind of skirted the system and found a way in the country. I could go on and on. Do you prefer to communicate through the comments or perhaps you can give me your email?
Keith, thank you so much for writing back. I watched the video with your uncle. To think I've seen him on the screen for years and he lived a handful of blocks from me. Do you know which high school he went to?
Thank you for the heads up on where to maybe find some information, though it sounds like I'd really have my work cut out for me to find serious info. I thought I'd included my e-mail in the site, so I'll have to add it. It's fletchav@gmail.com and if you can think of anything or come across anything, please let me know. (my actual name is Fletcher Vredenburgh, the Wasp thing rests on a long and boring story)
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