Which Ain't Dere No More Place Do You Miss?
Posted: Tue Dec 29, 2009 5:32 pm
I was thinking about Katrina restaurant casualties the other day. Specifically, I was thinking about Hong Kong, a Cantonese restaurant on Lakeshore Drive. Hong Kong was a typical dimly lit, paper lantern, little umbrella-in-your drink Chinese restaurant. My parents had been going there since I was an infant, and I eventually picked up the tradition. The food was surprisingly good and the same staff was there that whole time. In the years before Katrina the place had undergone a bit of a transformation as they began to serve steaks and seafood also, but this never affected the quality of their original focus, the Chinese food. The little cramped bar also got a lot of business. I seem to remember fluorescent lighting which would enhance certain items of clothing if you were not careful, so that may have had something to do with it.
The building itself was decidedly shabby, but the main feature was that the entire back wall was a big plate glass window that looked out on the West End canal. The restaurant was right on the canal so you could sit right next to the window and watch the sail boats tool in or out during your entire meal. You could watch the mullet jump out of the water. I don't know of a single place in the city that has that same view. You could also sit in a big circular booth with oversize wicker chairs and get the same view. The entire place exuded atmosphere, and it was one of those places that was a part of my life from the time I could remember.
The building is still there and so is the sign. Wish it was open again. Are there any places like this that you miss?
The building itself was decidedly shabby, but the main feature was that the entire back wall was a big plate glass window that looked out on the West End canal. The restaurant was right on the canal so you could sit right next to the window and watch the sail boats tool in or out during your entire meal. You could watch the mullet jump out of the water. I don't know of a single place in the city that has that same view. You could also sit in a big circular booth with oversize wicker chairs and get the same view. The entire place exuded atmosphere, and it was one of those places that was a part of my life from the time I could remember.
The building is still there and so is the sign. Wish it was open again. Are there any places like this that you miss?
