A nostalgic look back at some of the beloved Chinese restaurants that have closed in Liverpool over the years, celebrating their impact on the city's culinary landscape and its Chinese community.
Chinese New Year is just days away and with the oldest Chinese community in Europe, Liverpool will be continuing its long tradition of spectacular performances and celebrations in the city. Chinese New Year 2025, The Year of the Wood Snake, falls on Wednesday, January 29. And you'll find everything you need to know about Chinese New Year , also known as the Lunar New Year, as well as full coverage of the day itself, on our website.
But this time of year also reminds us of celebrations of years gone by, some at popular and well-loved restaurants we've since said goodbye to. A huge part of our celebrations and memories growing up , we've said goodbye to a number of favourites through the years in the city centre and beyond. And as we enter a new lunar year, many will find themselves reminiscing about the ones they'd love to see come back, the Liverpool ECHO previously reported. Some were only open for a short time, whereas others have been closed for years or were the first Chinese restaurants we ever visited. Here, we take another brief look back at 15 city-centre restaurants we've said goodbye to over the years. This list isn't intended to be comprehensive, we've included a number of popular Chinese restaurants, as well as oriental buffets and venues serving a variety of Asian dishes. See how many you remember in our list below.Liverpool's oldest Chinese restaurant said farewell to customers after 56 years in the city centre in December. At the time, the ECHO reported how Yuet Ben on Upper Duke Street announced the closure of the popular restaurant as the owners begin their retirement. Since 1992, the business had been run by Theresa and Terry Lim after Terry was taught the trade by his father-in-law, Yuh Ho Yau, as a waiter decades ago. Serving traditional Northern Chinese recipes passed down the generations Yuet Ben, whose name means 'honoured guest,' first opened in 1968. Asian restaurant Liu Shi, based at 60 Hope Street, closed its doors in August 2024. Located on the street between the Anglican and Metropolitan Cathedrals, the venue occupied the 60 Hope Street address and was famed for its extravagant floral exteriors. Liu Shi first opened in January last year serving a range of flavours from all over Asia, including Thailand, Korea, China and Japan. A bar named The Fuzzy Duck, which acted as a sister venue, opened downstairs that May. Back in 2005, Yums Oriental Restaurant opened its doors in Bold Street, Liverpool city centre . At one point, the venue boasted more than 60 dishes, from starters such as hot and sour soup, sui mai or crispy aromatic pork to main meals like fried chicken in satay sauce, honey roast char sui and kung po beef. With seating over two floors, the restaurant catered for couples, family gatherings and office get-togethers. Yums closed around a decade ago and the Bold Street site has since housed businesses Miyagi, Dia and Noche and now Kassap Meat House.The Golden Phoenix is said to have been the first Chinese restaurant to arrive in the city , opening its doors during the 1960s. A popular choice for diners in the city, it was located close to where the Premier Inn now sits on Hanover Street. The popular restaurant was later demolished by Liverpool ONE developer Grosvenor in 2009 to make way for new leisure and retail space. In 2012, it was announced that Liverpool's 'largest' restaurant, Tai Wu, was to open on what was the Golden Phoenix site. Now home to Matou, one Liverpool waterfront site was previously home to the River Rooms, Berni Inn - and then The Shanghai Palace. In 2001, the ECHO reported how the famous Mersey riverfront restaurant was set for a £400,000 makeover, as Liverpool city council were considering plans to turn the old steak house at the Pier Head into a Chinese restaurant. The plan was the brainchild of businessman Joe Farley whose company, J.O.E. Leisure, imported luxurious fixtures and fittings from China to transform the building. A popular choice for diners in Liverpool, it remained the Shanghai Palace Chinese restaurant, until that was bulldozed in 2007 as part of the multi-million pound redevelopment of the Pier Head. Located at 27 Lord Street, Kong Nam was based close to where Boodles is in the city centre now. It was a basement restaurant, which many Scousers will remember for being ridiculously cheap, as you could pay around £1.99 for a three course special at the venue which looked like something out of a 'James Bond set.' On November 21, 1964, the ECHO reported how due to the Kong-Nam's 'overwhelming reception in Liverpool,' Mr. Wong was proud to announced that sister venue the Kong San restaurant was also open. Kong San was located at Covent Garden, Rumford Street. For over 40 years, customers from across Merseyside headed to the Shangri-La on Victoria Street. Many will remember popping in before a night on the town, after a night on the town, for Sunday supper or perhaps for the famed karaok
CHINESE RESTAURANTS LIVERPOOL HISTORY FOOD RESTAURANT REVIEWS LOST RESTAURANTS LIFESTYLE
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