Hong Fu Banquet Hall Was One of the Few Places That Truly Felt Like Home | Bon Appétit

"A Cupertino banquet restaurant serving both Sichuan and Taiwanese cuisines that became a family hub for casual meals and celebratory banquets, where waitstaff presented ascending set menus and served dishes in a deliberate order (soup and cold appetizers first, fried rice or noodles last) shaped by cultural customs—eight dishes were prized for luck while four was avoided. It was renowned for its Taiwanese beef noodle soup and for a roster of beloved Sichuan and banquet dishes, including gan bian niu rou (thin toothpicks of beef in chili oil), jiao yan pai gu (fried pork with jalapeño), qing zheng yu (whole fish with ginger and scallions), ji dan yu mi geng (egg-drop-and-corn soup), mi zhi he tao xia (sweet walnut shrimp), tea-smoked duck, and the special dessert xiao lao shu (adzuki-bean–filled, deep-fried pastries shaped like mice); fancier banquet items ranged from bok choy with sea cucumbers to Peking duck with sweet sauce and fluffy buns. The restaurant’s private rooms and cream-colored dining spaces hosted rehearsals, weddings, and family rituals that taught table manners—elders taking first bites, lazy Susan etiquette, and the custom of taking leftovers home—and after 29 years it closed on June 22, 2019 when the owners’ children did not continue the business, marking a bittersweet end to a place that knit immigrant families to familiar flavors and traditions." - ByEsmé Weijun Wang