Lily Kwok (26 September 1918 – 8 December 2007), also known as Sui King Kwok and Sui King Leung, was a Chinese-born restaurateur in the Manchester area.

Early life and family

Sui King Leung was born in the Guangdong province of China, in a family of six daughters. Her father was a small businessman, who manufactured and sold

soy sauce Soy sauce (also called simply soy in American English and soya sauce in British English) is a liquid condiment of Chinese origin, traditionally made from a fermented paste of soybeans, roasted grain, brine, and '' Aspergillus oryzae'' or ''Asp ...

to restaurants in Hong Kong. The family moved to Hong Kong when Sui King Leung was a girl. When her father was killed by rivals, she and her sisters were considered ineligible to inherit his factory; instead, the daughters supported themselves with sewing, making deliveries, and domestic service. Sui King Leung married Kwok Chan in 1946, when she was seventeen. They had three children together. When the Kwoks separated in the early 1950s, Sui King Kwok went back into domestic service, this time as a caregiver in an English family, the Woodmans. She started using the name "Lily Kwok" in their household. When the Woodmans returned to England in 1953, Lily Kwok went with them.

Career in England

Lily Kwok continued to work for the Woodmans at their home in Somerset. In 1959, the Woodmans gave Lily Kwok a loan to start a restaurant in Middleton, near Manchester. Lung Fung was one of the first Chinese restaurants in the United Kingdom, and became a popular late-night stop for musicians and celebrities. She soon added two satellite locations for takeaway, in

Bury Bury may refer to: *The burial of human remains *-bury, a suffix in English placenames Places England * Bury, Cambridgeshire, a village * Bury, Greater Manchester, a town, historically in Lancashire ** Bury (UK Parliament constituency) (1832–19 ...

and Blackburn. In the 1970s she was forced the sell all three locations to settle gambling debts. She opened another restaurant, Lung Fung Too, and left that business to her family when she retired in 1993."Fortune Cooking?"
BBC.co.uk (1 February 2007).

Legacy

Lily Kwok died in 2007, in Rochdale, aged 89 years. Her three granddaughters, Lisa, Janet, and

Helen Tse Helen Tse (born 1977) is a British author and restaurateur. Her most noted work has been ''Sweet Mandarin'', a memoir of three generations of Chinese women, beginning with her grandmother, Lily Kwok, establishing themselves in the Manchester are ...

, have continued in the hospitality business with Sweet Mandarin, a Chinese restaurant they opened together in 2004 in Manchester, where "Lily Kwok's Chicken Curry" remains a menu item. In 2007 Helen Tse published a family memoir, also called ''Sweet Mandarin'' about her grandmother's life and career, which has subsequently gone on to be adapted into a stage play by the

Royal Exchange Theatre The Royal Exchange is a grade II listed building in Manchester, England. It is located in the city centre on the land bounded by St Ann's Square, Exchange Street, Market Street, Cross Street and Old Bank Street. The complex includes the Royal ...

, Yellow Earth and Black Theatre Live. Lisa Tse and Helen Tse have also published cookbooks based on their grandmother's recipes.Helen and Lisa Tse, ''Sweet Mandarin Cookbook'' (Kyle Books 2014).

References

External links

*The "About Us" page at the website of the restaurant Sweet Mandarin include
photos of Lily Kwok with her daughter and granddaughters
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kwok, Lily 1918 births 2007 deaths Hong Kong emigrants to England British chefs Businesspeople from Guangdong Chinese emigrants to British Hong Kong