The Hong Kong Café was a Los Angeles restaurant and music venue that was a part of the Los Angeles punk rock scene during the late 1970s and early 1980s when the club was owned and operated by Barry Seidel, Kim Turner and Suzy Frank, followed by a resurgence from 1992 to 1995. Located at 425 Gin Ling Way in the

Chinatown Chinatown ( zh, t=唐人街) is the catch-all name for an ethnic enclave of Chinese people located outside Greater China, most often in an urban setting. Areas known as "Chinatown" exist throughout the world, including Europe, Asia, Africa, O ...

district of

Downtown Los Angeles Downtown Los Angeles (DTLA) is the central business district of the city of Los Angeles. It is part of the Central Los Angeles region and covers a area. As of 2020, it contains over 500,000 jobs and has a population of roughly 85,000 residents ...

, California and across the way from sometimes rival Esther Wong's

Madame Wong's Esther Wong (August 13, 1917 – August 14, 2005) was a Chinese-American music promoter, called the "Godmother of Punk rock, Punk" in Los Angeles, California. Life Esther Wong was born in Shanghai in 1917. Her father had been an automobile im ...

, the former Chinese restaurant was open to audiences of all ages. It can briefly be seen in the 1974 movie, ''

''.

History

First Run of Shows: 1979-1981

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and UXA played at the club's opening night on June 7, 1979, and numerous bands, including X,

Catholic Discipline Catholic Discipline was an American punk rock (first-generation new wave) band, formed in 1979 in San Francisco, California, by '' Slash Fanzine'' editor Claude Bessy. The initial line-up of the band featured Bessy on vocals, Phranc on guitar, R ...

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Bags A bag, also known regionally as a sack, is a common tool in the form of a floppy container, typically made of cloth, leather, bamboo, paper, or plastic. The use of bags predates recorded history, with the earliest bags being lengths of animal s ...

, The Smart Pills,

Nervous Gender Nervous Gender is an American punk rock Electronic music, electronic band formed in Los Angeles in 1978 by Gerardo Velazquez, Edward Stapleton, Phranc and Michael Ochoa. Their use of heavily distorted keyboards and synthesizers made them, al ...

, and The Alley Cats, performed there until its closing in January 1981. Concert footage filmed at Hong Kong Café appears in the

Penelope Spheeris Penelope Spheeris (born December 2, 1945) is an American film director, film producer, producer, and screenwriter. She has directed both documentary film, documentary and scripted films. Her best-known works include the trilogy titled ''The Decl ...

documentary film A documentary film (often described simply as a documentary) is a nonfiction Film, motion picture intended to "document reality, primarily for instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". The American author and ...

The Decline of Western Civilization ''The Decline of Western Civilization'' is a 1981 American documentary filmed through 1979 and 1980. The movie is about the Los Angeles punk rock scene and was directed by Penelope Spheeris. In 1981, the LAPD Chief of Police Daryl Gates wrot ...

''. The Hong Kong Cafe was typically more open to punk and hardcore acts than

. Black Flag played some of its first few shows at the Hong Kong Cafe.

Resurgence: 1992-1995

The venue reopened for music in 1992, featuring shows from acts such as D.I.,

Guttermouth Guttermouth is an American punk rock band formed in 1989 in Huntington Beach, California. They have released nine full-length studio albums and two live albums and have toured extensively, including performances on the Vans Warped Tour. They are ...

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, and the

Voodoo Glow Skulls Voodoo Glow Skulls are an American ska punk band formed in 1988 in Riverside, California, by brothers Frank, Eddie, and Jorge Casillas and their longtime friend Jerry O'Neill. Voodoo Glow Skulls first played at backyard parties and later at Spa ...

Aftermath

The space is currently occupied by Realm, a housewares and gifts retailer.Realm
Retrieved January 15, 2011.

Shows at the Hong Kong Café

Shows from the Hong Kong's first months:

References

External links

Realm
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hong Kong Cafe Music venues in Los Angeles Punk rock venues Nightclubs in Los Angeles County, California Chinatown, Los Angeles Historic Rock and Roll Landmarks Music venues completed in 1979 1979 establishments in California 1981 disestablishments in California