Visiting the oldest Chinese restaurant in America
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- Опубликовано: 19 май 2022
- ABC News' Juju Chang travels to Butte, Montana, home of Pekin Noodle Parlor, the oldest continuously operating, family owned Chinese restaurant in the U.S. and met fourth-generation owner Jerry Tam.
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My grandpa use to take me here as a kid and we would have fried pork with mustard. They are super nice with amazing food. Love seeing this place getting the recognition it deserves!
The place has horrible reviews now unfortunately
I remember my grandpa saying hi to Danny on the several visits while lived there as a kid. I went there at least two dozen times...probably more like three...I didn't know until just now that it was the oldest Chinese restaurant in America....how cool...and I never noticed the Pekin either. I am not sure but I think I met Jerry in college at U of M in the 90s...it was him or his brother. Friends of friends. I think he went to another school and was just visiting. Very cool video. Now back to 1923!
When the son tears up talking about his dad…that’s shows that kid had a good dad.
And it was hard not to cry with him , so much love
And he also gave up his sucessful career in newyork to take over his family resturant.
He frowns and squints too much while talking. Should smile more, its better for business.
@@chinaboss6683 It has nothing to do with business bro...
@@hgvhjnh
Good smile brings good business.
- old Chinese Proverb
Danny Wong’s Dad kept food on my Grandma’s table during the Depression and WWII. With my Grandpa at war my dad kinda grew up in that kitchen. Mr. Wong and Danny were a great guys. They are very missed by anyone with ties to Butte. Danny especially. Guy was a legend to anyone who knew Butte.
So many times I’ve been in a Chinese restaurant living on the West Coast. None compare to the original. Butte’s richness was never in it’s Hill. It was always in it’s people.
🧡
The irony of this family's legacy is that people like Mr. Tam and his father and his before him are great Americans, founding something that so many Americans enjoy every day. Those who tried to run Chinese out of town and the country are relegated to the dustbin of history.
yup.
What do you mean, exactly?
quite to the contrary, Asian hate and discrimination is growing stronger everyday in that country. Thanks to the politicians and lobbyists creating the endless fear to the population
Growing up in the 50's and 60's, my Father would take us on long road trips every summer. Traveling from Oregon to Utah, we would always stop at the Pekin Noodle Parlor as we passed through Butte on the way to Salt Lake City. I still remember how much fun it was to experience a new food to us. I highly recommend people who are traveling through the area to stop in for a meal and support this family business.
This is quite emotional, 4th generation Chinese in a small town when you expect racism but from his words they are part of the community and face little of it, here I'm in the Bay Area where its very diverse and racism is everywhere, its a dark history in America but school need to teach it correctly. Its time to fix it and not let history repeat itself.
Racism doesn't happen much in Northern small towns which are very friendly typically.
Racism occurs in mostly cities where everyone is very individualistic and thinks they are the main charachter of the world.
I used to always say , I wont' capitalize the word china, unless it represents the name of a great American-Chinese Restaurant! Bless this man and his family for their STAMINA...yes they are not immigrants, they're part of America and I salute them (pardon my French) - His family was feeding the rail road workers at a time when even his own relatives were being prejudiced against; Says allot more than what we're saying about immigrants today, doesn't it ? They came, they worked, and became part of America. i just wonder how they pronounced the name of their restaurant , couldn't have been too easy , I myself have difficulty sometimes saying the words "Noodle and Parlor" properly ,ha, and I happen to love fried lice !
Racism doesn't usually show itself until the influx of the "outsiders" creates a threat of change. So one or two Chinese (Black/Muslim/homosexual...whatever) families are generally accepted and ignored. It's when they start rising in greater numbers that the mainstream becomes alarmed.
@@leavingitblank9363 So being ignored and avoiding the community and society everything would be ok? Practice of freedom of religion and speech is wrong if our skin is not white? Who decide whats the norm and what change is accepted and what is not cause the world change everyday.
@@jamalwilburn228 I think thats the key right, everyone getting to know each other and we can get beyond skin easier and learn from one another. Its much easier to do that in a smaller town rather than a big city where things can change like the wind. I grew up in the bay area hate crime use to be very small numbers but past 3 years the term made hate crime numbers rise in crazy numbers. We have communities hear and it use to be different, i don't think I'm the main character of a world i wouldn't message here if i thought that way. its great to discuss it a bit with people outside my community like yourself, discussion is where everything should start and not the senseless rise in hate we have here in California now.
Such a warm report. Chinese people are so kind.
Too much trying to sell racism in the story, this is not old days.
Hard working and tolerant people
They're not that kind tbh. Pushy and rude .
only those that have left China...those in China still uncivilized...
@Null-941 tolerant well it depends but yes they are almost always great people who adapt and work hard despite the discrimination etc meanwhile there are other groups of immigrants not so much tolerant nor kind etc
People don't realize that Chinese people have been in America as long as the Irish and the polish.
That’s so awesome , love seeing restaurants that have endured many decades in their communities. I’d love to go check it out!
Me too
Love 🇲🇾
Please do.
This isn't about China.
This is about America.
A piece of American history with relations to Chinese heritage.
Like old European restaurants - some that are also extremely old but few in existence these days - still surviving in China when Europeans first came to China within the past 200-300 years.
Most of those are gone in China.
Thousand of year worth of historical artifacts, books and buildings destroyed during the cultural revolution.
The 100 year old ones were, of course, also targeted.
I guess the really well built ones still survived.
This is what America is all about. Come here and work hard to create a good life for your family. Great story.
You kinda glossed over the murder and lynching spree and exclusion act during the depression and the opium dens, how is that a great story is beyond me, the more i dig into the history of US the more unfair treatment I saw. They didn't choose to fry noodles all day, they had no other choice.
do you know the term survivorship bias? it is a logical fallacy.
Oh really … pretending hatred toward Chinese never happened .
@@ben8718 If you dig into most countries histories you're going to find out most countries did horrific things in the past. I'm definitely not saying USA didn't commit atrocities but I doubt you live in a country that was always mortally correct.
nm sl oof
Wow what a fascinating story. And those artifacts in the basement are incredible. I hope the city opens a museum dedicated to the Chinese immigrant history of Butte, MO and maybe the items could be out there if restaurant owners agree to it.
Fun fact: there is one already! It's only open on Saturdays, I believe, but it does exist. The small part that used to be Chinatown is right next to the restaurant.
Butte, “MT”
@@heyelbs The Mai Wah Society museum is a half-block from the Pekin on Mercury Street, which was the home of Butte's Red Light District and the Dumas Brothel, which still exists.
What a great story. All of that cool old stuff should be cleaned up and have its own museum. Good food, made with love, is a universal uniter.
It loses its value if you clean it.
As a Chinese American, thank you.
Wow, was thinking oldest Chinese restaurant would be in NYC or San Fran. Cool story.
Same! I looked at the building in the thumbnail and guessed SF. I was quite surprised! I only meant to click to see if I was right... and ended up watching the whole thing and getting a heartwarming story from it!
This the oldest CONTINUOUSLY RUNNING Chinese restaurant in America. For all we know, there might have been Chinese restaurants older than this but are no longer in business.
@@GranTube Yes obviously.
Considering how the first Chinese people in the US were coolie laborers that worked for barely anything, mining or building railroads, it makes sense that it would be near a mining or railroad town.
But of course like you said, I never thought of all places it would in a small town I thought it would be in much bigger well known cities but Montana? Who would’ve thought? But it’s cool know that!
Such interesting history! People forget how vital Chinese labor was to the building of the far western USA. Of the trans-continental railroad, it was said that "the western half was built on tea, the eastern on whiskey. I live in Boston, and we had similar restaurants long ago-now we have much more diverse Chinese cuisine (Szechuan, Fukien, Taiwan style, etc.).
Taiwan style is the best!
@@user-fabulousH Its good, but I like Szechuan more.
this restaurant is filled with heritage and history and I hope it could be preserved
Jerry Tam is a fine gentleman. But it's the food I'm interested in. I'd love to travel there. Maybe someday. Wishing Pekin Noodle Parlor and Jerry Tam the very best.
My first experience with Chop Suey was in hearing the Flower Drum Song-I used to always say , I wont' capitalize the word china, unless it represents the name of a great American-Chinese Restaurant! Bless this man and his family for their STAMINA...yes they are not immigrants, they're part of America and I salute them (pardon my French) - His family was feeding the rail road workers at a time when even his own relatives were being prejudiced against; Says allot more than what we're saying about immigrants today, doesn't it ? They came, they worked, and became part of America. i just wonder how they pronounced the name of their restaurant , couldn't have been too easy , I myself have difficulty sometimes saying the words "Noodle and Parlor" properly ,ha, and I happen to love fried lice !
Great story. Many good family owned Chinese restaurants have closed in the last 20 years as the new generation of children go on to be successful professionals in their fields, completing the American dream for many of the hard working parents and grandparents that started the restaurants. Sadly it leaves no one behind to continue the restaurant. It’s good to see this one survive.
Very well said!
no restaurant owners want their kids to continue the business unless it's a chain.... because no matter how hard they work, how good the food is, it's next to impossible for Chinese restaurants to obtain Michelin stars....
Wonderful story of immigrant success. We are all Americans though we still celebrate our cultures don't we? Mine, is Croation, and we have our traveling dance performers, club house, and monthly dinner get together. But, I do LOVE my Chinese food! Hot and sour soup, is the best thing for head colds!
How immigrants get rich...oh yeah because they weren't black
classic survivorship bias, oldest trick in the book, imagine only interviewing the sole surviving one and thinks 99.99% of chinese found success during the period of hellish racism, they didn't, actually most of them were either killed, kicked out, or seriously injured, or got addicted into opium and died in poverty. Others were confined to frying noodles, the only job they were ALLOWED to do, not because they wanted to.
This isn't a immigrant success story, it's an American success story. All of our Families, as well as our forefathers, came from different countries to America to better their lives, or to get away from oppression and helped build America into what we see today.
@@joshuabrown3525 lol they killed blacks by the millions wanting the same success story my friend we are not the same till this day the success of blacks are being cut down by laws
Come to San Pedro, Ca
My wife and her family have been around butte for generations. Not long after i moved there. I met Danny Wong. He was a big hearted, funny, happy, generous man. I am glad i met him and I am greatful his son is keeping it running. When you eat there it feels homely. You feel welcomed and comfortable. Here is to another century of the Pekin.
I wish that my schools went over the history of Chinese restaurants such as PekinNoodles back in the day. As a Chinese American myself, it's nice to know and understand how Chinese culture continues to thrive all over the world amidst every single chaotic event that has happened since day one.
Also, I myself would LOVE to see those artifacts down in the basement! 100 year old herbs still encased in the cabinets!? HOW AWESOME IS THAT!? :D
Well as a chinese australian our history has been very much the same as them, just not as successful so they won't bother to interview us to learn of our hardships. I know our parents were literally egged on and had trash thrown at them when they first got off the airplane back in the 70s; during the height of WHITE ONLY policy of Australia that continued until 1973, unoffically it continues to this day, any chinese descendant who dared to enter a prominant job or field that has historically been white had found abuse and push back and bamboo ceilings, I don't know about US though, somehow anglos think we like to fry noodles and wash laundries? what makes them think that?
@@ben8718 a group that is hated by both chinese and westerners, well done.
They won't cover it in K-12. I had to take college course in Asian studies to know about Chinese exclusion act.
woke education
@@ben8718 Criminy! I didn’t know that Australia had racist policies towards Asians back then. 1970s sounds pretty recent according to historic standards. I always thought of it as a more peaceful, cooperative country compared to the United States. Now I know…
This is still the best place to eat thanks Jerry keep up the great work we miss you folks David
I love this restaurant! I grew up in Butte and had the opportunity to take my kids back and it is so amazing that it has been around for 100 years!
Wonderful story about Chinese American history! Love to see stories like this kept alive in our modern day!
I love learning more on chinese American history. I am the 4th generation and my kids are the 5th generation in America …initially our grand-grandparents lived in San-Francisco but now our family is spreads over different region in North America. I almost live my entire life in Montreal, and we mostly speak French at home but I still master my cantonese!
What a delicious content that shows the depth of America and an important Chinese-American culture intertwined. Thank you ABC and the production team for the diverse, learning and moving journalism from Seoul, Korea.
Now, I hope to visit Butte, Montana and taste the Pekin's signature Chop Suey as I traveled to a small town in Calabria to taste Italy's award winning dessert and lemons, a decade ago. Butte, Montana here I come!
I'm praying some of those "inventions" over near the Ukraine don't fall ON Italy by accident ! See Rick Steve's video, the cruise up the Mediterranean that stops in Italy at five different destinations? Seems that's the one to embark upon, yes ?
My first experience with Chop Suey was in hearing the Flower Drum Song-I used to always say , I wont' capitalize the word china, unless it represents the name of a great American-Chinese Restaurant! Bless this man and his family for their STAMINA...yes they are not immigrants, they're part of America and I salute them (pardon my French) - His family was feeding the rail road workers at a time when even his own relatives were being prejudiced against; Says allot more than what we're saying about immigrants today, doesn't it ? They came, they worked, and became part of America. i just wonder how they pronounced the name of their restaurant , couldn't have been too easy , I myself have difficulty sometimes saying the words "Noodle and Parlor" properly ,ha, and I happen to love fried lice !
Ana Marie Ceuca sings LyndaFaye in Italian, btwy.
see you there.
I flew into Reggio di Calabria. I don't do cruises. Enjoy.
Me To.
I like how romantic and positive they make coolie labor sound in the beginning.
This is such an amazing story. I ate near this restaurant when I worked in as airline attendant at 19. My Korean first officer told me about it on a layover. We flew on a very small aircraft and the captain said he had the final say and wanted more traditional American cuisine. I hate I missed it the one time we did an overnight in Butte.
Fly back and have dinner then!
The way the guy tears up talking about his dad. The sacrifice he made to uphold his family history and the sacrafice he made to continue his father legacy alive. You know how much money the guy made in new york as a fashon desighner compaired to running a resurant with alot of over head and the stress of the changing market and a dramatic inflation.
Nice story & info. Lovely pictures.
As a child in 60's I used to hear the words Chop Suey quite a bit, but I've never had it. Nowadays I've never seen it on a menu, but would love to try it.
My first experience with Chop Suey was in hearing the Flower Drum Song-I used to always say , I wont' capitalize the word china, unless it represents the name of a great American-Chinese Restaurant! Bless this man and his family for their STAMINA...yes they are not immigrants, they're part of America and I salute them (pardon my French) - His family was feeding the rail road workers at a time when even his own relatives were being prejudiced against; Says allot more than what we're saying about immigrants today, doesn't it ? They came, they worked, and became part of America. i just wonder how they pronounced the name of their restaurant , couldn't have been too easy , I myself have difficulty sometimes saying the words "Noodle and Parlor" properly ,ha, and I happen to love fried lice !
@@lyndafayesmusic
I vaguely remember The Flower Drum Song, I do remember thinking the actress Miyoshi Umeki (who is actually Japanese) was so beautiful.
EDIT; fond memories. ✌️
Fascinating story! I got completely absorbed and could have listened for an hour.
Great feature this was. Chinese/American food has become one of the great staples interwoven in to. American culture. Had plenty of chop suey, chow mein, sweet and sour, and almond duck dishes over the years .
@Jj Res I see you have limited exposure to mixed ethnic relations.
@Jj Res I can confirm that is false as I am mixed race Asian/White. You can't generalize a whole race without being racist yourself.
Don't forget the ubiquitous Chinese takeout cardboard box, an American invention.
Chinese food, as most Americans have experienced, is just a small sliver of the food tradition from China. I was lucky enough to get to travel in China before the pandemic shutdowns. The food is mind blowing.
What a lovely story. Jerry Tam got to pursue what he loved and relish in its success before coming home to continue his family's legacy. Who said you had to give up one for the other? Why not do both, at different times? :D
Very true!
As a Chinese Singaporean, some of the cuisine is somewhat similar (because of common ancestral roots from Guangdong. Different parts of China have very different cuisines that look "weird" to people from other parts.). But I simply can't get over how huge the American-sized portions are.
That’s because southern of China had a hard time making a living. They were the first to leave to go to the new world to seek opportunities. Mostly became laborers for building the railways. They bought with them their cuisines to the new world.
Love this story. Just added it to my travel destination list.
What I'm loving about this is that I live in Montana!!! And I can drive to go and see it too!! So wow!!! This was awesome to watch!!!
Please keep it going! I want to visit one day
This was wonderful to watch. Made my heart light.
I enjoyed that. Wholesome clip. The owner seemed very nice.
Thank you for doing stories like this, so people can learn about the real history of how this country was built.
Love this story, thank you for sharing!
Such an American story. Love it
After watching this I definitely wanna go try it out befor I die the story and history behind it was fascinating to hear and see I wish they thought history like this the people who tried to run them out then and not are part of the problem not the solution I love how the community stood behind them I'm happy to see they are successful ❤
Wow this is an awesome story but Damn!!! It took 112 years to be recognize. I will definitely check this place out !! 😍😍😍
I have to go visit Pekin Chop Suey. It looks like a wonderful place to eat and meet really great people.
Butte is an amazing place with even better people and nature. If you plan a trip you have to try this place, joes pasties, and the whop chop.
What a great story! I hope the noodle house stays open forever.
I love these stories!
Great story. And so well done. Thank you. 🤎💜💟
I've seen several things about this place and food looks really good really high quality Chinese food
The oldest Chinese restaurant is not in a big city of the East or West coast, but in Montana...Butte...population 34K?!! Some of the dusty stuff in the basement belongs in a museum.
Key word: continuously running…
@@sylvia106 unlike your mother, she is continuously on her back
What an amazing story! So glad to hear they are still doing well.
We got to visit and ate there when we were performing at the Montana Music Festival in 2015, such a treat!
This is a truly wonderful story…thank you for sharing it
my man was ready to cry the whole interview...
Thanks for spreading the kindness! Proud of you!
Aww Thank you for sharing your Precious Loving Family History 🧡
I can confirm what this owner said in regard to the racism. As a Chinese American kid who grew up in Mississippi, I don’t really face racism maybe some jokes here and there. But I gotta say I experienced the real racism for the first time when I traveled to San Francisco many years ago. It’s always those so called liberal cities you know
sure bro
Many racist people treat you nice in front of your face and slaughter you behind your back
One of my relatives has a completely different story. She and her husband (he’s in the navy) were stationed in Mississippi and the racism there was unbelievable. Being in the navy they’ve lived in many states in the United States and many parts of the world, including the Middle East. Of all the places, they’ve lived, they claimed there’s no hellhole like Mississippi. They finally got transferred to Monterey, California a few years ago and the difference was heaven and hell.
Amazing!
Very touching story. Love it.
I love this Danny Wong sounds like a pillar of the community and I'm white man and want Chinese Americans to know that we appreciate your contributions and will always stand with you for every racist whites there's 100 white people that respect and love you all
I am happy to see the perseverance of this family. I'll have to check out Butte just for the Pekin.
What a great story, thank you. Now I need to visit Butte
this is such a heart warming story
amazing story, thank you for sharing.
Great history and knowledge!!
A beautiful piece more like this !
It is a pleasure to see such a long lasting Chinese restaurant be an integral part of Montana history and community. It makes me proud to be Asian American.
this place is freaking awesome.
Just wondering why doesnt he clean up the 1st floor and make it into sort of a museum and have people pay to see the things inside, so its not just sitting there collecting dust.
There's the Mai Wah Museum on the same block a stone throw away that has all the same stuff, some from the Pekin, on full display for the public.
"Peking" and Beijing are the same in Chinese (北京), just pronounced differently due to dialects. Peking was how they tried to spell the Cantonese pronunciation, whereas Beijing is the official spelling of the Mandarin pronunciation under the "pinyin" system used in China now.
Actually, Peking/Pekin is how it's pronounced my many southern Chinese languages as well as languages directly influenced by Tang Dynasty China such as Japanese. Another example is Tonkin (東京) as in the Gulf of Tonkin.
No way. Peking is not Cantonese.... you don't know dialects do you? In the southern dialects, north "北" is typically "Ba" not "Pe" or "Be" and there's no way Cantonese would be used instead of Mandarin in this case because Mandarin is literally the dialect from Beijing. It's solely because of the different spelling system. Also, due to the history timeline, sometimes Peking refers to "北平" as that was the name of the city at the time.
@@Natenie you really don’t know your history do you? Peking was the translation by French and Portuguese for 北京 during the Qing dynasty when it was the capital. It was a mix of Cantonese (where they arrived in China) and 16th century pronunciation of the word.
@@iamsheep stick to your "history" or whateva. it's just not Canto. Several predecessors of the name were in use when the missionaries first arrived in China, they might be Canto, but Peking? Nah
@@Natenie um…do you think Cantonese never changed in its pronunciation of words? It’s a translation based on the Cantonese. I never said it was Cantonese. Beijing being pronounced as it is spelt in pinyin by English speakers is different to its mandarin pronunciation, just like Shanghai is pronounced “shane hi” by non Chinese speakers…of course I’ll stick to my history because Peking was first used in the 1500s.
Love chinese food.flavour,the simplicity and the quickness of chinese food and especially the ingredients .one of the best.
Such a beautiful family! All the best.
PROUD to be an Asian American!!!!
Much respect to this guy!!!
So glad and happy to learn about the oldest Chinese restaurant in America in Butte, Montana. Aloha from Hawaii !!!!!
Robert S.J. Hu June 26, 2022
Amazing, if I’m ever in Montana I will go there for sure!
While the lo main loophole allowed many Chinese to bypass the Chinese Exclusion Act, the San Francisco earthquake of 1906 and the resulting proliferation of "paper sons" was probably the biggest "loophole" and means by which Chinese immigrants made it to the states. It's an interesting part of U.S. history which impacted many Chinese American families, especially those with Toisan (Taishan) roots.
OK so you talking about history and loopholes, both those are facts i agree, and we can go way back further in history, there wasn't loopholes there it was just a take over, and how Chinese got to America in the first place was a promise of a new life and once Chinese help wasn't needed anymore exclusion acts happened. This is a great nation but its filled with it cons and bad history and of course there is a lot of pros and good as well. History is important should be taught in school better with both the bad and good, so history mistakes wouldn't repeat itself. Thank you for taking your time with your comment bellesgne i appreciate it.
That act was atrocious,,,,immigrant make law 2 stop Chinese ppl to do a job ...how nasty that act was ....
Such an awesome story! There’s a Chinese American restaurant here in California in …Butte County… that has been around since 1912. It’s called Tong Fong Low but originally called Charlie’s Chop Suey.
my grandfather used to work there in the 50s.
@@tkmedia3866 whoa! Small world.
So interesting!
These people are the ones that made America, hardworking and still going strong thank you
Amazing
I loved the G in Peking doesn't fit, so we will just leave out the G then. 😄
Wow, working til 85! And son returning to Montana after working in fashion biz in NYC. Good town with best folks, nice seeing cool customers 🎉🎉🎉🎉
You gotta be kind to people that’s mean to you. SIKE tf outta here ☀️🔥
That's just so wonderful. So much history. I've never had chop suey. Never seen it but have always been curious. Now I know.
Nice! Very interesting history!
This was an awesome piece. I love US cultural history and definitely would love to dine at that restaurant.
Thank you for this story Juju. Appreciate more stories of the contributions the Chinese have made toward the United States.
I wish I could see all the artifacts
I enjoyed this
Great story
Wonderful story, wish the family well .
This is so interesting! Chop suey is kinda like leftover casserole. Amazing and pretty much universal.. I’m from South East Asia so our version is.. fried rice. Leftover rice plus everything left from other meals that’s still good to eat.
Chop Suey = Chinese Mulligan Stew. 😀
As an Asian American, I hope the Chinese help building the railroads and the rough times these restaurants went through one day can be written into the elementary history books.
What a beautiful story.
Great video ✌️✌️ god bless 👍 peace from Shanghai ✌️✌️
nope woodland california Chicago cafe 1903 😮 is the oldest
Thank God for Chinese food..❤
Beautiful story wow