19 replies to this topic

[VicHockeyFan]

Former Uncle Willy's resurrected as Crystal Jade

Darron Kloster, Times Colonist
Published: Thursday, August 30, 2007

One of the largest restaurants in the city is up and running again with new owners and a complete makeover in appearance and food.

The 250-seat Crystal Jade replaces the wildly popular Uncle Willy's Buffet, which abruptly closed last November in Saanich Plaza due to a combination of staff shortages, high rents and the ongoing health problems of Karam Haroya, who owned the restaurant for 15 years.

Crystal Jade has been converted to a Chinese-style buffet specializing in seafood by new owner Caroline Gee, a Victoria-born entrepreneur who lives most of the year in London with her husband. She poured $500,000 into a makeover of the space, including an entirely new kitchen and mahogany tables and chairs, various fixtures and giant fish tanks imported from China.

The general manager is Allen Ma, who ran Sampan Chinese Seafood restaurant in Saanich Centre at Quadra and McKenzie for more than a decade and is well known in the local Chinese community as chairman of the Chinese Freemasons and vice-president of the Victoria-Suzhou Sister City Association.

Ma said it took nearly six months to nail down a new lease and secure tradespeople to renovate, but new customers and former Uncle Willy's patrons are pouring in since the restaurant opened earlier this month. He said tour-bus traffic is also picking up as the large space in the plaza -- which also includes Save-on-Foods and Boston Pizza across from Saanich Municipal Hall -- can accommodate larger groups.

The restaurant employs 25 and wants to hire more, said Ma.

The Crystal Jade offers more than 40 dishes in its lunch and dinner buffets, and also carries a full menu service that includes items such as barbecue duck and pork, Dungeness crab, steamed oysters, various hot pots and stirfry dishes. Ma hired Hong Kong-born Hong Lui from Vancouver as chef.

The restaurant is open from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 5 to 9 p.m. with extended hours and buffet menus on weekends and holidays.

[osmich]

No comment.

[G-Man]

Sounds good. I am a fan of the Seafood place they run on Quadra and Blanshard, a little pricey but really good.

[jaylow]

Don't Quadra and Blanshard run parallel to each other?

[G-Man]

oops meant Quadra and Mackenzie.

[amor de cosmos]

Could the TC get in trouble with the Stonecutters for outing their chairman? I thought they were supposed to be a secret society?

[G-Man]

?????????????? What?

[gumgum]

^^Just take your meds and you'll be fine.

[Nparker]

Could the TC get in trouble with the Stonecutters for outing their chairman? I thought they were supposed to be a secret society?

I thought Homer Simpson was their "chosen one"?

[Caramia]

Chinese Freemasons aren't particularly secret anymore. In Taiwan they are very influential political party. They originated in Fujian province, and spread throughout Southern China, in the area where the vast majority of our Chinese immigrants came from. They have their roots though in a very secret past - from a genesis as a Taoist brotherhood with some anarchist leanings - "Obey Heaven, follow the Way" to their emergence as an anti Qing dynasty (the last dynasty of China was a result of the conquests of the Manchurian army, and the treatment of the Han under the Qing was notorious - witness the shaved head and braid, a symbol of subjugation) Historically several very prominent figures have been among their members, including Dr Sun Yat Sen, who visited Victoria on his fund raising mission to topple the corrupt Qing dynasty (which he did, heralding the beginning of the modern age of China.) They may still be illegal in Hong Kong, where,as "Hongmen" they are perceived to be linked to the triads, and in fact the triads may have historical roots in the same Qing resistance. There are parallels to Western Freemasonry, but quite different origins and they are really two very separate entities. The Chinese Freemasons in Victoria are a legitimate charitable organization, quite independent from either the Taiwanese political party or the Hong Kong Hongmen.

[amor de cosmos]

So it sounds like they're not real Freemasons, they're just "Freemason-like":

Following the overthrowing of the Qing Dynasty of China in 1911, the Hongmen suddenly found themselves lost without purpose. They managed to miss out on the opportunity to participate in the actual uprising. From then on the Hongmen diverged into two different groups. One group, with its membership base outside China itself, debatably became a Freemasonry-like fraternity, hence the term "Chinese Freemasons". The other group, which was based within China, could no longer rely on donations from sympathetic locals; being unable to resume normal civilian lives after years of hiding, they turned to illegal activities - thus giving birth to the modern Triad gangs.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tiandihui

I've seen the Chinese Freemason building in Chinatown & it has the compass & square on it though.

[Caramia]

/nod
They are two very different organizations with totally separate histories. But in some ways there are some real similarities - the oaths of brotherhood and mutual aid, the esoteric symbolism and ritual, the focus on improving self and society.

I would imagine that for the early Chinese immigrants, Freemasonry was the closest equivalent western culture had to offer to the tradition of the Hongmen. Therefore, it made sense to translate their name to something that western society could possibly conceptualize, especially given the racism and fear that the Chinese confronted here. The "white" culture considered all Tongs to be criminal and dangerous, and could not understand their role as fraternities providing structure and support within Chinese society. The Freemason's held a fair amount of legitimacy in society at that time, so perhaps the adopting of the name "Chinese Freemasons" helped to convey the real nature of the Hongmen in Victoria to the public at large.

As a historical aside, another "society" arose in those days called "The White Working Man's Union" - this group controlled much of Johnson Street, just the other side of the ravine (now Market Square). The White Working Man's Union was another fraternity that provided mutual aid to its members. The condition of membership was to swear no aid ever to a Chinese "celestial" or "john" as they were called. In a time where there was no unemployment insurance, no widow's benefits, no worker's comp, you can imagine the strength of such an organization.

[G-Man]

What the hell happened here?

[Caramia]

Following the link you provided amor, I found something interesting... a history of the Chinese Freemasons as presented by the BC & Yukon Lodge of Freemasons. http://freemasonry.b...sons/index.html

There is quite a bit there that was new to me. I tried to Google search for Dart Coon Club websites but was unable to find any in-depth history there from their own point of view. In my search I was reminded once again about the god-awful conditions the earliest Chinese in Canada endured, and once again impressed by how in particular the Victoria Chinese faced those conditions with such dignity, and stepped up to organize themselves as contributing citizens despite the prejudice. In my opinion this is one of the most fascinating chapters of our history.

[Caramia]

Err sorry G-Man, massive derail, mostly my fault. Maybe better split off into the Heritage Section?

[amor de cosmos]

(back on track) I checked out Crystal Jade today & ate too much. It was pretty good, especially the honey garlic ribs. I'd go back.

[gumgum]

Wait, wait, wait.... If you guys will steer so far away from a discussion, then so will I.

[Rorschach]

Could the TC get in trouble with the Stonecutters for outing their chairman? I thought they were supposed to be a secret society?

Who made Steve Gutenberg a star?

I guess I have to try this one in my never-ending quest for great Chinese food.

[G-Man]

Don't get your hopes up. It is amazing for buffet food but it is still buffet food.

[amor de cosmos]

the honey garlic ribs would be good anywhere as far as I'm concerned....