How Chinese immigrants brought restaurants to Newfoundland

The history of restaurants in Newfoundland and Labrador begins with a group of people some diners might not expect.

Miriam Wright, an associate professor of history at the University of Windsor, told CBC News in a recent interview that before the First World War, the only public eating establishments in St. John's were hotels and boarding houses, as dining out was done only out of necessity by travellers.

But that started to change with the arrival of people looking for economic opportunity.

"Chinese immigrants in Newfoundland basically built the restaurant sector," said Miriam Wright, who has researched Chinese restaurants with partner Robert Hong as part of a public history project on Chinese immigration in Newfoundland and Labrador.

Wright said Newfoundland presented a unique opportunity for Chinese men who wanted to move to North America in the 1920s, when United States and Canada had banned virtually all Chinese immigration.

In Newfoundland, Chinese women and children were not allowed entry, but Chinese men were allowed in, provided they paid a head tax of $300, which would have been roughly an entire year's wages at the time.

Despite the fee, Chinese immigrants still came to Newfoundland, looking for opportunities, Wright said, but racism in the workforce meant Chinese people could primarily work only in laundries. But with the laundry business in St. John's saturated by the late 1920s, Chinese immigrants turned their attention to a type of business largely unexplored in in the province: restaurants.

"They really had to sort of build the idea of the restaurants, as something that was an experience. It was something that you did because you wanted to, not because you had to," said Wright.

These early restaurants were a success, serving foods that Newfoundlanders would already recognize, like pork chops, roast chicken, and fish and chips. Around 40 establishments in St. John's were open by the end of the 1930s, and their success led to Chinese restaurants expanding across the province.

Wright said the restaurants succeeded because they offered people a social space to interact outside church. Other than movie theatres, Wright said, there was no place for people to meet and chat, making early Chinese restaurants a big draw for young people.  

But offering a social space came with risks, said Wright, and the restaurants were also sometimes spaces of violence.

Chinese immigrants had faced racial violence since their arrival in Newfoundland, she said, and their businesses were vandalized and attacked.

"There are numerous accounts in the newspapers of people, usually young men, white Newfoundland men, causing problems in these places, either getting drunk and smashing things or assaulting the workers or the café owners."

That history of violence rings a bell with Ivan Tom, the owner of Lee's Snack and Confectionery in Stephenville. When his parents bought the restaurant in 1970, he said, it wasn't smooth sailing at first. 

"In the beginning, we did have incidents of racism. My mother and father were working, and people, mostly teenagers, sometimes adults, would come through the front door. And they would yell things at us. They would try to pick a fight with us."

"I didn't understand why," Tom said. "To us, we're normal people."

Being an immigrant in a small town can be isolating, said Tom, adding Chinese immigrants will often choose to open a restaurant in a town without other Chinese families as they don't want to start a rivalry.

"Where they are, they're the only [Chinese] family. The kids are often isolated and alone. Life is hard for them," he said. "They're here for a better life. They're not here for handouts."

Over time, said Tom, things got better for his family in Stephenville.

"As the people get more exposed to our culture, things got a little bit better."

Today, said Tom, rising food prices are more of a problem than racism. But financial gain isn't his motive, he said — keeping Lee's Snack and Confectionery open is a way to preserve his parents' legacy, and stories from old customers motivate him to keep going.

"They want a taste of the old days," he said.

Once, he recalled, he was puzzled to see three men come in with watery eyes.

"They asked me, 'Do you guys still make that fried chicken that your father used to make?'"

The men explained to him they were frequent customers decades ago and one of their friends was now in palliative care and wanted to eat one of his favourite meals one last time. A lot of customers also share fond memories of his father's onion rings, he said.

His parents didn't want him to stay in the restaurant business. While some of his siblings moved to the mainland for better jobs, Tom took over Lee's Snacks from his brother around 15 years ago.

He says there's a very simple reason why he never moved away for a better job.

"I am a Newfoundlander," Tom said. "I love the outdoors."

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