The Chong Building, located at 798 Palm Street, is part of the historic San Luis Obispo Chinatown.
The original building owner was Addison Chong (1896-1970), who contracted with local contractor C. E. Follett to build the brick building. Addison Chong had purchased a lot at Palm and Chorro street from Paul Dallidet in February 1923, and in 1923 had contracted with Follett to build a residence at 778 Palm, where he lived with his wife and children, parents, and some of his siblings.5,7 The permit for the building was filed with the city in January 1926. The building permit listed the planned use as a "noodle house."1
The restaurant, which was known as Chong's Cafe, operated from 1926 to 1943. In 1946, new owners S. Wong and W. L. Zehr opened Far East Cafe, which offered Chinese and American food.2 They were only open for a year, closing in July 1947.3 The restaurant reopened as Chong's Cafe.
Richard Chong , Addison Chong's brother, took over the store, opening Chong's Candy Shop in 1954 until he passed away in 1978.4 Later uses for the building included Architecture bookstore Archimedia (1980), Lynda Flynn's women's clothing store (1980-1992), and a realty business.
Chong Family
The Chong family was a prominent family in San Luis Obispo. Gin Sai Yuen (1846-1935) and his wife Yup Shee Chong (1865-1932) emigrated from the Canton province to California. Records suggest the couple arrived in San Luis Obispo by 1896. Gin Sai Yuen owned Quong Chong Market at 832 Palm Street. His family also lived at this address until the mid 1920s, when the owners of 834 Palm Street changed and the store became Luzon Co, a Filipino boarding house.6
The couple had twelve children, born between 1885 and 1911, including Gin Poy George Chong (1885-1958), Richard (1905-1978), Arthur, Addison, Maybelle, Alice (married Loo), Lenna (married Chan), and Nellie (married Wong). At least three of their children, George, Addison, and Richard Chong, remained in San Luis Obispo their entire lives, while other children moved to other cities.
Records suggest that by the 1920s, the family changed their name to Quong/Chong. As early as 1910 Gin Sai Yuen was referred to as Quong Chong in the local newspapers, possibly a mistake the papers made confusing his name with the name of his store.
Citations
1. San Luis Obispo City Historic Building Permits, MS0034, Special Collections and Archives, Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo.
2. San Luis Obispo Telegram-Tribune, January 8, 1946, pg. 8.
3. San Luis Obispo Telegram-Tribune, July 3, 1947, pg. 7.
4. "Dick Chong Opens Candy Shop Here," San Luis Obispo Telegram-Tribune, November 2, 1954, pg. 2.
5. "Property Sold" San Luis Obispo Daily Telegram, February 9, 1923, pg. 5.
6. Chang, Caitlin W. "Foodways and Chinese Ways: A Zooarchaeological Analysis of the San Luis Obispo Chinatown. 2018. Cultural Resources Management Program, Sonoma State University. http://hdl.handle.net/10211.3/205559
7. 1930 US Census.
