Beloved Salem chef Kam Sang Kwan dies

Capi Lynn | Statesman Journal

Update, July 12

A public viewing for Chef Kam Sang Kwan was held June 28 at Virgil T. Golden Funeral Service. A celebration of life was held July 21, at his restaurant, Kwan's Original Cuisine.

Original story, June 22

The marquee sign at Kwan's Original Cuisine is a landmark in Salem. You can't miss it if you're headed south on Commercial Street SE out of downtown.

Menu specials and celebratory messages — framed by lights and gold accents — are posted high on the building's north end.

But this week, the marquee is blank.

Kam Sang Kwan, owner of the popular restaurant and its beloved master chef, died Sunday. He was 82.

The restaurant, which has been serving Salem customers in that location since 1982, has been closed since Saturday, and it is not known when it might reopen.

Kwan was admitted to Salem Hospital on Thursday afternoon after working in the restaurant that morning. He had been feeling unwell for a couple days.

He died three days later — Father’s Day.

Three decades of family, friends and food

The restaurant has been an institution in this community for more than three decades. Families have held birthday, anniversary and graduation parties there, along with wedding rehearsals and receptions. Groups and organizations have reserved space there for regular weekly and monthly meetings.

"He has lots of friends in town," said Gerry Frank, who sponsored Kwan to come to the United States from Hong Kong in 1969.

Kwan put in his usual 12- to 14-hour days at the restaurant right up until he was admitted to the hospital. Retirement was a difficult topic for him, even among family. They understood he was passionate about his work and supported him.

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He once told the Statesman Journal he considered long days at the restaurant more like exercise than work.

His family said he typically took just four days off during the year: Memorial Day, Independence Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas.

"He was in the kitchen every day," Frank said. "It's one of the busiest, largest Chinese restaurants in the state, and it's all due to him."

Kwan's has been the perennial No. 1 choice for Chinese food in the Statesman Journal's annual Best of the Mid-Valley voting. Just as important as the food has always been Mr. Kwan's vigilant attention to customer service and care.

"We don't treat them like customers," he once told the Statesman Journal. "We treat them like friends."

Customers appreciated how he routinely made time to visit their tables and chat with them, asking how their food was. That tradition started when he opened his first restaurant in 1976 in the lower level of Salem Civic Center. It was called Kwan’s Kitchen.

He opened a second restaurant in 1982, at the current location, 835 Commercial St. SE. The building had been vacant for eight years and earlier housed a tavern. It provided Kwan nearly 10,000 square feet of space to expand his brand, including main dining room, three banquet rooms, and a lounge.

Today the restaurant is recognized by its colorful pagoda-style roof. The entrance features a gift shop filled with authentic Chinese art, porcelain vases, sculptures and other trinkets. The 14-foot-tall wooden Buddha just inside the doorway is a big hit with young children.

Kwan’s is known for its expansive menu — 12 pages long online — featuring Cantonese and Szechuan cuisine. The variety is notable, with six varieties of rice and exotic proteins such as emu and ostrich, as well as many vegetarian and gluten-free options.

Mr. Kwan regularly adapted his menu to accommodate customers with food allergies and dietary restrictions.

My son loves the gluten-free fried shrimp. The last time we dined there, about a month ago, he was just as thrilled with the cool spoon trick Mr. Kwan demonstrated at our table.

Kwan had a way with young people, never failing to grab their attention. When he made classroom visits at local schools, he would wow them by de-boning a chicken blindfolded with a meat cleaver.

Without a blindfold, he reportedly could debone a chicken in 19 seconds.

Kwan's entrepreneurial spirit took him far

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Kwan learned to cook from his mother. His first restaurant experience came at age 11.

He worked for 17 years at a restaurant in Hong Kong, rising from page boy to manager. That's where he was "discovered" by Gerry Frank.

Frank, then an aide to Sen. Mark Hatfield, was looking for someone to tend his household, including the kitchen. A friend who owned a hotel in Hong Kong recommended Kwan.

"I never met him, but I had great confidence in my friend," Frank said.

Frank sponsored Kwan to come to the United States and guaranteed him employment for five years. Kwan was 33 at the time and came without his wife and children, who later joined him. He had $100 in his pocket.

"He was a diligent worker, very hard-working," Frank said.

The two became lifelong friends, and Kwan went on to work at local Chinese restaurants before eventually opening his own.

"He started from scratch," Frank said. "He was a very entrepreneurial man. He always had the latest gadgets to make sure the place he was operating had the best food.”

Kwan is survived by his wife, Bo, who handles the front desk at the restaurant, their four children, one grandchild, and a brother in Hong Kong.

The family is planning a public viewing for next week at Virgil T. Golden Funeral Services, but details have yet to been finalized. They also are planning a celebration of life event that will be held at some point at the restaurant.

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clynn@StatesmanJournal.com, 503-399-6710, or follow on Twitter @CapiLynn and Facebook @CapiLynnSJ.