Bali-Hai Restaurant (Demolished)
Euclid, OH Photo courtesy Steve Felder
Check out the Bali-Hai Restaurant that had one of the more unusual restaurant signs in the Cleveland area. Here's an interesting shot of this Euclid favorite, whose colorful marquee combined a tropical tiki theme with a Chinese American restaurant. It's not a combination you see every day, and that's exactly what makes it memorable.
Inspired by the fictional island of Bali Hai from South Pacific, the restaurant embraced a Polynesian look that fit right in with the mid-century fascination for all things tropical. The sign was the real attraction, standing out along busy Euclid Avenue and giving passing motorists something to remember.
Inside, Bali-Hai served Cantonese and American dishes, along with tropical drinks and later a banquet room for larger gatherings. Some locals even remember stopping in for the pizza, proving the menu was just as unique as the sign out front.
Unfortunately, the colorful marquee disappeared in the early 1990s, followed by the restaurant itself. It's a shame, because signs like this gave ordinary commercial strips a lot more personality than they have today.
UPDATE: Bali-Hai Restaurant has been demolished and the site has been redeveloped. The iconic tropical sign was removed in the early 1990s, and its fate is unknown. 07-26
Orient Chop Suey (Gone)
IL Photo courtesy Don Gardner
Here's a nice old sign from Illinois. The Orient Chop Suey Restaurant featured a great two-sided marquee that made sure passing motorists knew takeout was available. It's a simple design, but the large "Take Out" panel gives the sign plenty of personality and makes it easy to see why it caught people's attention.
While very little information has surfaced about the restaurant itself, the sign has managed to outlive the business. Like many neighborhood chop suey restaurants of the era, the food may have brought people in, but it was the colorful marquee that helped make the place memorable.
Fortunately, the sign wasn't lost when the restaurant closed. It was removed and preserved, eventually becoming part of the traveling Darkness Electrified neon exhibition. It's always good to see an old sign given a second life rather than ending up in a scrapyard.
UPDATE: The restaurant is gone, but the two-sided Orient Chop Suey marquee survives. It has been preserved and continues to appear as part of the traveling Darkness Electrified neon exhibition. 07-26
Lang Lee Chop Suey (Gone)
Evergreen Park, IL Photo and info courtesy Bruce R. Cassi / 1998
Here's a great little neighborhood takeout that many people around Evergreen Park probably remember. Lang Lee Chop Suey wasn't much bigger than the sign out front, but that never seemed to matter. On Sunday evenings, the tiny building would be packed with customers waiting to pick up their orders, sometimes with more than 30 people squeezed inside.
The restaurant was opened by Lang Lee in 1958 and remained a family-run business for generations. Its vintage White Way sign advertising "Lang Lee Chop Suey to Take Home" and "Finest Chinese Food" became a familiar sight along 95th Street, welcoming hungry customers long before takeout became as common as it is today.
As business grew, a second full-service restaurant, Lang Lee II, opened in Orland Park with a dining room instead of just takeout. Unfortunately, when the original Evergreen Park location closed in the late 1990s, the old sign wasn't moved to the new restaurant. That's a shame, because it was every bit as memorable as the little building it called home.
UPDATE: Both Lang Lee Chop Suey and the later Lang Lee II restaurant are permanently closed. The original Evergreen Park building and its vintage sign are gone. 07-26
Kitty's Chop Suey (Rem.)
Garden City, MI Photo and info courtesy Richard Weiss
Here's a look at Kitty's Chop Suey in Garden City, MI. Today, just about every restaurant advertises itself as "Chinese," but years ago "Chop Suey" was the name that seemed to appear on signs all over the country. Even the name "Kitty's" feels like a throwback to another era, when restaurant postcards often greeted you with "Your Host..."
The original sign has since disappeared, but it was a great example of the neighborhood restaurant marquees that once lined busy commercial streets. It may not have been flashy, but it had plenty of character and reflected a time when family-owned chop suey restaurants were found in communities across America.
While the sign is gone, the restaurant is still very much in business, although it now operates simply as Kitty's Restaurant. The menu has evolved over the years, but longtime customers still come back for Chinese-American favorites like almond boneless chicken, egg rolls, and wonton soup. The cozy neighborhood feel that made the place popular decades ago has managed to stick around.
UPDATE: Kitty's Restaurant remains open in Garden City, although the original Kitty's Chop Suey sign has been replaced with modern signage. 07-26
Orange Garden
Chicago, IL Photo and info Chibbqking
Here's another great old Chinese restaurant from Chicago. The Orange Garden prominently displayed the words "Chop Suey" on its colorful neon sign, leaving no doubt about what was being served inside. According to Chibbqking, the restaurant looked like it hadn't changed much since the 1950s, complete with black leather booths and dim lighting. 07-09
Orange Garden has quite a history, opening in 1924 and taking on its current name in 1932. It's recognized as the oldest continuously operating Chinese restaurant in Chicago, and much of its vintage character remains intact. Inside are original murals dating to the 1940s along with a wall clock that's been there since the early 1930s.
For me, the sign was the real attraction. The double-sided porcelain neon marquee hung outside the restaurant for nearly 90 years before it was removed in 2022. It was one of those classic neighborhood signs that became just as recognizable as the business itself.
Thankfully, the restaurant is still serving customers today under the longtime ownership of the Ruan family. While the old neon sign is gone, Orange Garden continues to serve many of the same Chinese-American favorites that have kept people coming back for generations.
UPDATE: Orange Garden remains open and is still Chicago's oldest operating Chinese restaurant. The original neon "Chop Suey" sign was removed and sold at auction in 2022. 07-26
Cozy Inn
Janesville, WI Photos courtesy Kelly Sullivan
Here's a look at one of Wisconsin's true restaurant survivors. The Cozy Inn has been serving Chinese food in downtown Janesville since 1922, making it the oldest Chinese restaurant in Wisconsin. You won't find it at street level, though. Customers enter through a red door on Milwaukee Street and climb a steep flight of stairs to reach the dining room. 11-10
Once upstairs, it's easy to see why so many people keep coming back. Much of the restaurant has changed very little over the years, with its vintage round booths, old phone booth, and classic neighborhood atmosphere still intact. The menu features Cantonese and Hunan favorites, and the hand-rolled egg rolls have become a local specialty.
Outside, the projecting neon sign has welcomed customers for generations. Thankfully, it received a complete restoration in 2023 with the help of a historic preservation grant, ensuring it will continue lighting the way for years to come.
With the recent closure of Montana's Pekin Noodle Parlor, Cozy Inn now holds another distinction as the oldest continuously operating Chinese restaurant in the United States. It's nice to see a place like this still going strong after more than a century.
UPDATE: Cozy Inn remains open in its original downtown Janesville location and continues to operate under family ownership. Its historic neon sign was fully restored in 2023 and the restaurant is now recognized as the oldest continuously operating Chinese restaurant in the United States. 07-26
Cozy Inn
Janesville, WI Photos courtesy Kelly Sullivan
Bali-Hai Restaurant (Demolished)
Orient Chop Suey (Gone)
Lang Lee Chop Suey (Gone)
Kitty's Chop Suey (Rem.)
Cozy Inn
With the recent closure of Montana's Pekin Noodle Parlor, Cozy Inn now holds another distinction as the oldest continuously operating Chinese restaurant in the United States. It's nice to see a place like this still going strong after more than a century.
