Brockton Enterprise Article. April
1st 1998
(One year after Yangtze's secondary dining
room roof
collapsed under heavy snow after the April
1st blizzard of 1997)
• West Bridgewater restaurant owners
recover from ‘heart-breaking damage
with a new function room and jazz show.
By Jane Haines
ENTERPRISE CORRESPONDENT
WEST BRIDGEWATER —- This week’s record breaking
temperatures make it easy to forget that, a year ago today, the region was in the midst of
a record-breaking snowstorm.
The Eng family, owners of the Yangtze China Inn Restaurant on Route 28,
will never forget the April Fools’Day storm because on the following day, the roof of
their restaurant’s large dining hall collapsed under the weight of the heavy wet snow
that fell.
This week the restaurant is commemorating the event with the grand
opening of its new function room, which was built just in time for the celebration of the
40th year in business in West Bridgewater.
As part of the festivities, Yangtze will host a jazz show with the
Kubota PowerJazz unit featuring the music of Gershwin, in the new function room on Friday
night.
Owner James Eng, who operates the restaurant with his son and co-owner,
Ken Eng, wishes to thank the community, the West Bridgewater Fire Department and other
town officials for helping the restaurant reopen within days of last year’s
mishap. Prior to the roof’s collapse, the restaruarant had never been closed
except for a minor fire in the 1970’s.
"At the time, the roof collapse was very heart-breaking;
however, because of the support of our customers and the community, this all has really
turned into a blessing. Now, we are attracting larger functions and new regular
customers," said James.
The Yangtze was able to reopen within a week last April, because the
main dining room was not affected. According to James, reconstruction of the rear
function room proceeded very slowly from April until the present because of the meticulous
attention to detail taken during the restoration of many of the imported Chinese
decorations in the room. The room opened in December, but many of the finishing
touches were just recently completed.
In contrast with the previous flat roof design, the new roof is
A-style. Ken Eng explained that the new roof was made stronger and safer than the
old one. The use of scissor trusses allowed for a new higher cathedral ceiling
inside, suitable for larger functions. The room can seat up to 130 people.
Exposed decoratively finished beams counter balance the large space to create a cozy yet
grand atmosphere, the result of traditional Chinese decor combined with modern
architecture.
"We added a new dance floor to create a nice grand ballroom
atmosphere. We are quite pleased with it," said Ken.
Ken Eng is excited about Friday’s jazz show. He is applying
his skills as a sound engineer to develop what he says is "the area’s only jazz
show setting with a professional surround-sound system which will allow people in the
audience to enjoy different environments beyond that of the room itself, similar to what
happens at Symphony Hall in Boston."
As an MIT trained electrical engineer and music lover, Ken worked at
his previous job at Lexicon Inc. designing professional audio products, including the ones
he plans to use for the jazz show.
"I am looking forward to creating one of the most unusual jazz
rooms in the region. We also plan to emulate some of the classier jazz clubs in
Boston." The show is open to the public with performances at 8 and 10 p.m.
The Yangtze was opened in December 1957 by Ken’s late mother and
her uncle, Harry King. Over the years, the restaurant’s success was
reflected in the addition of several dining rooms and kitchen facilities.
Ken says, "Through my mother’s dedication to have the finest
food served with the warmest hospitality, the Yangtze established itself as one of the
area’s most respected restaurants."
Ken credits his cousins, Stephen and Joseph Yu, for their years of hard
work, especially since his mother passed away in 1989. Ken’s focus, since has
started helping his family manage the Yangtze, has been to reinforce the high standards
that have made the restaurant successful and to implement new ideas to better serve the
customers.
"My Dad and I really enjoy serving people and seeing them smile
after a good meal. That is what really motivates us. We want every apsect of a
customer’s expereience at the Yangtze to be the best. We want to make it a
place that we would enjoy dining at," he said.
