William 'Bill' Kwong has served the community at the Lithgow Palace Chinese Restaurant for 30 years, but now it's time for him to put his wok away.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The long-time business owner is retiring from the restaurant that he and his late wife Irene built from the ground up after purchasing the site in 1987.
Mr Kwong said he has been passionate about cooking since he started at nine-years-old.
"I've been doing it my whole life. My first job was cooking and then it was one job for one life," he said.
Prior to running the Palace, Mr and Mrs Kwong were working in a bistro in Wentworth Falls.
Mr and Mrs Kwong moved in and took over the Palace in 1995- where they built a life of beautiful memories raising their five children on the premises.
Daughter, Caroline Kwong said it is a bittersweet moment for the children, who grew up and worked at the Palace as they got older.
"We all grew up here in the Palace we called our homebase," Ms Kwong said.
"Our whole lives are here."
In 2009, the original restaurant was demolished with the one Lithgow knows and loves today being built in its place.
Ms Kwong said her father has lived in Lithgow for half his life and the locals have been what he has enjoyed the most about running his business.
"They've made lifelong friends," Ms Kwong said.
Mr and Ms Kwong said it has been wonderful to see the different generations of locals visit and work for them.
"Some customers for three generations have been very supportive," Mr Kwong said.
"When they first started this shop, people were coming in as children and growing up and having their own childen," Ms Kwong said.
"Now we see the same customers and they are grandparents."
Mr Kwong already has plans for his retirement, which include visiting his 100-year-old mother.
"The first thing would be to stop working and then I decided to go overseas on a holiday and look after my mum," Mr Kwong said.
"He can finally spend some time with her with what's left of her years," Ms Kwong said.
This may be the end of Mr Kwong's era at the Lithgow Palace, but the business will continue on after it was purchased by locals Peter and Vicky Zhu.
Mr and Mrs Zhu previously ran The Peacock Palace at the Portland RSL for 20 years and are in the process of handover from the Kwong family.
Mr and Ms Kwong said they are grateful to the community for supporting them over the last 30 years.
"We want to take this opportunity to thank the locals and other small business owners," Ms Kwong said.
"It feels like we've known them a lifetime now and everyone's been supportive."
Reidun Berntsen
Reidun is a Journalist and writer who lives in a country town 3 hours from Sydney, Australia. From a young age, Reidun has been in love with words and the infinite possibilities they bring. Stories, features and poems have been a major part of her writing career.
Reidun is a Journalist and writer who lives in a country town 3 hours from Sydney, Australia. From a young age, Reidun has been in love with words and the infinite possibilities they bring. Stories, features and poems have been a major part of her writing career.
