After we recently shared an image of Ping On Chinese Restaurant and Take-Away on our Instagram and Facebook pages many of you took to the comments sections to leave your memories of nights out, family celebrations the incredible food and service but above all your love for the original owner Kenny Mak who made going to Ping On between 1968 and the early 90’s a night to remember.
For years Ping On was the restaurant of choice in Stockbridge for Date Nights, Birthdays, Work Nights Out, Hen Party’s, Stag Dos, Christmas Lunches and Dinners or simply as the last stop before home after the pub. Many people recalled having their first ever experience of Chinese food in Kenny’s restaurant with one person writing “I had my first ever beef curry in the ping on when I was 17 in 1979 Never forgot that taste and have judged every other meal on that since.” but head and shoulders above them all were the comments about the Ping On Barbecue Spare Ribs which by all accounts must have been mouth wateringly incredible. ( Wonder if the Mak’s still have the recipe ?)
However, by far our favourite recollection and one that made us laugh out loud has to go to Facebook user Juine MooCoo who wrote “1971.. picture it. 13 yrs old. Mum and dad take me to the Ping On for a meal, the day before I went to Austria with the school. I asked what all this was for. Mum replies, and I’m not kidding, “it’s in case the plane crashes!”. I was sh****ng myself the next day.”
Kenny Mak arrived in Edinburgh from his native Hong Kong in 1965 and after working as a waiter for a spell opened Ping On in 1968. Kenny and his wife Fiona along with their five children Melinda, Hannah, Melody, Catherine and Andrew lived at 30 Raeburn Place.
Melinda, Hannah and Melody Mak, Melinda Mak (Chinese characters of Ping On on door) Hannah, Andrew and Catherine Mak working a Christmas shift in Ping On.
Melinda and Melody Mak
With the success of the family restaurant it wasn’t long until the Mak’s were giving back to the community that had given them such a warm welcome with Ping On sponsoring many local events and sports. It was a passion of Kenny’s to support local football teams, keeping youngsters focused and off the streets.
Kenny was famed for his incredible memory recognising customers months and even years after they had visited his restaurant. Mike Parker on Facebook recalled “Years ago i was sitting in my van in Bruntsfeild, when this guy knocked on the window. I was shocked to see it was Kenny who i had not seen for years, and totally surprised that he even recognised me after all that time. That just shows you what kind of person Kenny is, who would never pass you without letting on…”
In the early 90’s tragedy struck the family when their daughter Melody was sadly taken from them in a car accident on Queensferry Road leading many to speculate that after this Kenny had perhaps sold up and returned to Hong Kong but after reading through all the wonderful comments you wrote about Kenny and his family we spotted one that stood out and just incase you didn’t notice it here it is.. It’s from his daughter Melinda. She said “My dad is Kenny Mak, I have shared these messages with him which he has loved reading…” Kenny is 81 now and still lives in Edinburgh with his wife Fiona. He keeps active and can regularly be seen playing golf at The Dalmahoy and also at the Imperial Palace in Longstone for his weekly dim sum dose.
Thank you to every one who took the time to share their stories of this wonderful family run business that meant so much to Stockbridge and we think we’ll leave the last word to Garry Drummond who summed up most peoples feelings about Ping On in his Facebook comment “…my memories of this fantastic Chinese restaurant will always remain with me.”
Feature image: Fiona, Kenny, Andrew and Catherine Mak
