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It seems Burlingame will be the home of two Primes, according to the Inside Scoop in the Chronicle today:
(1) Burlingame Prime will open soon at the Gua Poang Restaurant site at 1425 Burlingame Avenue
(2) Broadway Prime is already there but Broadway Grill ed) will open soon on Broadway.
Sorry to hear that Gua Poang will be closing after 28 years. It looks like there might be a Battle of the Primes!
– Written by Fiona
Oh Man. I love Gua Poang…
Broadway Prime has been open for several years…your posting makes it seem as though this is an entirely new enterprise.
*****
Gerald , sorry my mistake. I thought they were talking about the Broadway Grill which is planning to go into Broadway. Mea culpa!
I learned today, having had lunch at Gua Poang as I often do, that their closure is only temporary. They are looking to relocate to a smaller space but wish to remain in the area. Show your support (and treat yourself) before they move!
On a similar note, Yianni’s used to be a haunt of mine on Primrose. I discovered a couple months ago while riding the J-Church (MUNI) that their new address is 1708 Church (near 29th Street). If you had not discovered Yianni’s while he was in Burlingame, I highly recommend a trip to San Francisco for the best in Greek cuisine!
So glad to hear that they didn’t simply perish. We loved Yianni’s. Lucky San Francisco! Thanks for the tips.
The story from the San Mateo Times:
“JERRY and Judy Kuo have been feeding people Chinese and Mandarin cuisine for a quarter of a century, but as of Sept. 15, they will close Gau Poang restaurant at 1425 Burlingame Ave. But they’ll be back, Judy Kuo said. “It’s sad to leave here, but we just have no choice,” the Burlingame resident said. “We’ve served three generations here.”
Gau Poang Chinese restaurant is another business casualty on the street known for its high rent. Last year, a series of retail stores and restaurants weren’t able to renew their leases and had to either relocate or close down. Gau Poang is still smarting because of the sluggish economy, Kuo said. In January, the Kuos signed a 10-year lease, but they decided two weeks ago to sell their business to Salim Dahud, a Burlingame resident who owned Tannour on Valencia Street in San Francisco. He plans to open a prime rib house called Burlingame Prime. “At first, we thought we could fight for it,” Kuo said. “We really wanted to keep going here … but all the chain stores have come in, that’s why rent is getting higher and higher. The landlord is smart. Small businesses can’t handle it here now.”
She said she and her husband will look for a place closer to their current location. Jerry Kuo, who owned restaurants in South San Francisco and San Jose, said he already has a place in mind to open his restaurant. He said he expects to open up a smaller restaurant in two months. “We have a lot of loyal customers and they like my food,” he said. “This is my life, what I know is the restaurant (business).”
Dahud expects to open up his restaurant on Oct. 1 and will only serve dinner, including such fare as prime rib, lamb and hamburgers. He will also cater to corporate events. “We are in no competition with anybody,” Dahud said. “It’s going to be fancy, nice, elegant and friendly. It will be a new addition to the neighborhood”
Here’s hoping Gau Paoung finds a suitable location soon. I’ve been going there since they opened and do not want to go without the Kun Pao Chicken.
I second the first part of al’s post; I am too much a creature-of-habit to go without my Gau Poang lunch every few days. What really bothers me is that we consumers cannot fix the problem (i.e. pie-in-the-sky rent increases). I remember when the hardware store had to close on The Ave, the space just stayed empty for years. The three main landlords of The Ave can afford to wait out the loss of rent (and write it off). While I am a landlord that does rent below market value (to close friends), I respect (begrudgingly) those that just want to get every penny they can for their property. I am firmly against rent control. I don’t know if there is a fix. Any ideas?
We had a great meal at Gua Poang tonight; they will be open through tomorrow night and hope to re-open soon in burlingame or San Mateo at a new location. Stop by and give them your business and business cards…
The Mongolian Beef bro, what will I do without Gau Pong Mongolian Beef…I have fond memories of getting extremely baked before ordering the Potsticka & Mongolian Bebebebeeeef….
Don’t forget Gullivers. Last week we had a delicious meal there.
Thank you, Angela. I must admit I do forget it about it being there, and I have always had great meals there! I just don’t get over to Airport Blvd. like I used to when I worked at the airport…but we all need to support that side of town. Has anyone tried the Russian place next to Benihana?
$25.00 gft certificates for Fandorin ( the Russian place next to Benihana) are available on ebay for about $10.00 if anyone is interested.
Gullivers? Never been there! Where is it? What type food?
For your mongolian beef, try King Yuan on the Ave.
Gullivers is over off of Airport Blvd. It has been there for decades. I haven’t been in a very long time, but it sounds like it is very good. I remember english type of foods (but good) Prime rib, pot pies, etc. It’s supposed to look sort of like England two centuries ago. Nice atmosphere.
In other restaurant news — looks like World Wrapps is gone from Burlingame Ave + a new kebab place is opening up in its place. Good news for the Ave, as Wrapps hasn’t been operating anywhere near capacity for a few years.
Interestingly, the World Wrapp franchise seems to be looking for a few suckers, uhm investors — a sign posted on their closed store says they’re looking for people to open new franchises — while the only 2 locations I was aware of north of Palo Alto (B’Game and SF Marina) have both recently closed. Not necessarily the sweetest of franchise opportunities.
Since our chamber isn’t doing it, someone want to call Jamba Juice or Zao’s Noodles + have them open in town.
I emailed Jamba Juice months ago suggesting they go in next to Starbucks, where Noah’s Bagels used to be. Received a form response thanking me for the suggestion, assuring me they’re always evaluating, yadda, yadda, yadda…
Ian – Nice work.
How about any resident who does something proactive to attract a business to Burlingame gets to run the Chamber of Commerce or at least gets some funding from the Chamber. I think Ian’s actions alone constitute more useful action than we’ve seen from the Chamber in years.
Years ago Jamba Juice tried to go in where All Fired Up Is. City Council said no.
Speaking of new places, I whisked by a new garden store located where our PIP lady used to be, across from the P.O. Just when I was on my way to Goldens in San Mateo. I would’ve stopped, but I had already paid for my order at Goldens.
Does anyone know about it?
Angela, why was Jamba Juice denied? (and where is All Fired Up?)
All Fired Up — near Stacks. Great food if you don’t mind wood-fired pottery. Vibrant colors, but I’ve found the dishes to be quite crunchy 🙁
I vaguely remember the Jamba Juice discussion. I think it had to do with their being more or less a fast food place, with lots of coming and going, probably got down to parking, but the specifics I don’t remember. I love Zao noodle, and only know them from the city. Now that would be a good fit, don’t you think? Different enough from most other noodle houses.
The new garden place is pretty nice. I wish they had some outdoor plants somewhere in there, but I won’t get too fussy. There’s a really nice deli with interesting italien salads and desserts, in PA. I cannot believe I forgot the name. some italian name, starting with an “F” I think. It turns out it’s a chain, too. They sell desserts here and there. Great flourless cakes, too. There’s one in that newish Safeway mall on El Camino. Anyhow, I e-mailed them too, thinking italien deli is something different. I got the same answer as Ian did.
All Fired Up is a great ceramic place on Lorton to take your kids (and others) to decorate pottery. They have great birthday parties where you order in pizza and the kids can decorate a tile, etc. This small business is also generous to local fundraisers and generously donated some money towards a Library Foundation raffle prize for this Friday. It is one of the gems of Burlingame!
please let us know where is the new location for Gua Poang (if they have decided where they are going to open their new one)
We were told there was not enough parking for a Jamba Juice.
Does anyone know if Burlingame Prime ever opened up?
No news on the date but there has been a name change according to the Daily Journal:
The prime rib restaurant gearing up to open on Burlingame Avenue changed its name on Dec. 1 from Burlingame Prime to Prime on the Avenue after lawsuit threats were made. General Manager Salim Dahud said the change came after House of Prime Rib in San Francisco threatened to sue because they believe they have the exclusive right to Prime Rib in a company name. The House of Prime Rib was OK with Prime on the Avenue. We didn’t want to deal with that, we’d rather focus on getting things set up and the quality for our customers,? he said.
Gau Paong is finally open in San Mateo. I believe they had looked at the yianni’s location before it went up in flames.
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