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Macky’s Dim Sum and Chinese restaurant opened in Gilman Village in January 2010. This could lead one to believe that it’s a new concept for Sonny and Macky Wong, but that would be far off the mark. They have a long history in restaurant operation, going back to their early days in Hong Kong.

Photo: Sonny and Macky Wong on their front porch

Both families lived in Hong Kong. Sonny’s father owned a coffee shop where Sonny worked when he was young. Her first cousin has managed the high-end Yung Kee restaurant in Hong Kong for the past 40 years. "It’s the quintessential Hong Kong restaurant," says Sonny. "Any guidebook will send you there." The two families knew each other well. Sonny’s uncle had moved to Seattle and opened Wah Kue Café in Burien in 1950. In their 90s now, both his aunt and uncle still go to work each day. Sonny’s family moved to Seattle nearly 40 years ago when he was 16. Both he and his father worked at his uncle’s restaurant, his father until he retired and Sonny for several years while he attended Franklin High School and then the University of Washington, majoring in Business. Sonny’s sister has her own restaurant in Shoreline called Peking House.

In 1979, Sonny and his future brother-in-law opened the Golden Wok in Federal Way (now closed). It had a long run from 1979 to 1993. "My brother-in-law and I were the first to combine a chop suey place with a Mandarin restaurant," recalls Sonny. "They always used to be separate. Now everyone does it." In 1986, Sonny and Macky married and both worked at the Golden Wok. In 1993, they bought a restaurant in the International District called China Gate and began serving Hong Kong-style dim sum. "There were dim sum restaurants in Seattle, but they had very limited menus. We started the move toward having a large dim sum menu." With their connections in Hong Kong, they were the first to bring over chefs and entire crews to work in the restaurant. Three years ago, Macky’s brother started a similar restaurant in Toronto, Canada. "We’ve brought over five families from Hong Kong to become chefs here," says Sonny. Over the years at China Gate, they had chefs from Hong Kong, Toronto and Vancouver, B.C.

Macky also had a vegetarian restaurant in Chinatown called Vegetarian Bistro for three years. The building had to be renovated and they sold it. In 2008, they sold China Gate after 15 years of being in business. The neighborhood had changed: there was a lot of homelessness, parking was a problem for customers and they had to deal with patrons over-drinking in their restaurant as well as others. "I would just get home and get a call to come back because there had been a fight or someone had tried to break in. One year, we had four break ins," says Sonny. "I often didn’t leave until 3 or 4 a.m."

Photo: Macky dishing up

Over the past year and a half, Sonny and Macky looked at many areas for the right space. They wanted to do both dim sum and regular meals and have a family-style restaurant where families could enjoy meals together. "We didn’t want a big restaurant," says Macky. "We wanted something more personal." Issaquah was a logical spot; it’s where they live with their three daughters, two of whom, Kari and Farah, are still at Issaquah High School. Along with Solana, 21 (pictured below with her dad), they can sometimes be spotted at the restaurant. After negotiating for four months for one site, they began looking again and found an open spot at Gilman Village in the former Sweet Addition shop. They remodeled extensively—new kitchen, new floors, new paint, new restrooms. The restaurant can seat 85 inside and 15-20 on the deck. Although they don’t have a bar, they do serve beer and wine. "It’s wonderful to have parking for our customers and know they don’t have to drive around to find it and then pay for it," says Sonny.

"This is the right spot for us," says Sonny. "We have no headaches. We’re close to home. After we close at night, we have time with our daughters. We’ve been in the business a long time and know what we’re doing and wanted to bring the best food we can to Issaquah. Our chef, Fook, came from Hong Kong 15 years ago and worked with us at China Gate." Macky makes a few items herself, but mainly leaves things up to the chef. "He has some sort of secret and what I make never tastes as good as what he makes," she laughs. "His barbecue and duck and sauces are so good. I can’t recreate them at home."

A small kitchen means they have to limit the number of dim sum items they can make. "It’s important to us that we make the best items, since we can’t make all items," says Macky. "Doing both dim sum and regular meals makes us different. We have a roaster and do barbecue. Our food is very fresh. We miss our China Gate customers, but we love working in this nice neighborhood." Sonny agrees. "People in Issaquah are very nice to us. I like a small restaurant because I like to talk to people. I can associate with all our customers. We like to treat customers like friends."

Photo: Proud owner Sonny

For Sonny and Macky, this new restaurant gives them no stress. That’s amazing, considering they haven’t taken a day off in three months and don’t intend to for at least the first year. "We want to be here to take care of our customers. That’s so important," says Macky.

With a long lease, Sonny says they will be here until they retire. Considering the family history and restaurant longevity, Macky’s will be around for us to enjoy for years to come.

Connie Adams/April 2010

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