Fu Lam Mum shutters temporarily in Mountain View

Uploaded: Apr 27, 2017

Fans of longtime Mountain View Chinese restaurant Fu Lam Mum have likely noticed that the restaurant recently closed for remodeling. Have no fear: Owner Ben Quan hopes to reopen the restaurant by August or September, he said Thursday.

Fu Lam Mum on Castro Street is closed temporarily. Photo by Elena Kadvany.

Quan, who also owns the property at 153 Castro St., decided to convert a second-floor mezzanine previously used by the restaurant to office space. Tubular Labs, a video content company that currently occupies a third floor of the building, plans to expand into the remodeled space, Quan said. City building permits show they intend to add 2,335 square feet to the second floor.

Fu Lam Mum will remain on the first floor.

Quan first opened Fu Lam Mum steps away in a different location on Castro Street close to two decades ago. He also owns Hong Kong Bistro at 147 Castro St.

Stay tuned for Fu Lam Mum's reopening this fall.

Comments

Posted by Out of date, a resident of Duveneck/St. Francis,
on Apr 27, 2017 at 4:43 pm

Recently? It's been closed for at least 2+ months.

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Posted by Brian, a resident of Menlo Park: The Willows,
on Apr 28, 2017 at 9:40 am

I agree with Out of date, it has been closed for months. In fact I want to say it closed around Christmas so this info is just a little late to be useful.

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Posted by john_alderman, a resident of Crescent Park,
on Apr 28, 2017 at 10:21 am
john_alderman is a registered user.

@Brian - since it going to be closed for the next ~5 months, it is still going to be useful information for a while.

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Posted by Abigail, a resident of Willowgate,
on Apr 28, 2017 at 12:10 pm

They had posted about expanding the second floor. I was hoping that meant more seating for dim sum but it sounds like it means less seating overall. I hope I can get a dim sum table when they reopen!

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Posted by Elliot, a resident of Cuesta Park,
on Apr 29, 2017 at 11:08 am

Who cares? At the rate restaurants come and go these days in Mountain View, I hardly find this news, or useful.

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Posted by dc, a resident of Sylvan Park,
on Apr 30, 2017 at 3:05 pm

That means the open air eating area and decorative wall will be gone. 8 month is a long remolding time.

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Posted by Reader, a resident of another community,
on May 1, 2017 at 8:52 am

@Elliot:

Well, the employees certainly care and I'm guessing the ownership does as well.

Also, this restaurant is fairly busy, so I'm guessing a lot of diners care. If you don't care, that's fine, but others do care about things that you don't care for. And not just restaurant closures.

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Posted by qq, a resident of Barron Park,
on May 1, 2017 at 2:27 pm

Just look up the building permits for the details...

Web Link

Project #
Address
Permits Const.
Type
Description
Status Complete
Date

2017-1417 153 CASTRO ST FPCH OT F/S INSTALL T.I. INFILL MEZZANINE ON 2ND FLR TO CREATE NEW FLOOR AREA (2,335 SQFT), AND (3) NEW HVAC UNITS, MARKET READY "NO TENANT" AC

2017-0280 153 CASTRO ST BL TI INTERIOR DEMO ONLY (COMM T.I. UNDER SEPARATE PERMIT) "NO TENANT") AC

2016-3327 153 CASTRO ST BLELMEPLCH TI COMM T.I. INFILL MEZZANINE ON 2ND FLR TO CREATE NEW FLOOR AREA (2,335 SQFT), AND (3) NEW HVAC UNITS, MARKET READY "NO TENANT" AC

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Posted by SukwinderDixit, a resident of Rex Manor,
on May 1, 2017 at 3:41 pm
SukwinderDixit is a registered user.

man i miss that place they make the good foods

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Posted by Dim Sum, a resident of Old Palo Alto,
on May 2, 2017 at 10:08 am

Congrats to the owner, it's easy money to rent the second floor than the restaurant business. Imagine how many dim sum and stir-fry dishes they need to sell for the same amount of profit!

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Posted by Sandy DiGiulioWassonQuan, a resident of Mountain View,
on May 3, 2017 at 10:15 am

Hopefully a remodel will include an upgrade in quality of food. We were ashamed and embarrassed by the last meal we had there when we had guests. Soup seemed to be made of leftovers from the compost bin. Rest of meal was also very poor and skimpy.

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Posted by Eater, a resident of Mountain View,
on May 3, 2017 at 10:58 am

Sandy, what did the management say, when you brought that complaint to their attention in person? Which is the principled, responsible, proper thing to do, if you ever have a seriously disappointing experience in a restaurant. Reporting it to someone who can do something about it, and who may also try to make amends, also helps to distinguish you from the passive-aggressive-disorder customer types who say never a single word in person, instead saving, even (as it were) cherishing, their resentment to later spout off online, even if the act of doing so conveys much more about themselves than about the restaurant.

Also, many restaurant kitchens have "off" days, of no significance to a typical experience or trend. All the more reason to report them to the management.

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Posted by Alix, a resident of Charleston Meadows,
on Jun 20, 2017 at 9:26 pm

Are they downsizing?

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Posted by Mark, a resident of Old Mountain View,
on Jun 27, 2017 at 9:22 pm

Sandy is spot on. I used to eat there or do take out 3-4 nights a week. In the year before they closed to remodel, their food quality steadily declined, they cut back on their hours, raised their prices a few times, and instead of being busy they were often empty. Hopefully they will improve their kitchen and bring back the good prices and the good food.

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