Image: Stella Yiu, realtor.ca / Mandarin Garden Buffet in Chilliwack will close its doors for good later this summer.

By Mike Vanden Bosch

Restaurant closure

Chinese buffet in Chilliwack sets closure date for later this summer

Jul 17, 2025 | 11:24 AM

CHILLIWACK — After its building and property were purchased earlier this year, a longtime Chilliwack restaurant appears poised to close its doors on a specific date later this summer.

Jennifer Leong Tatlay posted to Facebook on Wednesday that her grandparents’ final day of business at Mandarin Garden Buffet on Luckakuck Way will be Sunday, August 31. She praised her grandparents for their continued dedication to the business.

“I don’t think you can find any Chinese restaurants around that still have two 83-year-old individuals hand wrapping and making fresh wontons for wonton soup lol,” Leong Tatlay wrote on Facebook.

In June, Fraser Valley Today learned that the restaurant had been sold and the new ownership would not be utilizing the building as a restaurant, according to Vancouver realtor Stella Yiu.

In response to an online question about whether her grandparents would be willing to convert the restaurant into a hot pot buffet, Leong Tatlay said her grandparents needed a well-deserved break.

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“I think everyone’s very tired of working since they were kids and my grandparents were in their 30’s. Open 7 days a week before, and during Covid was the first time my family were ever at home, and I’m glad because otherwise I’d be seeing them only when I visit them at the restaurant like 1-2x a month, even though we live only 10 mins away,” Leong Tatlay said.

Image: Stella Yiu, realtor.ca / Mandarin Garden Buffet has been serving customers at its Luckakuck Way location since 1998.

Leong Tatlay said the restaurant business is not for the faint of heart.

“Restaurant business is very tough, especially with the food prices at an all time high and major fluctuations. My grandparents are in their mid 80’s now and they need to retire,” she said. “My grandparents are still working on their feet every single day. Filling in for people who don’t show up to work, dishwashing and cooking isn’t easy because the restaurant is busy busy, but not enough staff and it’s not a money issue. It’s hard to find staff here, we even have to provide free accommodation & meals for our kitchen staff. People come in to try out a job, then leave in between the job and never come back because it’s too hard.”

The business at 45295 Luckakuck Way has been serving loyal customers since 1998.