Much-loved Chinatown restaurant shuts amid coronavirus fears
Chinatown institution Shark Fin House may have fallen victim to coronavirus fears, but the closure has seen a swell of support for the struggling restaurants of Melbourne’s iconic eat street.
VIC News
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One of Melbourne’s most-loved Chinatown restaurants has been forced to close its doors after coronavirus scared away customers in droves.
Shark Fin House served what is likely to be its final meal over the weekend after more than 30 years as a popular lunch and dinner spot for Melburnians, tourists and celebrities.
A sign on the doors of the restaurant on Little Bourke St states it’s shut for maintenance until February 20.
But today Vanessa Lau, general manager of Shark Fin Inn, Shark Fin House’s nearby sister venue, confirmed the closure was likely to be permanent.
An emotional Ms Lau confirmed Shark Finn House was shutting indefinitely and expressed her gratitude to the many devastated customers who had contacted her.
Shark Finn Inn was bustling with customers at lunchtime today, keen to show their support.
One diner, city worker Michael Sherman, said he was “gutted” by the closure of Shark Fin House.
“It’s an institution, I’ve been going there for over a decade for work lunches, birthdays … everything,” he said.
Laura Marks lives in the UK and said she used to eat at Shark Fin House frequently when she lived in Melbourne several years ago.
“I remember taking my family there when they visited me, it was great and they loved it,” she said.
One customer leaving Shark Fin Inn called out “its good to see a queue”.
Ms Lau said she was grateful for the support from customers and the media.
Yesterday Victorian Health Minister Jenny Mikakos dined at Shark Fin Inn, imploring people not to avoid Chinatown because of coronavirus.
“There is no reason for alarm in the general community”, she said.
“Chinatown & our wonderful Chinese businesses across Victoria are open for business,” Ms Mikakos wrote on Twitter.
Today I joined the @VictorianCHO, MPs & members of our Chinese community to enjoy a lion dance & delicious Yum Cha. The #2019nCoV should not stop us living our lives normally. Chinatown & our wonderful Chinese businesses across Victoria are open for business 🥟 ðŸšðŸœ #springst pic.twitter.com/WiQY08YUvY
— Jenny Mikakos MP (@JennyMikakos) February 12, 2020
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Victorian Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton urged people to get behind Chinese businesses.
“We should be reaching out to the Chinese and broader Asian community at this extremely difficult time for them, and support businesses and events that are now part of the Australian fabric,” he said.