To Choi Choi's Obituary
To Choi was born on October 20, 1945, in Zhongshan, China, to Mr. Choi Ki Sang and Mrs. Lam Soo King. He was the beloved younger brother of Choi Wai Lin, and the older brother of Ronald Choi and Choi Tak Lin. He spent his early years in Zhongshan before moving to Macau in 1962. After completing middle school, he relocated with his parents to Hong Kong in 1964.
While in Hong Kong, he worked on a ferry and later received his commercial driver's license where he worked for a cement company driving large cement vehicles. In 1973, he met his future wife, Yuet Leung Choi. The couple married in 1977, a year after To Choi immigrated to the United States with the goal of building a new life for his family. They eventually settled in San Francisco's Chinatown, where they welcomed their first child, Edmund, in 1978, followed by their daughter Jennifer in 1981.
In 1984, To Choi and his wife purchased their first home in San Francisco's Excelsior District, where he lived for 41 years. Known for his love of food, both cooking and eating, To Choi worked hard during the day but always made time to prepare a homemade dinner for his family. Every evening, they would gather around the table to share a meal —always with fresh fish, one of his wife's favorites.
He started as a dishwasher at the Canterbury Hotel's The GreenHouse Restaurant. Through dedication and passion for cooking, he rose to become one of the four lead chefs, affectionately known as the "Four Kings" or "PA*Z". He made many lifelong friends in the restaurant industry and continued to enjoy regular dim sum outings and Mah-Jong with them even in recent months.
In 1994, he opened his first restaurant in San Francisco's Richmond District. Though that venture was short-lived, he didn't give up. In 1995, he launched his second restaurant, The Golden Coffee, which became a neighborhood favorite known for classic diner fare and beloved Chinese comfort dishes like chow mein, fried rice, and soft egg beef over rice.
Tragically, in 1996, To Choi lost his beloved wife to cancer. He was left to raise two teenagers on his own, and he rose to the challenge with determination. For many years, he worked two jobs -working at Golden Coffee during the day and returning to the hotel restaurant at night. Even after his children completed their education and began successful careers, he continued to work tirelessly, seven days a week for over two decades. He only took two days off-both to attend his children's graduate school graduations, which was a testament to how proud he was of them. A firm believer in education, he held high academic standards and expected nothing less than excellence.
In 2017, after a serious illness and hospitalization, he decided to retire and sell the restaurant. He looked forward to traveling, but the COVID-19 pandemic delayed those plans. Finally, in 2023, he took his first flight in decades-returning to Hong Kong. Despite traveling in business class, he found it wasn't quite to his taste, a reflection of his modest nature.
To Choi will be remembered as a devoted husband, a dedicated father, a loving grandfather, and a loyal friend. His legacy of hard work, resilience, and care for his family lives on through his children, Edmund and Jennifer, and his cherished grandchildren: Ethan (13), Isaac (10), and Josephine (6).
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