Jumbo Kingdom

Coordinates: 22°14′35.5″N 114°9′43.2″E / 22.243194°N 114.162000°E / 22.243194; 114.162000

Jumbo Kingdom
Jumbo Kingdom
Restaurant information
Established October 1976
Current owner(s) Stanley Ho
Food type Cantonese, dim sum, Western
Street address Shum Wan Pier Drive, Wong Chuk Hang, Aberdeen, Hong Kong
City Aberdeen
Country Hong Kong
Website Official site

Jumbo Kingdom (Chinese: 珍寶王國; literally: "Treasure Kingdom") consists of the Jumbo Floating Restaurant (珍寶海鮮舫) and the adjacent Tai Pak Floating Restaurant (太白海鮮舫), are renowned tourist attractions in Aberdeen South Typhoon Shelter, within Hong Kong's Aberdeen Harbour. Over 30 million visitors have visited Jumbo Kingdom, including Queen Elizabeth II, John Wayne, Chad Garvin, David Bowie, Tom Cruise, Gwyneth Paltrow, Chow Yun Fat, Stephen Chow and Gong Li.[1] There was also a Jumbo Kingdom Manila in Manila Bay, Philippines, but it was closed after 8 years of operation. Jumbo Kingdom is part of Melco International Development Limited, a company listed in the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.

History

Floating restaurants appeared in the typhoon shelter shortly after World War II. The Sea Palace Floating Restaurant (海角皇宮) was sold and towed to Australia.[2]

The Tai Pak Floating Restaurant was established in 1952.[3]

On 30 October 1971,[3] a 4-alarm fire occurred at the Jumbo Floating Restaurant before its opening which left 34 dead and 42 injured.[4][2][5][6]

The Jumbo Kingdom was established in October 1976 by Stanley Ho after four years and over HK$30 million were spent to design and build it.[1] It was originally decorated in the style of an ancient Chinese imperial palace.

In 2000, two tugboats brought one of the floating barges (Palace) from the Aberdeen Harbour to the mouth of Manila Bay, and it was rebranded as the "Jumbo Kingdom Manila". Much of the original ancient Chinese imperial palace style renovation was retained. The Manila restaurant closed in 2008.

The Jumbo Kingdom went through a major multimillion-dollar renovation in 2003.

Attractions

  • Topdeck (now closed): A restaurant and bar located on the topdeck of Jumbo which serves dim sum. Topdeck opened in 2005 and was managed by Cafe Deco Group.[7]
  • Dragon Court: Dragon Court is a fine dining Chinese restaurant which serves authentic and innovative Cantonese cuisine located on the first deck of Jumbo. The interior design of the restaurant is a mixture of Ming Dynasty and contemporary Chinese.
  • Cooking Academy: A Chinese culinary school taught by the chefs of Jumbo Kingdom.
  • Sampan Dining: Hong Kong dining from a bygone era, serving Typhoon Shelter seafood meals on a sampan.
  • The Chinese Tea Garden
  • Pier Plaza
  • Bronzeware Exhibition
  • Wine Garden

A traditional Hong Kong-style food area is allocated at 4/F of Jumbo Kingdom, named SO-Kee Coffee Shop (蘇記茶檔). Fast foods such as sandwiches, hotdogs, noodles, soft drinks, coffee & tea are provided, at lower prices.

It is shown in The Amazing Race 17, Leg 10. It has also featured on the first season of the Australian version of The Amazing Race and some openings of The Amazing Race Asia.

The British miniseries Noble House shows the compound being destroyed by a fire.

The video game Sleeping Dogs features a mission set in a floating restaurant based on the Jumbo Floating Restaurant in a semi-fictionalized version of Hong Kong.

Access

The Jumbo Kingdom can be accessed free of charge, by shuttle boat from Aberdeen Promenade or from Sham Wan pier.[10]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Jumbo Kingdom. "A Celebrated Landmark". Retrieved 2007-07-10.
  2. 1 2 3 Hong Kong Extras: Aberdeen
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 Hong Kong (& Macau) Stuff: "Tai Pak Floating Restaurant, Aberdeen" Archived 5 October 2012 at the Wayback Machine.
  4. ↑ "調查報告書指出 珍寶大火起於燒焊 此慘劇死傷達七十六人". Ta Kung Pao. 25 May 1972. (in traditional Chinese)
  5. ↑ NFPA.org. "NFPA.org Archived 30 September 2007 at the Wayback Machine.." Key dates in fire history. Retrieved on 2008-02-21.
  6. ↑ England, Vaudine (1998). The Quest of Noel Croucher: Hong Kong's Quiet Philanthropist. Hong Kong: Hong Kong University Press. p. 237. ISBN 978-962-209-473-4.
  7. ↑ Cafe Deco Group: Top Deck
  8. 1 2 HK Cinemagic Mapping Hong Kong film locations: Jumbo Floating Restaurant
  9. ↑ 特撮特化 - その他まとめ海外編 (Special Effects - Overseas Scenes. In Japanese)
  10. ↑ Welcome to 18 Districts: Southern District
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