‘Walking Piece of Art’ Madame Sylvia Wu Celebrates Her 100th Birthday

In the Chinese tradition that accounts for the time spent in the womb, 99-year-old Palisadian Madame Sylvia Wu, celebrated her 100th birthday surrounded by friends and family at the elegant Peninsula Hotel in Beverly Hills last Saturday.

Guests from Honk Kong, Singapore, Canada, France and across the United States gathered to commemorate a lifetime of achievement in entrepreneurship and philanthropy.

The beloved restaurateur and first lady of the iconic Santa Monica eatery Madame Wu’s Garden looked regal in a floor-length red Chinese cheongsam embellished with golden threads and jade jewelry, her sheer red blouse complimenting the color in her signature rose glasses.

As party guests enjoyed a beautifully plated three-course dinner, Madame Wu’s friends and family shared tributes to a life of beauty, grace – and her famed Chinese Chicken Salad.

For 37 years, Madame Wu entertained everyone from the Hollywood elite to world dignitaries at her restaurant on Wilshire Blvd., including her lifelong friend Cary Grant, whose daughter Jennifer Grant sat at Madame Wu’s side for the duration of the party.

“It is such a true honor to be at a such a rare event to celebrate Auntie Sylvia,” Grant said. “She is top-notch in everything and dad recognized her wisdom, grace and beauty from the beginning. I can only imagine the number of cakes he would send you today if he were able.”

Grant had grown up alongside Madame Wu’s three children, her two sons Patrick and George and their late sister, Loretta, sharing summer vacations and cruises to Alaska.

Cary Grant had been one of the restaurant’s first regulars after Madame Wu opened the doors in 1959. The actor was influential in the success that grew the small, 40-seat restaurant in Santa Monica into a grandiose landmark that blended diverse cultures and tastes and where customers were treated like family.

A Spirited Friend

It was evident by the accolades delivered on Saturday evening – including those from sisters Pearl and Rose Sun, the great grand daughters of China’s revolutionary Sun Yat-sen – that to know Madame Wu is to be sincerely moved by her benevolent spirit and sparkling wit.

“Auntie has an astuteness and an intelligence that she had to develop through her experiences to be successful,” said Madame Wu’s niece Yee San Food. “But she always acted with such charm and has always been true to herself and maintained a wonderful sense of humor.”

Calling Madame Wu a “walking piece of art,” actress Jean Hale toasted her longtime friend for her devotion to her customers, friends, as well as to her late husband King, her children, grandchildren and great grandchildren who were in attendance that evening.

“You are elegant, gracious and gorgeous and you created and perfected one of the most successful, world-renowned restaurants ever,” Hale said. “Thank you for your loyalty and generosity. I am so thankful for your heartfelt, spirit-filled friendship.”

Hale went on to tell a story of an attempted purse snatching of Hale’s Fendi bag while the two were visiting China together. As Hale struggled to fight off her assailant, it was Madame Wu who came to her rescue, beating back the man with her own handbag as well as her fists.

“The mighty force of the two of us together – he cowered away,” she said. “My shoulder was cut, my blouse was torn and Madame Wu’s perfectly coiffed hair had fallen in her face. ‘We did it,’ she said. ‘We saved your purse!’”

Hale raised her glass to a woman she said would always be young at heart and promised to begin planning the 105th birthday celebration as early as Monday morning.

Birthday wishes from Madame Wu’s three grandchildren – Jonathan, Kelly and Alex – recalled memories of first jobs at Madame Wu’s Garden and summer vacations around the world.

“Our grandmother is a leader, an innovator and an American dream – a true success story,” said her eldest grandson Jonathan. “Our lives are enriched by knowing you.”

Living the american dream

A short film narrated by Joe Broady, who befriended Madame Wu through her longtime support of City of Hope, depicted Madame Wu’s incredible journey to 100.

Her life has spanned the revolution of China, two World Wars, the Great Depression and the space age. Raised by her grandfather after the loss of her parents, she arrived in Los Angeles in 1944 after a 40-day journey aboard the last refugee ship from China. She was studying at Columbia Teacher’s College in New York when she renewed a friendship with King Wu that had begun years earlier in Hong Kong.

A high-society marriage to King, a graduate of MIT, marked the beginning of Wu’s savoir-faire as a hostess, dazzling high-society guests and family. After 12 years in New York, King accepted a job at Hughes Aircraft, moving the family west and ultimately, to the Riviera.

With three teenage children away at boarding schools, the spirited Wu was anxious to fill her time with a creative endeavor – despite the expectation of her husband’s family that she would be a submissive, quiet housewife and hostess.

Realizing the Westside lacked an authentic Chinese restaurant, Wu turned to her husband for his blessing. Though she admits he was worried she lacked the skills to begin a restaurant, she managed to turn a small storefront into an L.A. hotspot.

Ten years after serving her first customer in Wu’s Garden, the grander Madame Wu’s Garden opened its red double doors.

Madame Wu remembers the atrium entrance, where a sugar pine grew up and out through an opening in the glass ceiling, echoed with the soft gurgle of water in a beautiful fountain filled with goldfish. Birds twittered in their antique cages and the walls were dotted with lit shadowboxes housing some of the family’s jade, rose quartz and ivory collections. In the dining room, millions of gold strips hung from the ceiling where they would sway and shimmer like a dance.

The elegant restaurant had seating for 300 guests in four dining rooms each with their own name: Imperial Room, VIP Room, Garden Room and Dynasty Room where painted Tang Dynasty horses raced across the walls. Birthday parties, movie wrap parties, charity events and celebrations honoring international dignitaries, socialites and celebrities became staples at the restaurant.

One of the events most important to Wu was an annual scholarship fundraiser for Marymount High School in honor of her late daughter, Loretta Wu Wong, who died of cancer at 34.

Wu also graciously opened her doors to two busloads of children from the Department of Children’s Services in need of a Christmas dinner one year. After donating multiple luncheons and a black-tie fundraising dinner to City of Hope National Medical Center, they named Wu “Woman of the Year” in 1990.

The Garden’s popularity was extensive and Madame Wu began to make appearances on The Merv Griffin Show, the Phil Donahue Show and appeared on the Rosie O’Donnell Show cooking her famous Chinese Chicken Salad.

A hostess to the stars, Wu rapidly became one herself. The popularity of her personality in addition to her cooking led to an opportunity to design a wok set, which was sold with a paperback copy of her cookbook in stores like Neiman-Marcus and Saks Fifth Avenue and the publication of three cookbooks.

A Timeless Classic

Madame Wu gracefully bowed out of the restaurant’s spotlight in early 1998 when she closed the doors on a timeless classic. Poised and polished, she remains the picture of elegance. Her sophistication has only advanced with age and 100 never looked so good.

In closing remarks at her party, Madame Wu expressed deep appreciation for those who had come from the far corners of the world to celebrate her.

“I am so honored. Thank you to my ‘number-one son’ Patrick and my ‘number-two son’ George. I think I am very lucky to have two great sons and grandsons and my ‘number-one’ granddaughter,” she said. “I am very, very honored and happy.”

While the lady of the hour cut her birthday cake, those closest to her were already whispering about plans for next year’s celebration.

Madame Wu’s wish? She told the Palisadian-Post, “I think I would like to open another restaurant.”