Lotus Garden

Text ad from Daily Oregonian, June 13, 1954.

Lotus Garden, located at 2101 W. Burnside Ave., was part of the Henry Louie family restaurant holdings.  While the restaurant moved to E 74th and Glisan in 1965, the FS Louie wares from the restaurant feature the Burnside address, so this history focuses on the era from 1954 to 1965.

Lotus Garden first appears in the newspapers in May of 1954, when a classified advertisement announced the sale of kitchen equipment at the Lotus Garden restaurant.  As the restaurant does not appear in the city directories before 1955, this probably represents Allen Louie’s takeover of an existing restaurant and renovation of the kitchen.  Lotus Garden announced its grand opening June 13, 1954 in the Oregon Daily Journal, and advertised their restaurant and banquet room there regularly for the rest of 1954.

May 8, 1959 Article from The Oregonian describing the poorly executed theft of a safe from the Lotus Garden.

Apart from the advertisements and inclusion in “Where to Eat” listings, the restaurant seems to have made little splash.  I found no reviews of the restaurant, and the only news item relates to the burglary of a safe from the restaurant in May of 1959 (Oregonian May 8), and even that article features no interviews of names of associated management or owners.

Advertisement describing the new location for the restuarant.