'End of an era': Silver Inn Restaurant closes doors

A staple Chinese restaurant in Calgary that helped create ginger beef has closed its doors after 47 years.

Silver Inn Restaurant is often credited with creating the now widely popular dish.

"We actually were using one of the older recipes and adapted it to the Canadian taste," said Kwong Cheung, chef and owner. "We were more or less trying to mix the Canadians' love of French fries and Alberta's love for beef.

"We took an old recipe for beef and came up with our version of ginger beef," Cheung added. "The sauce itself is kind of like a ketchup, sweet and savoury.

"Instead of being just an appetizer dish, it became a main dish."

Andrea Pierce says she grew up attending the restaurant.

"We've had a million family dinners here, anniversaries, wedding parties; everything you can think of," she told CTV News Calgary.

"It's just been truly amazing," Pierce added. "I'm just trying not to cry. It's truly an end of an era for us."

Cheung said he is looking forward to retiring. He's the youngest of the family, with his two older sisters and their husbands originally starting the restaurant in 1975.

"Not being tied to this place 24/7 (will be nice)," he said.