Beloved Bayside Chinese Spot To Reopen By July 4, Says Owner

BAYSIDE, QUEENS — For 30 years, everyone who walked into Baybridge Szechuan was greeted by owner Joseph Chen, who sat in a chair near the front of the restaurant.

But, in 2019 Chen retired, selling the Szechuan eatery to another owner, who was unable to keep it open amid the pandemic.

For many months the restaurant, located at 20806 Cross Island Parkway, remained shuttered, but a couple of weeks ago Chen decided to come out of retirement and — in his own words — is now planning to reopen Baybridge Szechuan “hopefully before July 4.”

“I miss Bayside and miss my customers, and I’m happy that now there’s a chance for me to come back and work a little less,” Chen told Patch, noting that after running the restaurant with his partner, Carol, for three decades, he has now gone into business with some of his staff — many of whom have worked with him for a decade or two.

“My staff have been with me a long time, some of them even 28 years,” he said, adding that they were one of the reasons he was inspired to reopen the business.

When Chen sold the restaurant in 2019, his staff stayed on with the new owner, but when the business shuttered amid the pandemic, they were out of work.

“My staff are in their early 60s and late 50s, so it’s very hard to find a new job, and they asked me if I could come back and reopen the business and let everybody have a job,” said Chen, adding “that’s one of my main purposes for reopening.”

And even though the restaurant's business structure has changed a bit, Baybridge Szechuan will otherwise remain unchanged.

“It’s going to reopen basically the same,” Chen said of the menu, which he explained will include the favorites that Bayside residents have come to know and love at the Szechuan eatery.

And as for Chen, he too will remain mostly unchanged, or rather, unmoved.

“I’m going to have my same spot,” he said, noting that customers can expect to see him at the front of the restaurant once again soon. “They say I’m the logo of this restaurant,” he added.