Obituaries
Food Celebrity, Author and Pacifican Shirley Fong-Torres Passes Away
Fong-Torres promoted Chinese cuisine in the Bay Area on television, walking tours and through her charisma.
This past weekend, Pacifican Shirley Fong-Torres passed away after a battle with leukemia, which she was diagnosed with a few months back.
What's special about her is she was a great Chinese cook and began her career on Public Channel 8 in Pacifica. Her show was called The Wok Wiz. I had the pleasure of working with her as I was part of the Channel 8 crew at the time. This was back in the '80s.
Shirley only became more famous working with chefs all around the world and creating walking tours of China Town in San Francisco, informing others and eating at the best places there. One tour was called "I Ate My Way Through China Town".
Find out what's happening in Pacificawith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Shirley was full of life and had a great sense of humor. She came from a very talented family. Her brother is a famous writer, making his success at Rolling Stone in the '70s. He continues to write and is somewhat of a historian of the music scene.
--Carol Camacho
Find out what's happening in Pacificawith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Fong-Torres's family has set up a Facebook page for friends and fans to share their fondest memories about her. Share yours.
Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.
