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Chop Chop on Morrison Street was once one of the hottest venues in Scotland and a favourite haunt of celebrity chefs such as Gordon Ramsay and a finalist on his TV show, the F Word.

The restaurant has also received several other accolades such as being a finalist in the Scottish Restaurant Awards and being one of the few Chinese restaurants in the UK to hold an AA Rosette.

Now, the business which once also had branches in Ocean Terminal and Glasgow has been forced to close due to the effects of the coronavirus pandemic.

Chinese restaurant Chop Chop in Haymarket has been forced to close. Pic: Jon Savage

In an online statement, owner Jian Wang said: “Sadly we are unable to see a path to reopening. Our small space would make it difficult to operate at a viable level with the required social distancing and we would have had to trade through what we expect to be a difficult period ahead. So Chop Chop will not reopen.”

Ms Wang arrived in Edinburgh in 1997 from North Eastern China, a region famous for its dumplings or Jiao Zi but was amazed to find that her beloved regional food was nowhere to be found in the UK.

In 2000, she set up a new factory in Edinburgh to supply dumplings to 50 Chinese supermarkets across the country and continues to deliver them but now also to large supermarkets such as Lidl and Aldi.

In 2006, Ms Wang decided to open up her own restaurant despite breaking her fingers the day before in the noodle machine and while also raising her two young children.

Now, her latest business innovation is an ingredient delivery service launched during lockdown to help share the popular but unique cuisine with the city in the comfort of their own homes.

Ms Wang added: “We have had so many good times and so much wonderful support from our members for the past fourteen years and we'd like to thank you all very sincerely."

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Edinburgh Chinese restaurant Chop Chop which appeared on Gordon Ramsay's TV show is the latest business forced to close over Covid-19 impact