Lam's Chinese takeaway has been in business in Ballyfermot for the past 32 years and now following a dispute over a pay rise, the business owners son is opening a rival Chinese takeaway next door called 'New Lam's'.
Jonathon Lam, 39 had been working at his dad takeaway business for 20 years before asking for a pay rise and subsequently falling out with his father, leading him to open his own takeaway with a very similar name right next door.
Jonathon said: “It is heavy, it is hard. I still love my da, it is not revenge. What do you want me to do? I’m from this town. It (asking for the pay rise) is the straw that broke the camel’s back. It is not easy for me. If I don’t do this, I’ll never forgive myself. I’m doing this for myself and my future.”
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Jonathon said that he had to make this decision to support his family. He told The Irish Sun: “I know it is controversial. I’m not in the hurt business if you get me, I’m not in the business of hurting him. The reality is I’m doing what’s best for me. This is the only option left for me.
"Nobody just sets up a business beside their da (for no reason), do you know what I mean? It is a very emotional thing for me. This whole process is very emotional, even talking now I’m welling up. I have to get my side out. The reality is that I was let go."
He maintains that his dad let up go from the business because he was asking for an increase in his pay. He said: “You don’t sack your son because he asked for more money. I worked there for 20 years and he just let me go. I have a family to feed. I’m not an extortionist. I’m pretty reasonable. It takes a lot to push me to the absolute limit. It is a sad situation.”
Jonathon added that he has experience in the takeaway business and he could not open a takeaway elsewhere because he wouldn't be as familiar with the customer base. “Going to a different town you wouldn’t have a Lam’s beside a Lam’s," he said. "But I need to be in the right place for this. This is where I’m used to, where I have the experience.”
Despite Jonathon saying that he still as love for his father, there is still a silence between the pair. Speaking about his situation with his father he said: “I walked past him (his dad) yesterday, he was walking towards me, we saw each other. He put his head down and kept going. He does that when I see him. He is too stubborn.”
'New Lam's' at 284 Ballyfermot road is set to open in two weeks, with Jonathon telling the sun he is "confident it will work out."
Speaking about the feud, Jonathon's father Ken said: “I let him go. I think he lost face because he no longer works for me. It’s like revenge. To me, I think it’s wrong. Okay, you want to open a business against me. It doesn’t really matter. I’m good. I’m in business 32 years in Ballyfermot.
"My worry is not the money (losing money from the competition), I’m worried about his dignity.”
Ken said how he gave Jonathon everything as a child, telling The Irish Sun: “I love him the most, I gave him everything. When he is 20, 21 or 22, he wore Rolex already, diamond ring, I gave him a new car. This is how he repaid me. I bring him to Malaysia, China, Spain."
Business owner and soon-to-be retiree Ken said he is not worried about the competition between the two once 'New Lam's' opens. He said: “I’m on the edge of retirement. So I don’t worry about it, do you know what I mean?"
Ken also has plans to expand his food empire in Ballyfermot revealing that he is opening a sit-in Chinese restaurant on the same street which will be called 'Lam's Chinese restaurant.'
Hitting back at his father, Jonathon said: “He is opening a restaurant. Why didn’t he come to me and go ‘here do you want to run the restaurant?’ Why didn’t he come to me and go ‘you want a pay rise, go and run the restaurant’?”
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