For nearly four decades, Imperial Chinese was the spot on South Broadway where families gathered for Peking duck, big birthday dinners, and last-minute takeout. On Tuesday, that long run ended without fanfare when staff taped a simple note to the door and turned out the lights.
The sudden shutdown caught regulars off guard, leaving a dining room long associated with neighborhood celebrations sitting quietly, chairs up and doors locked. For many in the corridor, it feels less like a restaurant closing and more like the loss of a neighborhood habit.
According to Westword, the posted sign cited rising operating costs and "ongoing economic challenges" as the reason for the abrupt closure. Westword photographed the note and reported that the owner did not respond to requests for comment.
The business changed hands in 2023, when it was acquired by Dan Dietrich's Imperial Restaurant Group. The new owners had publicly floated plans to spin the legacy brand into a fast-casual offshoot called "Imperial To Go." Reporting in WhatNow notes that Imperial Restaurant Group bought four former Sushi-Rama locations around the metro area with the intention of converting them to the new concept, but those outposts never opened.
A neighborhood mainstay since 1985
Imperial Chinese opened in 1985 and, for many neighbors, became the default answer to the question "Where should we go?" Longtime diners recall gathering around big tables for Peking duck and family-style spreads in the Broadway dining room. Online listings show it was not just a nostalgic favorite but a steady presence for years, with OpenTable and local guides consistently listing its familiar menu. Holiday dinners, special occasions and quick comfort meals all cycled through the same set of dishes that regulars knew by heart.
Economic pressures have been mounting
The reasoning on the door lines up with what the broader industry has been warning about. The 2025 State of Denver Restaurants report flagged rising wages, higher property costs, and permitting delays as key pressures on full-service restaurants across the city. The analysis found that labor and real estate expenses have spiked, leaving many independent operators with such thin margins that keeping a full-service model afloat is increasingly difficult.
Owner's other businesses drew scrutiny
The companies behind Imperial Chinese include Jogan Companies and Jogan Health, entities that have attracted regulatory and investigative attention in recent years. A 2022 state investigation detailed by Denver7 found willful wage-law violations at Jogan Health. That history, some neighbors say, has made them more skeptical about the restaurant group's broader plans and promises.
What comes next
Even before the South Broadway closure, signs of stalled momentum were visible. At least one former Sushi-Rama location that was supposed to become an Imperial To Go still displayed "coming soon" window graphics months after the acquisition, with a QR code that led to a website that no longer loads. Westword documented those graphics along with the closure notice on the Broadway storefront.
Regulars say they are holding out hope that some of the staff or signature recipes might find new life elsewhere. For now, though, the doors at Imperial Chinese remain shut, the neon is off, and the future of the once-bustling dining room is anyone's guess.
