Castro neighborhood favorite dim sum and Sichuan restaurant Mama Ji's (4416 18th Street) announced it will close at the end of October.
Co-owners Lily Ji (Mama Ji) and her husband Marv Wolpa shared the news in a letter posted in the restaurant's window.
"To our neighbors and friends, we are so appreciative of your support over these past 15 years," wrote Lily and Marv. "We have truly enjoyed sharing meals and stories together."
"And getting to know so many of our neighbors has been great," they added.
Mama Ji's at 4416 18th St. will close at the end of October. | Photo: Steven Bracco/Hoodline
Mama Ji's originally opened in 2012 as a pop-up inside Queen Malika Cafe. Then in 2013, Ji and Wolpa converted the space to Mama Ji's full-time.
Ji is originally from China's Sichuan province and moved to the United States in 2000. In 2016, Wolpa told Hoodline that Ji’s overarching goal with Mama Ji's is “to share the kind of food she used to eat at home.”
“She just wants to serve traditional Sichuan food," added Wolpa. Many of the recipes come from Ji's family, and the couple has undertaken research trips to Chengdu as well.
Diners could often find long lines outside wildly popular Mama Ji's while waiting to get into the restaurant.
A letter from owners Lily Ji and Marv Wolpa announcing Mama Ji's closure. | Photo: Steven Bracco/Hoodline
While Ji and Wolpa enjoyed owning Mama Ji's they said, "running a successful restaurant is both satisfying and exhausting. We recognize it's time for us to put our time and energy into our non-work life."
Customers have a few more weeks to enjoy Mama Ji's dim sum and traditional Sichuan dishes before the restaurant closes for good.
Inside Mama Ji's restaurant. | Photo: Steven Bracco/Hoodline
"We are so thankful that our business has remained vibrant due to customer loyalty," said Ji and Wolpa. "We will miss seeing many of you regularly. That said, we still live in the neighborhood where you may run into us on the street."
Longtime Castro residents might recall that 4416 18th Street was once home to Full Moon Coffeehouse and Bookstore (1974-1977), a pioneering lesbian-feminist community hub and collective space.
