Imperial Chinese was founded in 1985 by Johnny Hsu, who’d immigrated to Denver from Hong Kong in 1979 after attending culinary school. “I learned all kinds of cooking there: Cantonese, Szechuan, barbecue, even French cooking,” he told Westword in 2011. “I knew I was going to work in the restaurants in America.”
And he went on to found one of the most popular Chinese spots in town. But after almost forty years, Hsu sold Imperial in 2023, and while the new owner had big ideas, they never materialized…and customers heading to the Imperial last week found the place locked up tight. “After many years at Imperial Chinese we have made the difficult decision to close our doors. Due to rising operating costs and ongoing economic challenges, this was not an easy decision,” reads a note left on the door of the restaurant at 421 South Broadway.
In their comments on the Westword Facebook post of the news, readers remember good times and bad (sometimes very bad) at the Imperial. Says Bernadette:…