Popular Colorado Restaurant Now Closed After Nearly 40 Years

Saying goodbye to a favorite local business is always hard for any community. Sadly, another staple restaurant in Colorado for nearly four decades has closed for good.

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After Nearly Four Decades In Business, This Colorado Restaurant Is Closed

After losing so many incredible restaurants in 2023, there was some hope that 2024 would be different, but here we are, just over one week in and a Colorado favorite has announced that it'll be closing its doors at the end of the week.

Back in 1989, Yuri Chandonnet opened the doors of a place that would quickly grow to be one of the more popular restaurants in town. She named it after her 13-year-old daughter, Namiko, who this week announced that her mother's dream was sadly coming to an end.

Namiko's Sushi And Japanese Restaurant In Colorado Closed Permanently

After taking over the Colorado business in 2017 after her mother's passing, Namiko Eshima has been doing her best to keep their family business up and running as it had been for nearly 40 years. Sadly, Namiko's Sushi and Japanese Restaurant has closed its doors due to personal as well as financial struggles.

In an interview with FOX31, Namiko cited the pandemic as the beginning of the end of this local treasure:

We suffered the same shutdowns as everybody else, but being a sushi restaurant, it really is one of those things where you want to eat sushi and you want to eat it right away, you don’t want to eat it out of the box.

In a post to its many loyal customers over the years on its Facebook page, Namiko said:

Namikos customers….
I am so sorry to say that I will be closing Namikos after 35 years in business. Unprecedented closures, and COVID-19 was the starting catalyst of the financial strain on my mother‘s dream, I did everything in my power to keep Namikos open through personal and financial destruction. I have decided it is time to make the very hard decision to close my doors, I need to put my second battle with breast cancer and family first.
All of us at Namikos would like to thank all of our wonderful customers over the last 35 years for supporting our family owned and operated establishment in Arvada and the Arvada community for the support shown to us. Namikos has never been a big corporation, backed or supported by people with money my mother’s hard work, blood, sweat and tears and my devotion to her dream kept us open thru the most difficult time in recent history. To The Japanese American community I would like to say thank you for everyone’s support of my mother’s dream and my family. ARIGATO
If you have time and want to stop by this week, I will be there and I’m hoping to be open until Saturday ……

While the decision had a lot to do with finances, Namiko also revealed that she was recently diagnosed with cancer which forced her hand a little more to decide to close down. If visiting one last time this week to say goodbye, there is a place to donate to her cancer journey.

Many locals around Colorado will miss Namiko's food and fun atmosphere, but thank you, Namiko, and best of luck on this current journey ahead.