A locally-owned Asian eatery that recently announced its closure will, as it turns out, be staying open after all.
After announcing its intent to close earlier this year, the new owners of Asian Pearl recently announced they will remain open after undergoing a change in ownership.
Asian Pearl is at 18138 W. 119th St.
- The restaurant occupies a space on the northeast corner of 119th Street and Ridgeview Road, near The Villas at Ridgeview Falls apartments.
- Asian Pearl initially opened in that space in the spring of 2010.
- The restaurant’s new hours are 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., Monday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., Friday and Saturday, and 12 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Sunday. (It was previously closed on Tuesdays.)
Asian Pearl is back to “operating as normal”
The restaurant is known for serving a range of Asian dishes, such as orange chicken, honey walnut shrimp and green pepper beef.
Though he said he’d like to implement some new dishes in the future, Asian Pearl’s new owner, Jin Wang, said the restaurant will keep its same “Pan-Asian” offerings, with influences from multiple Asian cultures on the menu.
He also hopes to give the restaurant’s interior a more “modern” refresh later on. But for the most part, he said Asian Pearl will remain the same restaurant that customers have come to know.
“The staff are all staying,” he said. “We’ll keep the same name, same restaurant menu, everything’s the same.”
Asian Pearl announced the closure in June
The restaurant’s previous owners announced Asian Pearl’s impending closure earlier this summer, citing the upcoming end of the restaurant’s lease.
Asian Pearl had been in business for roughly 15 years when the owners announced the closure, which was met with saddened responses from longtime customers.
When the Post reached about about the closure announcement, the previous owner did not want to speak on the record but clarified that they hoped to find new owners for it.
So far, Wang said Asian Pearl’s customers have been excited to hear that the restaurant will remain open and in its familiar Olathe space.
“Thank you for your unwavering support over the years,” the restaurant told its customers via social media in August. “We are confident that you will love the exciting enhancements that lie ahead!”
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