Red’s Place is known as the “Cheers of Chinatown,” serving up memories that span generations.
The neighborhood bar at Jackson Street and Grant Avenue is where locals know your name and tourists come from all over the world.
Jerry Chan has run Red’s for almost 20 years – on top of his day job. The bar is set to close its doors as early as the end of October.
“Ideally it would be the 31st because of the end of the month,” Chan said. “We’re for sure gonna be done by mid-November.”
Chan said he received a letter from the insurance company in early October.
“The cost of running an operation, it’s getting too expensive,” Chan said. “But more importantly, our insurance is up. So, sadly, we have to close the door. The insurance company that we go through is forcing us to make mandatory upgrades and that goes from plumbing to structural fixes. It costs a lot, and it’s beyond our means.”
Growing up in Chinatown, Chan’s parents bought Red’s Place in 1990.
In 2010, he took over.
“My mom was ill,” Chan said. “She tapped on my shoulder. She asked me, ‘Hey, do you want to sell the bar or do you wanna run it?’ I told her straight up, ‘Let me run it.’ Ever since then, Red’s has been thriving for the last 16 years.”
For decades, Red’s has been famously known as the place to be for Lunar New Year fireworks and festivities.
“It goes back to when I was a little boy,” Chan said. “There would be a gathering. Not as crazy as it is this day. Back then it was just basically the community getting together.”
Chan said he will save Red’s furniture and signage, but he didn’t say what he’ll do with it. But the Red’s that the city and Chinatown has known for the past decades will soon be no more.
Chan noted he does have a day job. He said he’s focusing on himself next, and he might even take a vacation.