Babylon's Long Island Pekin Duck Closes Its Doors For Good

BABYLON, NY — The owners of a beloved Babylon eatery and gathering spot have said farewell to their community: Long Island Peken has served its last customers.

For five years, chef Jason Lee and the Pekin family served authentic Cantonese cuisine on Babylon's Main Street, including customer favorites like traditional Peking duck from Long Island and Cantonese dumplings.

And although the closure seems sudden—complete with a bright red "Permanently Closed" alert on Google just a day after Lee's announcement—he explained on social media that he "didn’t want to be talked out of it" which he's "susceptible to."

In a video posted on the eatery's Facebook page, Lee shared a heartfelt goodbye, saying:

"Thank you so much everyone for the years of love, support and kindness.

"Thank you to the team who has become family since we spent so much time together, if not more, than with our actual immediate families.

"While this is a sad moment, I promise you, it'll pass and there are new things to be excited about. I know you all connected, celebrated and relaxed with us after a long day at work.

"If I were to look back, I'm very proud to know that a bunch of couples who are now married with their own kids all started their lives together with a first date at Pekin. Countess marriage proposals, baby showers, graduations, anniversaries, birthdays, holidays, promotions, retirements, and the list goes on.

"You may have some questions on why. And the answer's pretty simple. On the business side, it just made sense. Rising costs on an already paper-thin margin business was starting to really weigh heavy.

"Consumers are also feeling the pressure of rising costs of dining out, and it was just hurting the relationship between us."

Lee continued, adding that he and a partner are opening two new eateries he called "express spots that concentrate on a fast-paced franchise operation," aiming to lower costs for customers by removing the service side of the business.

Finally, captioning the video, Lee wrote:

"I want to remember the laughs rather than the sadness of today’s news. Sometimes the hardest decisions are done for the right reasons and that’s exactly the case here."

Anyone interested in following Lee and friends in their new endeavors "playing with food in some capacity," may follow him on Instagram at JasonLeeChef.

Lee was not immediately available for comment.