Long Island Pekin closes in Babylon

South shore seekers of Peking duck and Cantonese roast meats, noodles and dumplings will have to look elsewhere: Long Island Pekin is closing after a five-year run in Babylon village, owner Jason Lee said, citing higher costs and staffing issues.

“I always tried to keep prices low, to be a volume business,” Lee said. “But it became harder and harder. And I got tired of having arguments with those customers who complained about the prices. It seems like everyone is angrier these days.”

A case of string beans, $20 when he opened in 2019, could now cost as much as $50. Meats, which fluctuate less, cost 20-30% more.

Staffing is a particular challenge for Chinese restaurants, he said, because capable Chinese chefs often live in Queens. The farther out on Long Island your restaurant is, the more difficult and costly it is to arrange transportation.

Lee, who lives in Merrick, recently had a second child and said he was increasingly unhappy with his stress level. When another restaurant group offered to take over his lease, he jumped.

Lee’s pre-Pekin resume included partnerships at the upscale Philippe Chow restaurant group in New York City. The genius of his Babylon concept was that the concise menu was composed of authentic Chinese dishes that appealed to non-Chinese customers, too. He also made one of the best Peking ducks on Long Island. The restaurant’s namesake, “Pekin,” refers to the breed of duck, made famous by Long Island, used for the Peking duck and the Cantonese duck (equally delicious despite the simpler preparation).

If you’ve got a yen for Lee’s dumplings, know that he and a partner operate Long Island Dumplings near Union Square in Manhattan and, for even more of the Pekin menu, Fok Noodles (formerly E Noodle) in Chinatown and Bay Ridge, Brooklyn.