How Nana's Dim Sum & Dumplings Became a Multi-Location Hit

Denver's dumpling scene has been growing and one of the best recent additions is Nana's Dim Sum & Dumplings, which opened its first location at 3316 Tejon Street in LoHi in late 2023. Last year, it added outposts in Boulder and Aurora.

Now, it's bringing its handmade dim sum and dumplings to even more Colorado locations. The grand opening of its Central Park outpost at 2005 North Clinton Street in Aurora is scheduled for March 27, though it's already serving guests in soft opening mode. A Parker location is set to debut at 9328 Jordan Road in April and in late May or early June, it will add an outpost in Colorado Springs. In late 2025, a seventh Nana's is expected to open in the Golden Triangle neighborhood.

Founded by a close-knit group of eight, Nana’s was built on decades of friendship, handshake agreements and a shared love of the food the team grew up eating.
It started with Jack and Kelly Liu, both of whom immigrated to America from China as young adults and met here. Jack practically grew up in restaurants, working in them since he was a teenager, while Kelly had many traditional Chinese recipes passed down to her by her grandmother. “She had the recipes, he had restaurant experience, and then they were surrounded by a group of friends and family who heavily wanted to invest and make a dream come to be that everybody shared in,” explains Esther Kang, Nana’s director of marketing.

At the core of Nana’s is the belief that dim sum and dumplings are more than just food; they’re an experience of togetherness where the family “all get together and sit at the table, share stories, share tradition, make the dumplings, and eat them literally while you’re making them,” says Kang. That’s why every location of Nana’s features a showroom window, inviting diners to watch as dumplings are made by hand.

Dim sum originated in southern China, particularly in the Guangdong province, as a culinary tradition tied to the ancient practice of yum cha (drinking tea). The term dim sum translates to "to touch the heart," reflecting its original purpose as small snacks meant to accompany tea rather than being a full meal. Back in the Tang Dynasty, teahouses along the Silk Road trade route began offering dim sum to travelers and merchants. Classic dim sum items include har gow (shrimp dumplings), siu mai (pork or shrimp dumplings), char siu bao (barbecue pork buns), cheung fun (rice noodle rolls), lo bak go (turnip cakes), and egg tarts.

The tradition flourished in Cantonese culture, especially in cities like Hong Kong and Guangzhou, where dim sum became synonymous with social gatherings and leisurely morning meals. Those were the recipes and the culture that Nana's owners wanted to bring to Denver — food made to order with fresh ingredients using closely guarded secret recipes.

That doesn’t mean the recipes are stagnant. “Everything is tested and tested and tested just so that it tastes as close to the original taste, like the first memory of having a dumpling or a bao,” says Kang. Customers agree; when the first location opened on Tejon Street, people waited for two hours to get a table.

The menu is approachable but leans towards traditional Chinese fare. There are Chinese-American standards like crab rangoons and Szechuan chicken and Instagram-worthy dumplings in colorful green and purple wrappers. But there are also traditional dishes like honey chicken feet, salt-baked chicken and baked eel.

Customer favorites include the stir-fried green beans, jumbo crab rangoons (which come with a side of fresh crab meat) and the xiao long bao (soup dumplings). Another standout is the pan-fried Thumblings, cute, bite-sized dumplings that are pan-fried for a crispy bottom and a soft, juicy filling inside.
The decor and service at Nana’s is modern and sleek but at its heart, it’s a family-and-friends-run restaurant that remains true to its values. Jack’s brother is one of the chefs and Kelly is constantly testing recipes and going back to China to spend time with her grandmother for more insight. The openings of the restaurants are timed correctly to the Chinese lunar calendar, and every grand opening hosts a lion dance. “We have to do the offering to our ancestors, we have to make sure that it’s like, we’re here, the doors are open, the abundance is ready to be received," Kang notes.

The original eight investors of Nana’s have all pitched in and contributed their knowledge, industry connections, experience, and, sometimes, manual labor.

Opening a restaurant with friends might seem like a recipe for disaster, but for the Nana’s team, it just works. “We know each other so we always talk and get together. If there’s a problem, we talk it out, try to solve everything,” says Vicky Lin, one of the partners.
As Nana’s has expanded, so has the ownership group, as more family, friends, and even employees have joined.

Though it's growing quickly, it's focused on doing so thoughtfully. “There’s a lot of discussion and talks of expanding beyond [Colorado] and some of that’s already happening. But really, the main focus is to make sure that all of these locations here get the maximum amount of love and attention," Kang concludes. “The seed [for Nana’s] was planted deeply here and will grow and will continue to flourish and create seeds for other locations if that’s meant to be.”

For more information about Nana's Dim Sum & Dumplings including locations and hours, visit nanasdimsumanddumplings.com.