Barbara Lawlor, Nederland. Resham Gurung has come a long way from the young Nepalese girl arriving in America to the restaurant owner/property developer in Nederland. Last week, she added the $3.5 million purchase of the Golden Lotus Restaurant in Boulder to her to-do list.
She says it was her husband, Lok Malla’s, idea. He says, look where hard work got us so far. The couple has been cleaning and remodeling the old Chinese Restaurant on 28th Street and plans to open next month. They already have a sign out front advertising Nepalese and Indian Food.
Loc says he has had his eye on that restaurant for a long time and he would be the one spending time in Boulder while Resham would continue to run the Kathmandu in Nederland, where their home is and will continue to be.
This recent acquisition is one more chapter of the success story of Resham and Loc and their extended families. But it all began with the tenacity and ambition that arrived with Resham when she came to Colorado in 1989.
At the age of 21 she knew the value of hard work and she realized the vast opportunities that this country had to offer. She worked as many jobs as she could fit into a day, working at restaurants and cleaning houses and cleaning the Gilpin County School. She saved every penny she earned. Her long-range goal was to bring her family to Colorado. “So I would not be lonely.”
Seven years later, she decided she would open her own restaurant. When the One World Cafe, now New Moon Bakery, was for sale, she inquired about buying I,t but the price tag was $50,000, which she didn’t have. She was, however, able to come up with $10,000 to buy the equipment and then she signed a five-year lease.
The first step was cleaning up and fixing things. “I did it by myself. I worked for three months and then I opened the restaurant and right away it was busy.”
From 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., Resham ran her business and prospered. But she was waiting to make her first dream come true, of owning her restaurant. When the five-year lease was up, the NedMex Restaurant was up for sale and she was in a position to buy it.
Now it was time to bring her family to the states so she could help them and they could help her. Loc’s brothers and sister came, and her sister, and soon she had completed the legal paperwork to for 11 relatives. That number has now grown to over 30 family members who live in Colorado and own and run six different restaurants.
“When I moved here, my friends and family were all worried, but now I am good and I am happy to bring them here and my nieces and nephews will all have good educations, better than they could have in Nepal. They are becoming nurses and doctors and engineers.”
In 2009, Resham and Loc applied for and received a building permit for the Kathmadu Plaza on the north side of the restaurant. It included rental apartments, the Peak Liquor Store, Brightwood Music and a Nepalese Gift Shop. At that time, the height of the economic crash, Resham said she was very nervous but determined to go through with the development.
“We didn’t have any problem renting the apartments. It has always been full and successful business-wise.”
An all-you-can-eat buffet has attracted visitors from all over the Front Range as well as skiers and snowboarders in the winter and tourists from all over the world during the summer and fall.
As family members come and work their way up to their own goals, other family members slip into their place. All of them work all the time. Malle says, “We don’t have vacations and we don’t buy $100 shirts. We go to Salvation Army and we drive used cars. We work and we save our money.”
Loc has often driven past the Golden Lotus and has often thought he would like to own it. Six months ago, he noticed it was for sale and decided he wanted a second restaurant. Resham told him not to talk about it. But he is as determined as she is and the couple began talking to banks.
Loc says, “I like Boulder. It is not far away and there is more business down there. My son will go to CU and when we get older we will not be able to walk around. Hopefully, we will keep up, but we have to think of the future. And I always wanted to have a place in Boulder. The location is perfect and there is much parking.”
The Golden Lotus was owned by Steve and Victoria Chen, who decided it was time to retire. The 4,700 square foot restaurant is located on a ¾-acre site on the northeast corner of Walnut and 28th Streets, one of the busiest intersections in Boulder. The business has been owned by the Chengs since 1995.
“He’s the one that wanted it so bad,” says Resham says of her husband, who will hire a professional manager to run the Boulder restaurant. Loc’s brother will be one of the cooks.
“I never dreamed we’d get this far, but if I stayed home, I’d be bored. If I stay away half a day, I miss it and call to see how things are. We hope people can look at us and see that whatever they are thinking they want to do, they can do it if they work hard and save money.”
A big mortgage is daunting, but one must take risks, says Loc. He says he knows his son Bashal will have the best life.
The Kathmandu II in Boulder will be open in about two to three weeks, from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Resham and Loc say, “Thanks to everyone in Nederland for supporting us and we hope you continue to support us here as well as visit us in Boulder. It will be important.”
