Shah Jee’s Pakistani restaurant at 770 N. Jefferson St. in The 770 Building in downtown Milwaukee is still recovering from years of struggle during the COVID-19 pandemic. Looming debt and an uptick in remote work continues to burden the Milwaukee staple.
Shah Jee’s was founded in 1995 and opened its first location at 1901 E. North Ave., now Beans and Barley, only to move shortly after to its flagship location on the basement level of The 770 Building. In 2019, owner Azhar Shah decided to franchise the business and open three new locations at 3933 S. 76th St., 3116 N. Downer Ave., and 228 W. Wells St., which is just a few blocks from its main location. Less than two years later, on the heels of the pandemic, Shah Jee’s closed those three locations and forfeited all its new leases. In 2025, Shah Jee’s will celebrate its 30th anniversary in its only remaining location on Jefferson Street.
With significant debt, Shah Jee’s last remaining location struggles to stay afloat.
“I can’t pay off my debts with this location only,” Shah said.
Months after opening its three newly franchised locations, the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdowns began, forcing Shah Jee’s into a less-than-ideal financial situation, similar to other businesses of its nature. Revenue began eating up more resources than what the business could withstand.
“A lot of other ethnic food (restaurants) closed as well,” Shah said.
Before COVID, the line for Shah Jee’s lunch service would extend onto the stairs in The 770 Building, Shah added. Now, amidst the popularity of remote work, Shah Jee’s is seeing 30-40% less patronage as it did before the pandemic.
In its expansion, Shah Jee’s maintained its standard pricing among all of its restaurants, a decision that did not create sufficient revenue, according to Shah’s daughter, Breeha Shah.
“It really set us back really badly,” Breeha said.
Shah has been able to pay off the small business loan dispersed to Shah Jee’s during the pandemic, but still has large sums of debts from extraneous franchising expenses.
Breeha has committed to keeping Shah Jee’s last location open.
“Things are going to work out,” Breeha said. “When life goes one way, you still do what you’re passionate about.”
To help her dad remedy the debt, Breeha has spearheaded an effort to make ends meet by creating a GoFundMe page and introducing Shah Jee’s to the online marketing space.
Previously, Shah Jee’s used only word-of-mouth advertising. Now, Shah Jee’s advertises using a Facebook account and has raised over $14,000 in GoFundMe donations with a goal of $180,000. While the donations have not yet covered Shah Jee’s total debt, they do provide some solace for Shah.
“I’m not ready to close,” Shah said.
Shah remains optimistic about the future of Shah Jee’s and anticipates further expansion if the restaurant’s debts get paid. Expansion would not only include new locations in and around Milwaukee, but also the introduction of a line of ready-made meals and sauces to local grocery stores.
While the focus will mainly be on the restaurant, Breeha said, expanding into the retail scene has “always been a dream.”
