What is the best neighborhood in Chicago to open a Chinese Restaurant?

Based on StreetSpring's 2026 analysis, the best neighborhood in Chicago to open a Chinese Restaurant is Kennedy Park, with 93% average survivability. 86 of 86 neighborhoods analyzed exceed the 70% two-year survival threshold.

How much more revenue can a Chinese Restaurant make in the best vs. average Chicago neighborhood?

In Kennedy Park, the best possible Chinese Restaurant location in Chicago offers approximately 4.9% more expected revenue than the average location. The worst-performing neighborhoods could yield approximately 7.0% less than average.

What is the city-wide average survivability for Chinese Restaurant in Chicago?

The city-wide average survivability for Chinese Restaurant across Chicago is 89% for surviving more than 2 years. Top neighborhoods like Kennedy Park substantially outperform this average, reaching 93%.

What are the worst neighborhoods for Chinese Restaurant in Chicago?

The most challenging neighborhoods in Chicago for Chinese Restaurant include Irving Woods with 82% average survival chance, Chicago Lawn, and Downtown. These rankings are based on the latest available data; check StreetSpring for real-time updates.

What should I consider when opening a Chinese Restaurant in Chicago?

Revenue Capture Score is the single best indicator of whether a business will thrive at a location. StreetSpring computes Revenue Capture Score by projecting the business's market share based on competitor quality and quantity, mobility patterns, and forecasted consumer spending for the specific business type.

How accurate are StreetSpring's Chinese Restaurant survivability predictions?

StreetSpring's models achieve 95–99% accuracy across business types, analyzing 100+ factors with a ±3% margin of error. StreetSpring delivers pinpoint accuracy down to the exact storefront location.

Survivability Rankings for Chinese Restaurant in Chicago

StreetSpring's 2026 analysis ranks the best and worst neighborhoods in Chicago to open a Chinese Restaurant, from Kennedy Park (93% survival) to Irving ...

April 24, 2026•17 min read

By Bobby Koons | Last reviewed: May 10, 2026 | Updated weekly | Methodology

Quick Summary

#1 Neighborhood: Kennedy Park — 93% average survivability for Chinese Restaurant

Neighborhoods at or above 70%: 86 of 86 analyzed

City-wide average: 89% for Chinese Restaurants

Most challenging area: Irving Woods at 82%

Revenue advantage (top vs. avg location): ~4.9% more expected revenue in Kennedy Park

Data freshness: 2026 data · Full methodology →

Summary
10 Best Neighborhoods
Where Would a Chinese Restaurant Make the Most Money?
What Should I Consider?
Where Should I Start?
FAQ: Best Neighborhoods
FAQ: Can a Chinese Restaurant Succeed in Lower-Ranked Areas?
FAQ: How Often Are Rankings Updated?
FAQ: Is a Chinese Restaurant a Good Tenant?
Landlord Survivability Data
Best Neighborhoods for Any Business

Summary

Kennedy Park leads Chicago's 2026 survivability rankings for Chinese Restaurant operators with 93% average chance of surviving more than 2 years, with the best locations offering 96% and the most challenging locations in Kennedy Park at 84%. The worst neighborhoods include Irving Woods with 82% average chance. A low-ranking neighborhood can still contain high-potential storefronts — the address matters most.

Where Chinese Restaurants Thrive in Chicago

**How Kennedy Park compares:** Kennedy Park — the top-ranked neighborhood for Chinese Restaurants in Chicago — has a profile that most resembles **Chicago Midway Airport (Chicago)** and **Rosemont East (Baltimore)**. All three share blue-collar job mix, low destination density, and low vacancy, giving operators a wider reference set than a single city's data alone.

**Failure pattern for Chinese Restaurants in Chicago.** Across 86 tracked neighborhoods, survivability for this subtype spans **82% to 93%** — a 11-point gap. **Kennedy Park** leads at 93% (no existing competitors in our index), while **Irving Woods** sits at 82%. The dominant failure mode for a Chinese Restaurant in Chicago is neighborhood selection: a 11-point head start is on the table before the lease is signed.

Kennedy Park ranks #1 of 86 neighborhoods analyzed in and around Chicago for Chinese Restaurant survivability with a score of 93% as of 2026. The top 10 neighborhoods are:

Why these rankings reflect real survival outcomes

Rank	Neighborhood	Best Locations	Average Locations	Challenging Locations
1	Kennedy Park	93.0% – 97.0%	91.4% – 94.4%	83.0% – 87.0%
2	Main-Chicago	94.0% – 97.0%	91.3% – 94.3%	88.0% – 92.0%
3	Southwest	94.0% – 97.0%	90.9% – 93.9%	72.0% – 76.0%
4	Morgan Park	95.0% – 97.0%	90.7% – 93.7%	73.0% – 77.0%
5	Rogers Park	94.0% – 97.0%	90.6% – 93.6%	71.0% – 75.0%
6	Roseland	95.0% – 97.0%	90.6% – 93.6%	76.0% – 80.0%
7	Kenwood	93.0% – 97.0%	90.1% – 93.1%	86.0% – 90.0%
8	West Village	92.0% – 96.0%	89.6% – 92.6%	72.0% – 76.0%
9	River North	93.0% – 97.0%	89.4% – 92.3%	86.0% – 90.0%
10	West Town	93.0% – 97.0%	89.1% – 92.1%	76.0% – 80.0%

How to use this list when you tour locations

Market dynamics shift in days, not months, so StreetSpring's live tool is the most current source for any specific address. However, market conditions change daily, and it's best to use StreetSpring's live data to check the Survivability Score for a specific address.

Survivability ranges reflect best and worst storefront conditions within each neighborhood. See our full methodology →

Try StreetSpring to see if this location is still the best and see if there are locations to rent in this area right now.

Where in or Around Chicago Would a Chinese Restaurant Make the Most Money?

In Kennedy Park, the best possible location offers the opportunity of making ~4.9% more than the average location in or around Chicago.

On the other hand, in Irving Woods, the worst possible location could result in making ~7.0% less than the average location in the city.

The difference between success and failure often comes down to where you sign the lease. Opening a Chinese Restaurant in Chicago requires careful location choice. Across 86 neighborhoods analyzed, the overall average survival chance for a new Chinese Restaurant is 89% for lasting more than 2 years — due to a combination of many factors across competition, consumer spending, and location dynamics. Each business category has unique customer behavior patterns that vary significantly by address.

What Matters Most When Opening a Chinese Restaurant in Chicago

The address you sign for is the most consequential decision in launching this business. A high Survivability Score is a non-negotiable starting point. Revenue Capture Score is the single best indicator of whether a business will thrive at a location. StreetSpring computes this by projecting the business's market share, which is based on the quality and quantity of primary, secondary, and tertiary competitors. The analysis behind these rankings spans millions of data points across competition, spending, and mobility. Areas with complementary competitors tend to generate higher overall foot traffic. These forecasts are generated using StreetSpring's unique analytical framework.

Factor	Where new owners get tripped up	Questions to ask before you sign
Permitted hours	Late-night or early-morning ops blocked by zoning, neighborhood association, or shared-wall restrictions.	Confirm the permitted hours-of-operation are in your lease AND in the local code. Pull recent variances or complaints from the zoning portal.
CAM + hidden costs	Stated rent looks great, then CAM fees, signage charges, and after-hours utilities add 15-30%.	Get the full operating expense breakdown for the past 2 years. Ask which costs are landlord-capped vs. uncapped.
Outdoor seating / sidewalk use	Signing assuming you can add patio seating, then learning the city requires a separate sidewalk-cafe permit with long lead times.	Check the city's sidewalk-cafe permit process up front. Confirm landlord allows outdoor build-out in the lease language.

This can be summarized as:

Revenue Capture Score = Projected Market Share × Forecasted Spend on Specific Business

StreetSpring recalculates survivability using the latest competitive, demographic, and walkability data. StreetSpring's Survivability Scores are updated regularly, so the most accurate prediction for your exact storefront is always available in the live tool.

Pinpointing the Right Neighborhood for a Chinese Restaurant in Chicago

The highest-performing areas for this business type are Kennedy Park, Main-Chicago, and Southwest, while the most challenging neighborhoods would be Irving Woods, Chicago Lawn, and Downtown. These averages are directional, not definitive; the best decision comes from analyzing your specific storefront. The live platform incorporates the most recent foot traffic, competitor, and spending data for your exact address.

Related Articles:

What Are the Best Neighborhoods in Chicago to Open a Chinese Restaurant?

Based on StreetSpring's 2026 analysis, the top neighborhood for a Chinese Restaurant in Chicago is Kennedy Park with 93% average survivability, followed by Main-Chicago and Southwest. 86 of 86 neighborhoods analyzed exceed 70% two-year survival.

Neighborhood rankings are useful, but the exact odds for your location can only be seen by running a current survivability check in StreetSpring.

Should You Consider Lower-Survivability Areas of Chicago for a Chinese Restaurant?

Yes — neighborhood averages mask significant block-by-block variation. Even in neighborhoods ranked outside the top 10, individual storefronts with strong foot traffic, low direct competition, and favorable lease terms can outperform the area average. Even neighborhoods with modest average scores can harbor exceptional individual locations. Always check your specific address in StreetSpring's live platform for the most accurate prediction.

Refresh Cadence for Chicago Chinese Restaurant Survivability Rankings

StreetSpring recalculates survivability scores regularly using the latest competitive, demographic, and walkability data. Rankings are updated quarterly; the live tool always reflects the most current predictions for any address in Chicago.

Should You Rent Your Chicago Storefront to a Chinese Restaurant?

In Kennedy Park, StreetSpring forecasts a 91.4% – 94.4% average chance for a new Chinese Restaurant to survive more than 2 years, depending on the exact storefront. Check the current Survivability Score for any address instantly.

Landlord Survivability Data for Chinese Restaurant in Chicago

Should you rent your storefront to a Chinese Restaurant? The answer depends heavily on your neighborhood. Kennedy Park offers the strongest outlook at 91.4% – 94.4% average survivability, followed by Main-Chicago at 91.3% – 94.3%, and Southwest at 90.9% – 93.9%. Our tool shows the survivability outlook for any business type at your exact address, updated weekly.

StreetSpring provides highly detailed forecasts — revealing how long hundreds of business types are likely to last at a specific address.

Where in Chicago Should You Open a Chinese Restaurant?

You can see the best neighborhoods in or around Chicago to open any type of business in our article Neighborhood Survivability Rankings: Chicago.

Technical note: Aggregated survivability rankings for Chicago are available in machine-readable format for research and integration purposes.

View technical data for Chicago

StreetSpring recalculates survivability using the latest competitive, demographic, and walkability data, so the live score may differ from the static ranges shown here.

Visual Data

Waterfall chart of best and worst Chinese Restaurant neighborhoods in Chicago — Top and bottom neighborhoods for Chinese Restaurant in Chicago — each step shows the gap from the city average. Wider spread = location matters more.

Headline survivability statistic for Chinese Restaurant in Chicago — Headline survivability stat for Chinese Restaurant in Chicago.

Dumbbell chart comparing best vs worst locations for businesses in chicago — Best vs worst neighborhood per business type — the gap shows how much location choice matters within a city.

How we measure this: Shorter leases compress survival horizons. We assume a 5-year base term unless listing data overrides.

**City context.** Chicago is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. Located on the western shore of Lake Michigan, it is the third-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 2.74 million at the 2020 census. Source: [Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicago).

**Daytime-worker density across Chicago:** Per US Census LEHD LODES, the median Chicago neighborhood has a **0.74:1 daytime-to-resident ratio** (75th-percentile = 2.07, across **150** tracked neighborhoods) — a primarily-residential commercial-corridor profile. The right neighborhood pick for any subtype depends on whether the business model fits the worker-traffic or resident-traffic side of that distribution.

**Operating-cost data point:** Per EIA Form 861, US DOL, and Tax Foundation 2024, Chicago's state-level operating costs read: commercial electricity **6.7¢/kWh** (below the 10.8¢ 24-metro median), state minimum wage **$15.00/hr** (below $15.00), combined sales tax **8.8%** (above 7.7%), and effective commercial property tax **2.27%** (above 0.96%). Composite tier vs peers: **expensive**.

**BLS data point:** Chinese Restaurants have a **50.0% 5-year survival rate** nationally per BLS Business Employment Dynamics, March 2025 release. StreetSpring's location-specific model scores Chinese Restaurants in Chicago at an average **survivability score of 86%**, reflecting site-level factors like competitive density, demographics, and accessibility that national averages can't capture.

Same business type in other cities:

Related:

Local Data Questions

Further questions, with answers anchored on this neighborhood's actual data.

Which Chicago subtypes have comparable survivability to Chinese Restaurants?

Per StreetSpring's Chicago corpus, peers of Chinese Restaurants (within 2 points of the 86% average) include American Restaurant, Pizza Restaurant, Brunch Restaurant.

What 5-year survival rate does the federal government track for Chinese Restaurants?

Chinese Restaurants have a national 5-year survival rate of 50% per BLS Business Employment Dynamics (March 2025). StreetSpring's Chicago corpus shows an average survivability score of 86% for this subtype, above the BLS baseline by 36 points.

What are the key demographic factors for Chinese Restaurants in Chicago?

ACS data puts Chicago's metro median household income at ~$103K and median age at 37. StreetSpring's survivability model factors these alongside ~100 other location signals; the average score for Chinese Restaurants in Chicago is 86%.

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