Aberdeen restaurant Yatai Izakaya closes amid ‘steep overheads’ and coronavirus restrictions

An Aberdeen restaurateur has been forced to shut up shop, saying the impact of the pandemic has been too great on his business to continue trading.

John Johns, the owner and head chef of Yatai Izakaya, announced this evening that the Langstane Place restaurant has now closed “permanently”.

As with many others in the hospitality industry, it was forced to change its working practices earlier this year to comply with coronavirus regulations.

During the initial lockdown it was only able to open as a takeaway, then reverted back to this model in August when stricter localised restrictions were imposed upon the city.

Yatai Izakaya first opened 15 years ago and has amassed many accolades since, including Oriental Restaurant Of The Year at the inaugural Scottish Restaurant Awards in 2009.

It was also visited by Tony Singh, best known for appearing in the television programme The Incredible Spice Men, who later described his meal as “amazing,” adding that the flavours were “on point.”

Mr Jones wrote a heartfelt post on social media on behalf of his team, thanking all of his restaurant’s customers for their support over the years.

“I tried everything I could to keep the restaurant at the level of quality that you expect,” he said.

“But with the current ever-changing restrictions and steep overheads of renting and operating a licensed restaurant premises in Aberdeen, the restaurant has become unviable.

“I cannot afford to sink any more money into the business.”