The interior of the Broomfield Sushi-Rama location. (Courtesy Hard Knoch PR)
Sushi-Rama is turning off all but one of its conveyor belts.
The local sushi chain is closing four of its five locations, leaving only the original RiNo restaurant open, chef and co-owner Jeff Osaka said Monday.
The last day of service at the Broomfield, Denver Tech Center and Lone Tree locations will be March 8. An Aurora location has already shuttered for good.
“It’s not a whole lot different than everyone else’s story,” Osaka said. “It’s just the cost of doing business.”
Osaka opened the inaugural Sushi-Rama in December 2015 at 2615 Larimer St. with co-owner Ken Wolf, who previously owned that real estate. The business sends small plates of sushi and nigiri rolling past diners, with the color of the plate corresponding to the price.
Chef Jeff Osaka is the co-owner of Sushi-Rama. (Courtesy Hard Knoch PR)
The restaurant expanded quickly around the metro area, with the Broomfield location being the latest to open, in late 2022.
But Osaka said the business has struggled with higher food costs and labor costs, noting that even tipped employees in Denver must be paid at least $15.27 an hour.
“We’ve been trying to play catch up ever since COVID,” Osaka said.
In RiNo, Sushi-Rama benefits from “a lot of foot traffic” and a small footprint, about 1,100 square feet. The restaurant is also a block from Osaka Ramen, which Osaka and Wolf also own.
But Osaka said the non-RiNo Sushi-Rama locations have “been on a break-even track for quite some time.” Some have likely been affected by new restaurants opening nearby. And Colorado may not be the best place to run a sushi restaurant that isn’t at either end of the spectrum, he said.
“I think people are looking for either supermarket sushi — nothing wrong with that — or they go high-end,” he said.
Osaka has a background in fine dining, having previously operated 12 at Madison in Congress Park. But he said he plans to focus on the two RiNo spots for now, as well as trying to help his employees land elsewhere. The company has about 100 employees, he said, but Osaka Ramen and the remaining Sushi-Rama need only about 25.
Wolf told BusinessDen that Sushi-Rama is working to sell the leases where it’s closing.
Wolf also co-owned the Italian restaurant Il Posto, which operated next to Sushi-Rama in RiNo. It closed over the weekend.
The interior of the Broomfield Sushi-Rama location. (Courtesy Hard Knoch PR)
Sushi-Rama is turning off all but one of its conveyor belts.
The local sushi chain is closing four of its five locations, leaving only the original RiNo restaurant open, chef and co-owner Jeff Osaka said Monday.
The last day of service at the Broomfield, Denver Tech Center and Lone Tree locations will be March 8. An Aurora location has already shuttered for good.
“It’s not a whole lot different than everyone else’s story,” Osaka said. “It’s just the cost of doing business.”
Osaka opened the inaugural Sushi-Rama in December 2015 at 2615 Larimer St. with co-owner Ken Wolf, who previously owned that real estate. The business sends small plates of sushi and nigiri rolling past diners, with the color of the plate corresponding to the price.
Chef Jeff Osaka is the co-owner of Sushi-Rama. (Courtesy Hard Knoch PR)
The restaurant expanded quickly around the metro area, with the Broomfield location being the latest to open, in late 2022.
But Osaka said the business has struggled with higher food costs and labor costs, noting that even tipped employees in Denver must be paid at least $15.27 an hour.
“We’ve been trying to play catch up ever since COVID,” Osaka said.
In RiNo, Sushi-Rama benefits from “a lot of foot traffic” and a small footprint, about 1,100 square feet. The restaurant is also a block from Osaka Ramen, which Osaka and Wolf also own.
But Osaka said the non-RiNo Sushi-Rama locations have “been on a break-even track for quite some time.” Some have likely been affected by new restaurants opening nearby. And Colorado may not be the best place to run a sushi restaurant that isn’t at either end of the spectrum, he said.
“I think people are looking for either supermarket sushi — nothing wrong with that — or they go high-end,” he said.
Osaka has a background in fine dining, having previously operated 12 at Madison in Congress Park. But he said he plans to focus on the two RiNo spots for now, as well as trying to help his employees land elsewhere. The company has about 100 employees, he said, but Osaka Ramen and the remaining Sushi-Rama need only about 25.
Wolf told BusinessDen that Sushi-Rama is working to sell the leases where it’s closing.
Wolf also co-owned the Italian restaurant Il Posto, which operated next to Sushi-Rama in RiNo. It closed over the weekend.
