Jason Atherton’s Japanese Restaurant Has Closed

Sosharu, chef-restaurateur Jason Atherton’s Japanese restaurant in Clerkenwell, has closed.

The search index for the site on Tunmill Street lists the restaurant as permanently closed, while both its Twitter and Instagram accounts have been deleted. Eater has learned that the restaurant closed on Saturday last week with plans to relocate, but no date or destination has been revealed. Atherton told Eater London that “we have closed it for now and relocating, just waiting on the new landlord to give us the go ahead and we can release where it will be. In the meantime we have opened Hiya, a version of Sosharu in Shanghai.”

Executive head chef Alex Craciun uploaded a suggestive Instagram post earlier this morning (3 August), with a caption that included “memories from Sosharu ... #will #be #back #stronger.” The site had been in flux for over a year, as reported by Eater in August; in February of this year, Atherton told Eater that the restaurant would be staying in Clerkenwell after sustained fears that it would either have to close or relocate. Sosharu’s difficulties look particularly defined in the context of Atherton’s recent New York success.

Sosharu originally opened in March 2016. When speaking to Eater in February, Atherton reflected on the changing local climate: “In the current economy people are eating out less and spending less. Farringdon is a tricky spot, but we want to make this fantastic restaurant work.” At the time, making it work included menu changes and lowering prices; on this occasion, a more permanent solution has become necessary.

Updated 03.08.2018, 11:00 with comment from Jason Atherton.