Koi Japanese Cuisine is Closed
That's a wrap for sushi restaurant near the airport.
Koi Japanese Cuisine, 552 W. Layton Ave. photo taken July 10, 2023 by Sophie Bolich.
Koi Japanese Cuisine, a southside destination for sushi and hibachi-style meals, is closed. The restaurant, at 552 W. Layton Ave., shuttered last month after more than a decade in business.
A recent social media post confirmed the closure and suggested that owner Zhou Ni is planning to move out of the state.
During its tenure in the Town of Lake neighborhood, Koi served a menu stocked with Japanese favorites including tonkatsu, gyoza, fried rice, sashimi, sushi rolls and teriyaki dishes.
The restaurant, which offered both takeout and dine-in service, was also known for its salmon skin salad, an umami-packed combination of broiled salmon skin, cucumber and eel sauce.
Koi was located in an unassuming, strip mall-style building near the corner of S. 6th St. and W. Layton Ave., near the airport. Along with the former restaurant, the 9,120-square-foot structure housed a Cousins Subs, a Domino’s Pizza, a nail spa and a smoke shop.
Although plenty of restaurants remain in the neighborhood, few are focused on Japanese cuisine. In response to the closure, regulars and nearby residents took to social media to share suggestions for alternate spots for sushi and other favorite dishes.
The 2005 building that previously housed Koi is owned by Gou & Yang LLC, which lists Yu Xia Yang as its registered agent.
Ni did not respond to a request for comment by the time of publication.
The neighborhood’s dining scene will continue to see change in the coming months. Who’s on Layton, a spin-off of the popular downtown bar, Who’s on Third, is set to open later this summer. The upcoming sports bar will be located at 517 W. Layton Ave., just a few steps from the former Koi.
A new location for Taco John’s is also planned nearby, at the northeast corner of the intersection of W. Layton Ave. and S. 5th St.
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