Jason Atherton closes Sosharu ahead of relocation

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Jason Atherton has finally closed his Japanese restaurant Sosharu in London after putting the site on the market last year.

Eater London reports that the restaurant shut its doors last Saturday.

Atherton and his wife Irha launched Sosharu in collaboration with executive head chef Alex Craciun in 2016, serving Japanese dishes using British ingredients.

But he put the Farringdon site up for sale in August 2017 after just 18 months, admitting it had struggled in the location.

Sosharu will reopen in an unspecified central area. A spokesperson previously told BigHospitality the chef was looking at Soho or Mayfair, but it is understood that Soho is the most likely location.

Atherton said in a statement: “When we launched Sosharu in March 2016, we hit the ground running with critical success, however, with time we have found the location of Farringdon to be an incredibly tricky spot.

"We look forward to relocating in London and hope our loyal customers will join us there. The Social Company is very proud of the Sosharu brand and we believe in its longevity with the right site.”

Atherton is also overseeing Hiya, a restaurant based on Sosharu, at the newly launched Edition Hotel in Shanghai. The hotel also includes Shanghai Tavern, based on the chef’s Berners Tavern in London, and Cantonese concept Canton Disco.

The chef told last year’s Restaurant Congress  that he had put plans to launch “two or three” new concepts by 2022 on hold due to uncertainty over Brexit.