Richmond had two Manzo dining rooms in February.
By October 1 it will have none.
Manzo Itamae Japanese Restaurant, the Capstan Way half of the pair, announced on September 14 that it will close on September 30 after 18 years.
The sit-down room at 9020 Capstan Way has been serving Richmond since 2008.
“After 18 memorable years, Manzo Itamae Japanese Restaurant will permanently close its doors on September 30th,” the farewell post reads.
“Join us one last time and enjoy your favourite Manzo dishes before we say goodbye.”
Then comes the line regulars will want to hold onto.
“But this is not the end,” the post continues, promising that “a new chapter is coming soon.”
What that chapter is, the team has not said.
No reason for the closure is given anywhere in the announcement, and nothing on the restaurant’s website mentions the move.
This is the second Manzo goodbye in Richmond this year.
Manzo Izakaya, the older sibling on Alexandra Road, closed on March 12 after 26 years, and its own farewell pointed guests to Capstan Way to keep the experience going.
That unit did not stay dark long.
Ten’ichi Izakaya, an all you can eat Japanese spot run by a couple who previously ran a restaurant in Toronto, took over the Alexandra Road room this spring.
Six months later, the room those Alexandra Road regulars were sent to is closing too.
Between them, the two Manzo restaurants put 44 years on Richmond tables.
The Capstan Way room is the spacious one.
It sits in the plaza it shares with Van Tea Cafe and Prata Man, with its own parking lot, and on weekends that lot is usually full.
The menu runs wide for a neighbourhood Japanese restaurant.
Skewers, assorted sashimi platters, robata, donburi, teppanyaki and tempura all sit on the same list, with sake and beer to go with them.
It built its reputation on family dinners and large group celebrations, the kind of table that needs a menu that wide.
Doors open at 5pm daily except Monday, and the kitchen runs late.
The restaurant’s Instagram bio still lists 20 percent off bottle sake on Tuesday and Wednesday, and the last service falls on one of those nights.
If the new chapter is a rebrand in the same room or a move to a new address, the post does not say.
For now the promise is that Manzo is not done, just this version of it.
Manzo Itamae joins other recent Richmond closures including Banh Mi Tres Bon, Mikann Shabu and Binggo.
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Address: 120 to 9020 Capstan Way, Richmond, BC
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