A flurry of restaurant closures has marred Spokane’s food scene in recent months, with at least seven Lilac City establishments either closing or announcing plans to close since October.

Suki Yaki Inn, located at 119 N. Bernard downtown, announced on Facebook last month that its final day of business will be Dec. 16. A staple of Spokane for many patrons, the Japanese restaurant first opened its doors in 1949.

Just two blocks east of Suki Yaki, the Red Lion Pub’s last day of business was Dec. 3, according to a post on the bar-restaurant’s Facebook page. Known over the years for its barbeque, the pub, located at 126 N. Division, originally opened in 1960.

Two eateries in the Kendall Yards neighborhood have also closed, according to posts on the restaurants’ social media pages.

3 Ninjas Curbside & Catering, which started as a food truck before opening a brick-and-mortar location at 1198 W. Summit Parkway, closed on Nov. 29. 3 Ninjas opened its storefront in 2018. According to a post on the restaurant’s Facebook page, the owners of 3 Ninjas will shift their focus to their Liberty Lake location, at 21802 E. Indiana.

BRGR House, located at 411 N. Nettleton, also held its final day of business on Nov. 29. According to a BRGR House response on its Instagram post, there are no plans for relocation for the restaurant.

BRGR House, which was only open for a matter of months, occupied the same space as Park Lodge, which closed in March this year, the Journal previously reported.

A trio of restaurants spanning across North Spokane have also shuttered.

Spokane’s last Skippers seafood restaurant, located at 3320 N. Monroe, closed on Oct. 4, according to a Facebook post made by the longtime Spokane restaurant. As the Journal previously reported, there were as many as seven Skippers restaurants in the Spokane-Coeur d’Alene area in the mid-1990s.

Also up north, Lost Boys’ Garage Bar & Grill, at 6325 N. Wall, closed its doors for good on Nov. 26, citing high supply and labor costs making it difficult to keep prices affordable. Lost Boys’ had been open since 2015.

Even further north, Mossuto’s Italian, located at 415 W. Hastings Road, held its final day of business on Oct. 15, per the restaurant’s Instagram page. The restaurant opened in 2021, the Inlander previously reported.

In the restaurant’s post announcing its closure, lingering effects of the pandemic, soaring food costs and shortages, and high minimum wage rates were listed as challenges for Mossuto’s.

Attempts to reach some of the restaurant’s proprietors were unsuccessful. 

Anthony Anton, president and CEO of Washington Hospitality Association, says there are numerous reasons why more restaurants may be closing this year, although he says he can’t speak on each individual situation.

“Higher costs are forcing business model changes,” Anton says. “We have a higher minimum wage, higher food costs. At the end of the day, we’ve got a customer base that still says, ‘I’m only willing to pay so much for a burger.’”

In a good year, about 16% of restaurants in Spokane close or change hands, Anton says. If that closure rate stays the same for 2023, that means about 85 of the roughly 530 restaurants in the city of Spokane would likely close or change hands this year, he says.

Anton, however, expects that once data is available for 2023, that the closure rate will have been higher than it was in 2019, which he uses as a benchmark due to the unusual circumstances caused by the pandemic from 2020 to 2022.

Another reason for an increase in closures, Anton says, is that some restaurants still haven’t recovered from the pandemic. About 40% of restaurants in Washington state didn’t receive any COVID relief funding, from sources like the Restaurant Revitalization Fund or from Department of Commerce grants, Anton says.

“The 40% of restaurants that did not get any relief, that still had a lot of COVID debt, were going to have to make some tough calls,” he says. “We knew that there was going to be another round of COVID closures coming.”

High inflation has also impacted the restaurant industry in Spokane, Anton says.

Spokane restaurants’ sales are up 13% from 2019, but inflation has been up over 20% since then, Anton says.

“Spokane sales have not kept up with inflation,” he asserts.

Restaurants in urban areas across the state, particularly those located near convention centers, have been among the hardest hit following the end of the pandemic, Anton says.

This is because downtown office buildings aren’t full like they were pre-2020, as many employees still perform their jobs away from the office, and because the convention business isn’t as robust as it previously was, he contends.

Despite an expected increase in closure rates across Spokane and Washington this year, Anton says he expects things to level off in 2024 and get back to pre-pandemic numbers, although continuing high costs will force changes to business models.

Small Bites

•Cantarito Mexican Restaurant, located at 8801 N. Indian Trail Road in the Sundance Plaza commercial development, is expanding into an adjacent vacant space, according to a post on the eatery’s Facebook page. The expansion will bring the restaurant from 1,312 square feet to 2,956 square feet, a permit application on file with the city of Spokane shows.

•Chipotle Mexican Grill opened its newest Spokane-area restaurant Thursday, Nov. 29, at 9926 W. Sunset Highway, in Airway Heights. The company is continuing to hire staff for the new establishment.