Many people assume that sushi has to be expensive, but the introduction of all-you-can-eat sushi and seafood buffets changed that. The prospect of saving money at an all-you-can-eat sushi buffet, while still filling your plate up to your heart’s content, greatly appealed to hungry customers. This gave rise to sushi buffet chains that sought to capitalize on this novel idea. One of the biggest sushi buffet-style chains was Todai.
This West Coast chain rose to popularity thanks to its massive buffet counters that featured over 40 kinds of sushi, as well as salads, hot entrees, desserts, and more. At one point, Todai was so popular that new locations would have hour-long lines upon opening. Despite this, the chain suddenly decided to close all of its locations across the United States, citing renovations as the cause.
Todai gave a tentative reopening date of December 2017 for all American locations, but that day came and went, and the locations remained shuttered. Todai’s international locations remained open through this, but the company seems to have stuttered to a halt, with the official website being so outdated that it still uses Adobe Flash. Other than the occasional nostalgic post made about the chain online, it would appear Todai has faded from memory for the most part, joining the ranks of chain buffets we will never see again.
The rise and fall of Todai
Todai first opened in 1985 in California. Throughout the next decade, the chain expanded across Southern California and opened restaurants in Hawaii, Oregon, and Texas too. They even expanded overseas, with the first international location opening in Hong Kong back in 2003, followed by locations in China and Korea. By 2009, Todai had 23 locations around the world.
Todai enjoyed nearly two decades of success before cracks began to show. Although new locations were still opening in places like Denver, Colorado, and already established locations were still getting rave reviews in California, other locations were starting to close their doors. Both the Seattle and Oregon locations closed in 2010 and 2011, respectively, with little fanfare; customers simply stopped by one day and there was a sign on the door stating the restaurant was closed.
This could’ve been a sign of what was to come a few years later. Without warning, Todai would later close all of its American restaurants. While remodeling was provided as the only explanation, the food quality has been brought into question by online users. This aligns with food critics who felt Todai was more about quantity than quality, as well as reports from Korea that Todai locations were reusing buffet food, which is a common all-you-can-eat buffet secret that understandably unnerved potential customers. However, there’s still no official reason behind the closure of the American locations, and given the silence on Todai’s social media since 2013, it’s unlikely we will ever get an explanation.
