Closings: Yakiniku West on 9th Street

Yakiniku West, a restaurant specializing in cook-it-yourself Japanese BBQ, has closed at 218 E. Ninth St. between Second Avenue and Third Avenue. (Thank you to EVG reader jba for the photo and tip.) 

Management did not offer a reason for the closure and thanked patrons for their loyal support through the years. 

The longtime business reopened in November 2020 — two-plus years after a devastating fire at the address. Fire officials reportedly deemed the blaze an accident due to wiring on the ceiling of the first level. 

The closure coincides with the building arriving on the sales market earlier this month with a $7.85 million ask. No. 218 includes two apartments upstairs.

Two-plus years after devastating fire, Yakiniku West reopens next week on 9th Street

The long rebuild of Yakiniku West is coming to an end here at  218 E. Ninth St. between Second Avenue and Third Avenue. (Thanks to William Klayer for these photos!)

The restaurant, which offers Japanese barbecue, will reopen next Wednesday (Nov. 25), according to its Instagram account.  

And here's a quick look inside the door...

A two-alarm fire broke out in the building in April 2018. Fire officials reportedly deemed the blaze an accident due to wiring on the ceiling of the first level. Owners had previously hoped to reopen last fall, but those plans never materialized.

Yakiniku West looking to reopen soon on 9th Street

Workers recently removed the construction plywood from outside the retail space at 218 E. Ninth St. — home of the currently closed Yakiniku West.

It's a good sign for fans of the restaurant, which offered Japanese barbeque here between Second Avenue and Third Avenue.

A two-alarm fire broke out in the building in April 2018. Fire officials reportedly deemed the blaze an accident due to wiring on the ceiling of the first level.

Yakiniku West posted on Facebook in September that they'll be returning some time next month...



No word on the rest of the building, where three apartments above the restaurant were damaged. Per CBS 2 at the time, five adults and one child were displaced. Fire officials called the residential units "unlivable."

Renovations taking place in the fire-ravaged former home of Yakiniku West on 9th Street

Renovations are underway in the burned-out storefront at 218 E. Ninth St. between Second Avenue and Third Avenue.

A two-alarm fire broke out in the building in April 2018. Fire officials reportedly deemed the blaze an accident due to wiring on the ceiling of the first level.

The Yakiniku West restaurant on the first floor and three apartments above were damaged, CBS 2 reported, noting that five adults and one child were displaced. Fire officials called the residential units "unlivable."

Posted work permits show that workers are renovating the restaurant space on the ground floor and cellar. The DOB states that the
estimated cost of repairs is a little more than $400,000.

No word if Yakiniku West — which offered table grills for cook-it-yourself Japanese barbeque — might be returning... or if the landlord is renovating the space for a new restaurant tenant.

FDNY: Wiring blamed for last Saturday's fire on 9th Street

[Photo from this morning]

A quick follow-up to last Saturday's two-alarm fire at 218 E. Ninth St. between Second Avenue and Third Avenue.

The FDNY called the fire accidental, citing building wiring...

Per #FDNY Fire Marshals: Cause of 4/21 2-alarm fire at 218 E 9 St. Manhattan was accidental, electrical, building wiring. Smoke alarm present and operational

— FDNY (@FDNY) April 23, 2018

A fire official said the building is now "unlivable." The address houses Yakiniku West, the Japanese steakhouse, and three apartments. Previous reports said that five adults and one child were displaced. No one was injured.

Here's more via The Villager:

Two families were said to occupy the upper floors but were not there when the Red Cross arrived, according to spokesperson Michael de Vulpillieres. The Villager spoke briefly to the owner of Yakiniku West on Sunday evening, shortly after he emerged from the building’s blackened first floor with several associates. Asked when his restaurant would open, he said, “in two months,” and abruptly walked away, declining to give his name.

A look at the fire-damaged 218 E. 9th St. and Yakiniku West

[Photos from yesterday morning]

In case you missed this news from Saturday afternoon... when a two-alarm fire broke out at 218 E. Ninth St. between Second Avenue and Third Avenue.

FDNY officials told reporters that the blaze likely started behind a refrigerator in a second-floor apartment.

A fire official said the building is now "unlivable." The building houses Yakiniku West restaurant on the first floor and three apartments

No word on when (or if) Yakiniku West, the restaurant specializing in cook-it-yourself Japanese BBQ, might reopen. There weren't any messages on the restaurant's Facebook page or website. Calls to the restaurant go unanswered.



CBS 2 reported that 25 units with 106 firefighters had the fire under control in about 90 minutes. Nearby residents on the block applauded the FDNY's efforts, containing the fire and keeping it from spreading to the parking garage next door. No injuries were reported.


[Photo Saturday by Steven]