06/04/2026
Hi Greenville family,
Thank you for all who have reached out and expressed their support for Menkoi Udon and Soba, but I wanted to share a few thoughts about Menkoi Ramen House during our departure from the North Main Street location.
My name is Kazumi Sato, and I own and manage the Menkoi locations in Woodruff Road and Sandhills. The North Main Street location is a family business that has been managed by my brother. It is truly unfortunate that we are leaving this location. We had hoped to remain a part of the downtown Greenville community for many more years and negotiate a new lease. Our family was in a transition of the new generation to take over as my parents move into retirement, but ultimately we were unable to secure a path forward.
The name "Menkoi" means "Love of Noodles," but the meaning goes deeper than that. In Japanese, the word "Koi-shii" carries a sense of longing or yearning—something that is deeply missed and never forgotten. It represents the craving for a taste, memory, or experience that stays with you and keeps calling you back.
Since the beginning, Menkoi's vision has been to bring affordable, satisfying, traditional Japanese meals to the communities we serve. When we first opened, we believed a complete meal should never cost more than $10. That philosophy was rooted in making authentic Japanese cuisine accessible to everyone.
My father, Kazuhiro Sato, has been introducing Japanese food and culture to South Carolina since the 1970s through businesses such as Sato's Steakhouse, Inakaya Japanese Restaurant, Tsubaki Karaoke, Furusato Bento, and Menkoi Ramen House. For decades, our family has been fortunate to serve communities across the state and become a small part of the neighborhoods we call home.
The North Main Street restaurant was especially unique because it was Menkoi Udon & Soba, offering a broader expression of washoku—the traditional cuisine of Japan. In addition to our signature ramen, it introduced authentic udon and soba dishes that are not commonly found in the area.
We will deeply miss the downtown Greenville community that we have proudly served for the past ten years. We explored opportunities to remain downtown and actively searched for alternative locations, but the economic realities facing many independent restaurants today have become increasingly challenging. Rising operating costs, labor expenses, and rental rates continue to put pressure on locally owned businesses throughout the industry.
We believe local businesses play an important role in creating vibrant and diverse communities. Throughout our history, we have worked to keep our food affordable, provide meaningful employment opportunities, and share Japanese culture with our guests. Those values have guided us from the beginning and will continue to guide us wherever Menkoi grows next.
While the North Main Street chapter is coming to an end, Menkoi is not going away. We would be incredibly grateful for the community's continued support of our Woodruff Road location, where we remain committed to serving the authentic Japanese dishes and hospitality that have defined our family for generations. We look forward to welcoming both longtime guests and new customers there for many years to come.
We are incredibly grateful to our loyal customers, employees, and supporters who made the past decade possible. While it is difficult to say goodbye to this chapter, we hope the memories, meals, and relationships built here will continue long after our doors close.
Thank you for your time and interest in our story.
Sincerely,
Menkoi Ramen House Family ❤️
