Mikoshi might not renew its lease

Gretchen Hoffman

The fate of Mikoshi Japanese Noodle House in downtown Glendale is

hanging by a thread not much thicker than the ramen dishes that

dominate its menu.

Co-owner Iwao Yamaguchi said the restaurant’s owners haven’t

decided whether they will renew their lease, which expired Dec. 31.

“Since the rent is very high around there, even though we have a

good customer base, it’s not enough to pay the rent,” he said.

Yamaguchi is negotiating with the landlord over the terms of the

lease, terms he said would dictate the decision whether to stay at

126 N. Brand Blvd. One option he and the other owners might consider

is moving to another location.

At issue is decreased traffic to the noodle house.

“At lunchtime, we used to be packed with people,” he said. “Now we

have a little extra space.”

Just eight storefronts separate Mikoshi from another Japanese

restaurant, SanSai, which opened in February at 108 N. Brand Blvd.

The menus differ: Mikoshi’s menu is saturated with ramen dishes

ranging from veggie, beef and miso to “three-alarm” versions.

SanSai’s selection leans more heavily toward sushi and tempura

dishes.

Yamaguchi shrugs off the idea that the opening of SanSai has had a

significant effect on his business -- the other restaurant doesn’t

specialize in noodles -- but admits Mikoshi is slower than it was a

year ago.

Rather, he blames lower traffic to The Exchange in general.

That’s a sentiment echoed by neighboring business owner Karin

Rouguine of Notte Luna Restaurant.

“It’s getting worse,” he said. “We don’t have many things to do in

Glendale except go to restaurants. Here we only have Brand Boulevard,

and after 5 or 6 p.m. all the shops are closed. This is the basic

problem in Glendale.”

There’s usually a lot of foot traffic during the day from

employees of nearby businesses, but a lack of patrons after dark

isn’t a new phenomenon, said Leslyn Ray, president of the Downtown

Glendale Merchants Assn.

“At night it has always been a problem,” said Ray, who also

manages Giggles Night Club. “If you walk outside on Brand Boulevard

at midnight on a Friday or Saturday, there’s virtually no one.”

Yamaguchi said he thinks customers are heading more often to the

restaurants in the Marketplace, which includes retail stores like Old

Navy and Tower Records.

“One of the problems of this site is parking -- first-time

customers, they don’t know where to park,” Yamaguchi said.

Mikoshi validates parking in nearby lots, but newcomers don’t

always know that, he added.

Yamaguchi said he expected to decide whether the renegotiated

lease terms would be sufficient within the week.

“We’d like to keep it, not because of the money, but because of

the [customer] support,” he said. “We have many repeat customers.”