A restaurant owner who gave up a shop run for 4.5 years, after monthly profits were nearly negative, shares lessons from failure

A restaurant built around wine and hotpot

Suteo, a software engineer, opened Wine & Nabe near Suitengumae Station in Tokyo in December 2021. The restaurant focused on wine, with hotpot dishes as the main food. He had never run a restaurant before. At first he planned to quit after six months if it did not work. Instead, he kept it running for about four and a half years and sold it in 2026.

Key facts

• Opened: December 2021, Suitengumae, Tokyo
• Run for about 4.5 years, then sold in 2026
• Seats: 16
• Average spending per guest when sold: about 13,000 yen
• Courses cost 6,600 to 9,800 yen per person (before tax)

Why wine and hotpot?

Wine let the shop charge more per drink than beer or highball could. Wine costs more to buy, so profit margins are not always high. Buying directly from importers helps a little, but they often sell in cases of 12 bottles, and opened wine goes bad quickly. Hotpot was chosen because guests cook it themselves. This means slow food is less of a problem and the shop needs fewer staff. A yakiniku (grilled meat) style was also considered, but it needed more equipment and harder cleaning.

Why this story matters

Many people hear about restaurant success, but few owners explain the money problems and the hard choice to close or sell. This story shows that a small shop can struggle even with a clear plan. Finding customers was harder than expected. Paid online ads did not pay off. Building a small, loyal group of people who already knew the shop worked better. The owner also names choosing the location as his biggest mistake.

What to watch

• How the new owners run the shop after the sale
• Whether small, community-based marketing works for other small restaurants
• How the owner's view of location and costs will shape his next projects