As another year comes to an end, it’s hard not to notice the growing number of restaurant closures across Shanghai.
For many of us, it’s more than just a statistic; it’s the end of an era for familiar names and places we’ve come to love. It’s a tough reality of the restaurant business — one that feels even more pronounced this year as we see venues closer to home shuttering their doors. But while closures are an inevitable part of any industry, they’ve hit the F&B sector especially hard. With razor-thin profit margins, rising costs, and the challenges of changing consumer habits, running a restaurant has always been a precarious venture.
It’s a brutal cycle, but that doesn’t mean all restaurants are struggling. There are plenty of spots thriving — offering innovative menus, stellar service and hospitality, and a loyal following.
Expat-Focused Brands Pull Out Of China
This year, several big names made headlines with their closures. CityShop, the high-end supermarket chain, liquidated the company after announcing its closure in April. It was one of the first retailers in Shanghai to stock imported foods. Chope, the Singapore-based restaurant reservation service, pulled out of both Shanghai and Beijing. Sherpa’s, the popular food delivery service, also folded — many described its decline as a “slow death,” with its closure seeming inevitable as platforms like Eleme and Meituan became dominant players.
With the decline in expat residents, it’s no surprise that these expat-focused brands found their operations unsustainable in the current climate.
Carrefour: Trouble With China Stake
Carrefour has closed more than 300 stores nationwide. At its peak, it had 321 stores. Now there are only a handful in Shanghai and Beijing. The Shanghai locations look like it’s on its last leg with half-stocked shelves and poor quality products according to visitors (see Dianping). Carrefour first entered China in 1995, opening a massive 8,000 sqm store in Beijing. In other Chinese cities, Carrefour filed for bankruptcy, including Haikou.
Bankruptcy and Liquidation
The demise of The Camel Group has drawn attention for all the wrong reasons. The group reportedly fled the country, leaving unpaid salaries and debts to staff and suppliers — a bitter end for what was once a well-loved brand.
Similarly, Simply Thai, a Thai restaurant chain of 25 years, also closed all locations nationwide following a failed acquisition, leaving employees in the dust.
Restaurant Chains Leave Shanghai/China
In other cities, Din Tai Fung announced closures of 14 stores in Beijing, Tianjin, Qingdao, Xiamen, Xi’an. Locations in Shanghai, it seems, are unaffected for now.
Japanese chain MOS Burger makes an announcement to pull out of China, closing all locations. Habit Burger follows suit.
Long-Standing Favorites Not Spared
While the economic downturn is not new news, it’s undeniable that the F&B scene has been impacted, and even long-standing favorites aren’t immune, including The Commune Social, Lost Heaven (Gao’an Lu) and Little Catch.
It’s easy to point to external factors like the economy, but one simple way to keep your favorite restaurants around is to support them. A visit now and then, or recommending them to friends, can make all the difference. So, if you’ve got a beloved restaurant that’s hanging on by a thread, give it some love—it’s a small thing, but it could be just the boost they need to survive another year.
The Big List of Restaurant Closures in Shanghai
Without further ado, here’s the RIP list — obviously not comprehensive, but a snapshot of some of the year’s most notable closures and ones I could tally.
Note: While a rough timeline has been attempted, there may be some discrepancies regarding the exact month each venue closed or rebranded.
January
- Alimentari Circo (The Weave)
- Amalia
- Gin & Juice
- OSP
- Sevenwich (Wuding Lu)
- Solana
February
- Bubba’s – Around since 2006 (Now Parlay)
- Canton 8 (Nanjing Xi Lu) – Original on Runan Jie still open.
- Frankie’s – Relocated as Heng Heng Kopitiam
- Lost Heaven (Gao’an Lu)
- Madeleine – All locations
- Post No Bills
March
- 1965
- Charlie’s (Wuding Lu)
- Just Pocket
- The Venue
- UVVU
April
- City Shop – Around since 1995.
- Dreamer (Wuding Lu)
- Fenoli (Sinan Lu)
- Habit Burger – All locations
- Henkes – After 12 years
- KOR
- Machiya
- People 6 – After 20 years.
- Pho To Shop – Closed all locations… then reopened in December on Beijing Xi Lu.
- Cactus
May
- Gan Wei Wu
- Osteria – After 16 years
- Pistacchio – After 11 years
- Yu Zhi Lan
- Laundry Co
June
- Black Glove
- Boxing Cat Brewery (Xintiandi)
- Collectif
- Halu (Jing’an)
- La Brise
- Lalasha
- Lounge by Topgolf
- Ma-ia-ki (Surpass Court)
- Madame Ching
- New Wave by Da Vittorio
- Yi Long
- RAC II
- Revolving Door
- Roxie – Rebranded into TAKO
- Sakai
- Yuyintang – Since 2004. Yuyintang Park still going.
- 鮨心和 by Fujimoto
- MOS Burger – All locations
July
- 18 by Frederic Anton – Rebranded to L’Atelier 18, which closed in August.
- 小山日本料理 – After 17 years.
August
- 66 Brix
- Bonica – Rebranded into La Barra
- La Mezcaleria
- El Paisa
- L’Atelier 18
- Roodoodoo
- Dosage – Julu Lu (August), Yuyuan Lu (December)
September
- Glory
- Khan Cha Cha (Westgate) – All locations. The Parksons venue closed Oct 2023.
- Stiller
- The Commune Social – After 10+ years.
October
- Brewdog
- Crush
- Little Catch – After 10 years
November
- Akasakatei – Popular Japanese all-you-can-eat teppanyaki closed 20+ stores nationwide.
- Hai Shang
- Simply Thai – Since 1999. All locations closed nationwide.
December
- Barbarian (Sinar Mas)
- Boduoxinji (Relocating)
- BOR Eatery (Relocating)
- Bull & Claw
- DOC
- El Santo
- KIINA
- KIN Urban Thai Kitchen – Reopened under new management as Toffee Thai Cuisine, basically the same menu.
- Secret Flavor
Sherpa’s - Spiceman Gelato (Yanping Lu)
- Starbucks (Xintiandi) – Which opened in 2000.
- Woosa (Relocating)
- KRU on Tap (Relocating)
Closed Sometime in 2024
- Benjarong
- Big Bagel
- Carrefour – All closed except for Gubei and two other locations
- Chateau Dionne
- CheezaDo Pizza & Cafe
- Emack & Bolio’s (Xintiandi)
- Enterry Fine Dining – The casual concept relocated to Yanping 1085 Wuding Lu.
- Golden Lily
- Gram – All locations except for one in Songjiang.
- Jeju Sagye
- Kamimachi Ramen
- Kamiwagyu Burger
- Koya Bistro
- L’Ocean
- La Mesa
- La Tasca
- Le Coquin
- M Bistro
- Mijas
- Mikkeller
- Piment
- Ramen Bari Uma
- Salée (all locations)
- Yeast – All locations
- Just Thai – All Shanghai locations
- Xouk by Azul
- Morganfields
Dec 2023
- ChacoB
- CIBVS
- Elevator
- Le Daily
- Shake
- Shaking Crab – All locations
- Sideways by CTT
