For 14 years, this local restaurant brought ‘joy’ to Boise. It just closed
A longtime restaurant near downtown Boise has closed — with a replacement tenant already lined up.
Sushi Joy Asian Cuisine, 2275 W. Main St., shuttered June 1, according to a brief, handwritten note posted on the door. No reason for the closure was provided.
Umai Sushi Burrito is set to take over the building, a banner outside explained. It’s on track to open in a month. Umai Sushi Burrito already operates at 2032 E. Overland Road in Meridian, offering a menu of sushi burritos, poke bowls, noodle soups and teriyaki plates.
Sushi Joy was launched by friends Lisa Wu and Tiger Chen in 2011, according to previous Idaho Statesman reporting, combining traditional Chinese cuisine with, of course, sushi.
The local Asian restaurant is ranked 3.8 out of 5 stars on Yelp and 4.5 out of 5 stars on Google. “If you can make it within the lunch window, the bento boxes are an absolute steal,” a Yelp reviewer wrote.
A recent 5-star Google review — enthusiastic as it was — perhaps foreshadowed Sushi Joy’s fate.
“Don’t let the lack of a crowd scare you off,” the reviewer wrote, “... It’s a great place to eat!”
This story was originally published June 2, 2025 at 3:40 PM.