Jo-To Japanese Restaurant to close on Siesta Key

Jo-To Japanese Restaurant, a long-tenured sushi and hibachi steakhouse in Siesta Key Village, will close at the end of the month, according to a note left on the front door of the business.

Prominent Siesta property owners Jim Syprett and Jay Lancer are in negotiations to buy the 43-year-old building, while Key architect Mark Smith is spearheading renovations on the site. Smith is currently working with the county to determine the property is grandfathered under the Siesta Key Overlay District so no additional parking will be required if the coming restaurant’s patron area remains at 852 square feet.

“We’re just getting the building ready for renovation,” he said. “We’re going to clean it up and demo the interior.”

Right now, Syprett and Lancer have at least three tenants in talks for the spot, Smith said, but don’t expect it to keep the two hibachi tables inside.

“The odds of it being another Japanese restaurant probably won’t be good,” he said.

According to Smith’s March 9 request for a zoning determination letter, renovations include opening up the front wall to create two small outdoor patios, as well as bringing the bathrooms into compliance with the Americans With Disabilities Act and the creation of a central bar area.

Syprett and Lancer, who also own property housing Daiquiri Deck Raw Bar, Gidget’s Coastal Provisions and Siesta Key Oyster Bar, last year bought the former 7-11 next door to Jo-To for $1.6 million to make way for new retail, which is now Sandal Factory.