TheBuzz Erika Engle

Makino Chaya’s two locations are up for grabs

If you've got a gift certificate, use it now.

Company president Toru Makino is getting out of the business, said Kohei Hakamada, the broker handling the listing for Chaney Brooks & Co. LLC.

The business is essentially for sale, and any interested party need not take on both leases, Hakamada said. He declined to confirm whether any interested parties had come forward, citing confidentiality.

Makino could not be reached for comment.

The availability came as a surprise to one Aloha Tower Marketplace official, who had not been notified.

Such notification would be up to Makino, Hakamada said.

It also came as news to Chris Mitchell, general manager of both Makino Chaya locations, who was traveling when contacted by TheBuzz.

He was unaware of why the properties would be listed, he said.

Last October he confirmed that the company had leased the long-vacant, 7,814 square-foot food court on the Ewa side of Aloha Tower Marketplace, in order to open a five-kitchen, five-concept buffet for lunch and dinner service.

The kitchens individually specialize in tempura, sushi, seafood, teppan-yaki and other dishes.

The King Street Makino Chaya, known for its buffet and table service as much as for its long lines of hungry customers, closed last year to make way for the Aloha Tower Marketplace operation.

Its lease was taken over by owners of the venerable Gulick Delicatessen, which expanded with a second location of its iconic local food joint in January. It also built a second concept in the same spot -- a more upscale dining room called Kochi.

The Mililani Makino Chaya opened in 2004, but closed in July and the lease, "went back to (Sofos Realty Corp.)," Mitchell said yesterday. The restaurant had opened with a 10-year lease in the old Sizzler space and closed temporarily last year. A sign on the restaurant during the earlier closure told of the impending Aloha Tower location.

At the time, Mitchell said it was closed because more people were going to the Aiea restaurant. At that same time, the leasing agent for the Mililani location had been told it was closing only for two weeks for grease-trap work.

The Aiea restaurant has undergone renovation that expanded seating capacity from 350 to 400 and is 8,945 square feet.

No Westridge Shopping Center official could be reached for comment.

Lease rent for the Aloha Tower operation is $21,123 per month, while the Aiea location costs $3 per square foot per month, or $26,835, according to online property listings.