Gyuta Japanese BBQ opened 3 Hong Kong stores in 2022 — all gone by October 2025

Gyuta (牛太), a Japanese black wagyu yakiniki chain operated by the Tajimaya Group (但馬屋集團), entered Hong Kong in 2022 with three locations — Ma On Shan Sunshine City, Sha Tin Centre and Tuen Mun Kam Fa Court. The brand promised authentic Japanese black wagyu at accessible prices in a market with growing demand for Japanese dining.

The expansion looked planned. Opening three stores in multiple new towns suggested confidence in the brand's positioning. But within three years, all three were gone. The Ma On Shan store closed in July 2025, the Sha Tin store followed in September 2025, and the last — Tuen Mun — closed on 26 October 2025. The Tajimaya Group announced the closures on social media, citing 'operational strategy adjustment' (營運策略調整) as the reason.

The closure left Gyuta customers directed to the group's other brands — Gyu-jin (牛陣), Honjin (本陣) and Tajimaya (但馬屋) — which continued operating in Hong Kong. The group did not indicate any intention to return Gyuta to the market.

The case illustrates the difficulty of establishing a new Japanese dining brand in Hong Kong's crowded F&B landscape. Even a established group with existing brands and supply chain could not make a three-store chain viable in less than three years.