A Myrtle Beach area Japanese steak & seafood eatery is adding new locations. Here’s where
A prominent steak and seafood restaurant is adding new locations along the Grand Strand.
Miyabi Jr. Japanese Express will open in Carolina Forest in mid-September. The new eatery will be next to the Lowes Foods grocery store and 20 to 25 people will be hired to run the store, Miyabi’s Director of Operations Bobby Smith said.
Locals might be familiar with the brand as Miyabi Japanese Steak & Seafood has a sister store located in Myrtle Beach at 9732 North Kings Highway.
The new Carolina Forest store will also be hibachi-style food, but it will not have a show as part of the meal.
Miyabi Jr. will serve classic steak and seafood dishes in a fast-casual setting. Customers can eat their food on porcelain plates or order a to-go box. No alcohol will be served.
Smith said that express-style restaurants are what consumers want.
“It seems to be the trend in the market now to do it a bit faster,” Smith said. “We’re all busy with our lives now, and it seems to be the way things are going.”
The Carolina Forest location will be Miyabi’s 17th store, as the restaurant chain is based in the Carolinas and Georgia. The company wants to continue growing in the Grand Strand area.
Miyabi is looking at locations on Pawleys Island, Murrells Inlet, North Myrtle Beach, and Wilmington, North Carolina, that could all open within a year, Smith said. The new locations would also be fast-casual restaurants, and Smith said that locals like having more options to choose from.
“I think that it’s great that we’re getting different styles of food because it allows people to have a different variety,” he added. “It gives (customers) choices, gives them experiences they’ve never had.”
The company is also looking to expand its takeout-only locations, where customers can pick up their orders from a food locker only they can open. Miyabi’s already has a takeout-only service in Ocean Lakes near Surfside Beach, and the company is looking at adding a location in Conway.
The growth of the Grand Strand region has made expansion within the area so promising, Smith said.
