YO! Sushi, the privately-owned group led by Robin Rowland, has confirmed the opening of its latest site, 64th in the UK and 11th under its “on the go” umbrella, at Gatwick Airport’s North Terminal.
The opening comes after other recent openings at international transport hubs, including Washington Union Station, Oslo Airport, and London’s Waterloo Station. It also recently re-opened its Heathrow Terminal 3 airside restaurant after a complete refurbishment.
The Gatwick site, which is on the upper floor of the North Terminal, spans 1,101sqm and features 75 covers and an open plan kitchen offering its 90-strong core range of hot and cold Japanese dishes plus a selected wines, Japanese beers and sake.
The group also recently opened a 66-cover site at the redeveloped £25m balcony in Waterloo station.
All the YO! Sushi station/airport restaurants feature the brands trademark ‘kaiten’ conveyor belt with food plates colour coded to indicate price with dishes starting from £1.80. In addition, there is an increased YO! To Go take-out offering.
Rowland said: “As we continue to innovate our dishes and restaurant design, we have naturally expanded our on-the-go portfolio to locations like Gatwick Airport, offering a fantastic choice of Japanese inspired dishes to busy travellers looking for something different. Customers can quickly grab and go or enjoy a more leisurely meal if waiting with family and friends. Along with our array of healthy, high quality and great value dishes, we provide a fun and fast paced environment which appeals to the huge variety of consumers especially those that travel through airports and train stations.”
The company, which plans to grow its UK estate to 67 by the year end, is planning further openings in Exeter (September), Aberdeen Bon Accord (December).
It is thought that there is potential to grow the business to 150 sites in the UK in the next five years.
Further targets locations for future openings include Canary Wharf, Covent Garden, Richmond, Kingston and Bicester Village in Oxfordshire.
