Izzo shutters in Mountain View

Uploaded: Oct 12, 2016

Izzo, an Asian-fusion restaurant on Mountain View's Castro Street, has closed after only five months of business, owner Frank Chang confirmed Wednesday.

Chang said he and his restaurant partners decided to shut down the restaurant at 246 Castro St. several weeks ago. The concept -- Taiwanese and Asian-fusion cuisine -- was "not taking off fast enough," he said.

But they still have time left on the lease, Chang said, so they’re talking about opening something else to replace it. Chang stayed mum on details about what that might be.

Chang took over the space this spring after Cijjo, a global tapas restaurant, closed. Izzo opened in April.

The original Izzo in San Jose, which Chang opened in late 2013, will continue to operate. Stay tuned on what's next for 246 Castro St.

Comments

Posted by Poke Lover, a resident of Another Mountain View Neighborhood,
on Oct 13, 2016 at 12:18 am

The place, sadly, looked D.O.A. on Day 1. I hope the demise of Cijjo and Izzo will give a clue to whoever picks a name for the next venture to grace that space.

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Posted by soft boiled, a resident of Mountain View,
on Oct 13, 2016 at 1:12 am

I fully agree with poke lover - the decor and lighting was impressively uninviting. Hopefully they learn from it and put together something more cheery for their next endeavor.

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Posted by amelia, a resident of Old Mountain View,
on Oct 13, 2016 at 10:21 am

Atmosphere matters. Change the atmosphere. Get rid of the white tables, get some warm woods in there. Give us an Indian version if Asian Box!

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Posted by IheartPA, a resident of Charleston Meadows,
on Oct 13, 2016 at 10:56 am
IheartPA is a registered user.

I ate there once during soft-opening. They were out of a lot of food because there was game the night before. The food was decent but the service was very lacking. I think they were chronically under-staffed and/or the staff were under trained. We tried to go again there on a Friday night, and the place was not packed at all, but the hostess/server said, "You can take a table, but they'll be long wait."

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Posted by Bob Sachs, a resident of Charleston Meadows,
on Oct 13, 2016 at 11:33 am

I almost feel sorry for the restauranteurs on Castro St, but that's what they get when they turned a reasonably useful downtown area into a food court.

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Posted by Chen, a resident of Old Mountain View,
on Oct 13, 2016 at 12:57 pm

When I went a couple months back they were very slow, rather expensive and unable to deliver on several menu items. Sad to see failure here, but not surprising.

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Posted by Kr8tivOne, a resident of Another Mountain View Neighborhood,
on Oct 17, 2016 at 12:24 pm

Unfortunately, alot of Restaurant owners do not feel the necessity to market and advertise their business, instead...relying on "word of mouth". Sadly...there are a "ton" of restaurants, and therefore....alot of choices for the Dining Community. Without appropriate marketing and branding, most restaurants will go out of business within 9 to 12 months, as they scratch their heads and wonder why their concept is not taking off...fast enough. And, as a branding expert, you have to give thought to the name. Izzo would not have been my first choice for a "fusion" restaurant.

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Posted by Don't cry for me..., a resident of Another Mountain View Neighborhood,
on Oct 18, 2016 at 4:52 pm

Don't feel sorry Bob Sachs. There are plenty of winners on Castro street. It has most always been restaurant row, at least since the 70's/80's. Seems you should feel more sorry for the book shops and retailers. The restaurants keep Castro street lively, along with the bars and coffee shops. It would be nice to have a second lock museum though ;)

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