Royal Izakaya, Philly’s most acclaimed sushi restaurant, is asking neighbors to support its takeout window

Royal Izakaya, the acclaimed Japanese restaurant, will go before the Queen Village Neighbors Association’s zoning committee Wednesday night to seek approval of a side window for takeout.

The restaurant began using the window, which faces narrow Fulton Street, last summer without a permit, drawing city citations.

The zoning committee is the first stop before a scheduled Sept. 28 hearing before the city Zoning Board of Adjustment. The ZBA typically follows neighborhood associations’ recommendations on requests for variances.

Spirited public testimony via Zoom is expected over a quality-of-life issue in this fashionable pocket of South Philadelphia. Royal Izakaya’s barroom is a popular, low-key hangout among its neighbors for its sakes, sushi, and snacks. Ride-shares drop off patrons seeking James Beard Award-nominated chef Jesse Ito’s $175 omakase experiences, which are some of the hardest-to-score reservations in the city.

Ito and partners Stephen Simons and David Frank declined to comment in advance of the meeting. In the last few days, Ito has posted on Instagram, seeking to round up neighbors’ support. In one message, he wrote, “Hey! If you live in Queen Village and love @royal_izakaya we could really use your support! There is an issue that is threatening our business and the livelihoods of our staff.”

At least one neighbor last week began hand-delivering packets of information to nearby residents, including photos of cars idling in Fulton Street and crowds milling outside the restaurant. (The restaurant has posted a sign outside urging kindness to the neighbors.)

The missive also reminds residents that when Simons and Frank sought support for the restaurant in 2013, they agreed not to install a takeout window, generally frowned upon in many residential neighborhoods. The QVNA at the time did not oppose the owners’ plans for a wall sign and a small building addition.

Throughout the pandemic, many rules — surrounding takeout and outdoor dining, mainly — began to bend in an effort to help restaurants. After Royal Izakaya opened its takeout window, complaints drew visits from city inspectors.

Violations were issued last year, and the owners submitted paperwork for a hearing. At some point, Royal stopped using the window and began handing food bags out of a side door, also not a permitted use.

QVNA president Eleanor Ingersoll, who does not sit on the zoning committee and offered no opinion on the window, said, “We want to make sure that all neighbors are heard, and this is why these community zoning meetings are so important. Everyone deserves a chance, especially the applicants, to make their case.”