Economy Japan's struggling izakaya

Izakaya have faced crises before. In early 2003, in the aftermath of the dotcom bubble bursting, the number of bankruptcies amongst firms operating izakaya topped 20 for the first time, according to data from Tokyo Shoko Research. Much stricter drink-driving laws, making establishments jointly liable if they served a patron who then caused an accident, led to 39 going to the wall in the same period in 2007. Fifty more went under after the 2011 earthquake, tsunami and nuclear meltdown caused people to forgo socialising out of respect for the victims. But in January to April of this year, an all-time high of 88 went out of business, an increase of more than 50% on the corresponding figure for 2025.

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