Lubbock Restaurant Featured in Texas Monthly Quietly Closes

There have been a slew of Lubbock businesses closing in 2023. Times are tough and it is really starting to show the survival of the fittest and the demise of the less fortunate.

While some locations choose to close to move onto bigger, their lease agreement doesn’t work out, or any other reason, many close due to a lack of business. Slow business means a low income, and a low income leaves a business struggling to stay open.

Get our free mobile app

Whether it’s the cost of rent that can’t be met, or an overall lack of funding to maintain the facility, many businesses have to close because of this.

One business that I am very sad to see go, and seemingly closed for the reason previously mentioned, is Masiso Cupbap located off of 34th Street.

This Korean restaurant was a Lubbock hidden gem, and it was one of my favorite spots in town. However, I never saw them very busy. Anytime I ate there it was usually just me and whoever I came with enjoying their cozy indoor or outdoor seating areas. Any other customers that came in was a small trickle of online orders for pickup.

This photo, taken over the fence, shows the outdoor space:

I hadn’t been there in a while, and a friend that also frequented the spot let me know that they seemed to be closed. Their online ordering was no longer available, they weren’t able to get ahold of them over the phone, and the storefront seemed to be closed.

I went over there myself to check it out, and it seems like they quietly closed right under our radar.

Their website is officially gone, the main sign on the building has been taken down, the chairs and tables inside are gone, and there are all sorts of boxes and stuff strewn throughout the building.

They were even featured in Texas Monthly in 2022, so it is sad to see a spot that was obviously loved, see a quiet end. I’m not sure if there are plans for something else to take over the space, but I am sad to see such a unique restaurant say goodbye.