Local restaurant owners buy downtown Sarasota eatery for $2.47M

The former Yume Sushi restaurant space in downtown Sarasota has been bought by well-known local restaurateur Michael Evanoff.

The building is at 1532 Main St. and was the home of the Japanese eatery for 18 years until it closed in November 2023. According to Sarasota County property records, Evanoff, along with Fred Disanto, bought the property through an LLC paying $2.47 million.

Evanoff, the owner of Evie’s Group, is not opening a new restaurant in the space, however.

“We are going to lease it out,” he says.

The space is about 4,500 square feet, and a letter of intent has been signed by a Miami restaurant group that wants to take the entire space, Evanoff says. He declined to disclose the name of the potential tenant. 

Yume Sushi shut down last year after 18 years in business. In a letter to customers posted on Facebook on Nov. 20, the business says it shut down not long after new owners took over and “were not able to continue to run Yume as we had hoped.”

“Saying goodbye to Yume is bittersweet, but we wanted to make sure that we give our extended family, loyal customers and patrons, and Sarasota community a proper farewell and huge thank you for your continued, unwavering support,” the letter says.

Evanoff is the owner of Evie’s Group, a company that owns several area restaurants and other business around the area. Among those are two near the former Yume space, Molly’s Restaurant & Pub, at 1562 Main St. and Evie’s Tavern at 1560 Main St.