It's been five years since chef Shinji Kurita opened his fine-dining Japanese restaurant, ShinBay, in a Scottsdale shopping center. Since then, the restaurant has been a destination for Japanese food and sushi lovers in the Valley and across the country, a singular spot for impeccably refined cuisine unlike anything else in metro Phoenix.

Which only makes the news that ShinBay has shuttered even harder to swallow. A note posted on the restaurant's website reads, "We are sorry to announce that we closed our business. We would like to express our sincere thanks to all our guests for dining with us."

The restaurant's final dinner service was on Sunday night.

According to an e-mail to New Times, the owner's decision to the close the restaurant was a "pure[ly] financial matter."

Related Stories ShinBay in Scottsdale Is the Gold Standard of Phoenix Japanese Restaurants

Kurita has no plans to reopen the restaurant as of now.

During its five-year run, ShinBay won numerous awards, including a James Beard nomination for Best New Restaurant in 2012. The restaurant was named one of the Best Restaurants for Foodies by OpenTable and earned nods from various national publications, including Wine Spectator and Details.

For more information, check the ShinBay website.

