“They certainly didn’t seem to lack for business,” said Becky Taylor, an employee of Harvard’s budget office in Holyoke Center and a regular customer of Ma Soba.
A lack of customer business was not responsible for the closing according to Mah, who added that the restaurant had been profitable for the brothers.
Mah also said that increasing rents in the Square did not play a factor in the decision to close the restaurant. Skyrocketing rental prices have forced many Square businesses to close in recent years, including Store24 just this spring.
Ma Soba Express had employed between 10 and 15 individuals. Mah said that the employees will be offered positions at the restaurant’s Beacon Hill location.
HPRE did not return phone calls yesterday seeking comment on the future plans for the former Ma Soba space.
—Staff Writer Daniel P. Mosteller can be reached at dmostell@fas.harvard.edu.