COVID casualties: How many restaurants in Lexington, Central Kentucky closed in 2021?
The last year has been tough for Lexington diners and dining spots. For the first half of 2021, restaurants had reduced capacity because of the coronavirus pandemic.
So many people either turned to take out or risked shivering in chilly tents. There was a brief blossoming in the summer when the COVID cases were down and in June Gov. Andy Beshear lifted restrictions.
Then other snags hit: Restaurants had trouble hiring workers. Prices went up on some supplies and food. And then disappeared.
For some local restaurants, it was just too much. Over the year, at least 21 either closed or never reopened again after the winter shutdown. During the same time period, at least 45 new local dining places opened in Lexington.
A few plan to come back leaner, in different locations, when the economic conditions improve.
Restaurants Lexington, Central Kentucky lost this past year
▪ Alfalfa Restaurant, 141 E. Main St., closed officially at the end of October after almost 50 years. Owners Tiffany Bellfield El-Amin and Wali El-Amin bought the historic restaurant, which dated to Lexington’s hippie days, in 2020. They hope to reopen under the Alfalfa name as a food truck and a venue in a new location in 2022.
▪ Belt Line Southern Grill + Gumbo, 808 N. Limestone, only opened in June after owner Robbie Morgan retooled her restaurant from a branch of the Louisville chain J. Gumbo’s into her own concept. But Morgan decided to close the restaurant a few months later in October ahead of the birth of her first child.
▪ Bob Evans Restaurant, 2341 Buena Vista, closed for good in January. The restaurant had been closed since mid-2020 because of the pandemic. There had been a Bob Evans Restaurant at that spot off Winchester near I-75 at least since the mid-1980s. Now Lexington is down to one Bob Evans, on Richmond Road.
▪ Burgher Burger, 236 W. Main St. in Richmond, closed for good in February. The restaurant, which opened in February 2019, had stayed open during the pandemic with takeout. But co-owner Matt Yeast said that they “collectively decided not to continue” after a year of COVID restrictions.
▪ The Burley Market & Cafe, 201 E. Pike St. in Cynthiana, closed in August. Owners Karey and Noell Riddell blamed the “unending waves of challenges dues to COVID-19” for closing their place after just over two years in business. The cafe was known for its mammoth Cyn City Cinnamon Rolls, and served sandwiches, salads, cocktails and coffees.
▪ Coffea, 385 Rose St., closed during the pandemic. The campus-area coffee shop had been expecting to reopen in the fall when University of Kentucky students returned but the owners decided to close instead. A Tropical Smoothie Cafe opened there in September.
▪ Common Grounds, 343 E. High St., closed at the end May after almost 29 years in business. The locally owned coffeehouse was one of Lexington’s first but the owners said they couldn’t keep the original location going during the pandemic. Other locations on Richmond Road and in Hartland Parkway remained open. The owners also have locations on the University of Kentucky campus.
▪ Cork & Barrel, 2263 Nicholasville Rd., closed in November after more than a decade. Owners Jim and Bev Taylor said in an email that they decided not to renew their lease and plan to spend time traveling and with family. However, they kept their location inside Blue Grass Airport.
▪ Eiffel Pizza, 3449 Buckhorn Drive, closed in February after almost six years. Owner Mohamed Diop said that COVID and the economic impact of restaurant closures had been tough. The pizza place did keep a spot on the UK campus open for students.
▪ Graze, 111 Woodland Ave., closed quietly in November. This was the third version of the farm-to-table restaurant operated by chef Craig de Villiers, following one in Clark County and on Limestone. The location in the Woodlands apartment building opened in May 2019.
▪ Greentree Tearoom, 525 W. Short St., closed in March 2020 with the pandemic began. But in July Co-owner Gay Reading said he and John Martin decided not reopen, instead focusing on their antique business and putting the tea room up for lease. Their tearoom served bite-sized lunchtime goodies for 20 years.
▪ Gumbo Ya Ya, 1080 S. Broadway Suite 107, closed at the end of the 2021. Owners Greg and Tressa Todd decided to consolidate to their Brannon Crossing location and close their original restaurant near downtown and UK after almost 18 years there.
▪ Middle Fork Kitchen Bar, 1224 Manchester St., Suite 110 in the Distillery District, closed for good in March after owner Mark Jensen announced that he would not be reopening his widely acclaimed restaurant after the pandemic eased. The restaurant was open for about six years and was part of the revival of the Pepper Distillery campus on Manchester.
▪ Roulay Restaurant, 107 W. Short St., known for its Creole-Cajun menu, closed just after its one-year anniversary in March. But the spot has reopened as a bar under the same name with a largely Thai menu. Meanwhile, the former chef and partners are opening a new Creole restaurant under the name Lady Remoulade on North Broadway in 2022.
▪ Sawyer’s Downtown Bar & Grill, 325 W. Main St., closed in May and although owner Jim Sawyer planned to reopen in September, he ultimately decided not to. Instead, Sawyer will open in a new location downtown in the City Center block so he can continue serving burgers and his famous chili to Wildcat basketball fans and to office workers.
▪ Seafood Lady, 833 Georgetown St., closed in March after less than a year. COVID took a toll, said owner Nichelle Thurston. The Louisville locations remain open.
▪ Steel City Pops, 111 Summit at Fritz Farm Suite 110, closed abruptly in November after the Alabama-based chain announced it was closing most of its shops, including those in Kentucky, in an attempt to save the company. The gourmet popsicle place was one of the original restaurant tenants when the shopping center opened in the spring of 2017.
▪ Sunrise Bakery, 111 W. Main St., closed at the beginning of the pandemic in March 2020. This year owners Kristy and Steve Matherly decided to continue with just their wholesale bakery business and not reopen the cafe after 17 years, which had been popular with downtown office workers for lunch and with Saturday morning farmers’ market shoppers for brunch. Their baked goods are still available around Lexington at places like Wilson’s Grocery.
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▪ Tomo, 848 E. High St., closed in September after 20 years. Cha Tamura retired and sold the business to new owners, who plan to remodel the restaurant and reopen it as a new sushi restaurant.
▪ West Main Crafting Co., 135 W. Main St., closed in September. The cocktail bar that served top-notch food closed after four-and-a-half years in business. “We just had a heart-to-heart and we were just tired,” said owner Jonathan Laurel.
▪ Whiskey Bear, the last original tenant at The Barn food hall at The Summit at Fritz Farm, closed in October. But owners Daniel and Flo Marlowe are moving to 3195 Beaumont Circle.
This story was originally published December 28, 2021 at 9:47 AM.
