Well-Regarded, Locally Owned Phoenix Restaurant Announces Closure

A local restaurant is closing.Photo byTim MossholderonUnsplash

The unfortunate truth of running a restaurant is that, eventually, it will likely close, and more likely than not the owners will have little say in the matter. Their hands will be forced and they will need to shut their front doors a final time long before they would have wanted. However, you can often learn more about a restaurant by how it closes. Many restaurants shut down unexpectedly, without informing their customers until after the fact. Other restaurants don’t even do that. They shut down, turn off the lights, and disappear into the night. That’s frustrating for any patron. There are some though that do treat their customers with more respect and try to keep them in the loop. That is exactly what one Phoenix restaurant is doing, as while it is closing, its owners want to make sure its customers know what is going on. 

On Wednesday, October 16, Belly Kitchen and Bar announced on its social media pages that it would close its Phoenix location. While the upcoming closure is imminent, the post did state the restaurant would continue to serve customers until October 30. This gives patrons of the restaurant two weeks to stop by and enjoy a final meal or drink. 

The post did not provide any insights into why the closure. However, it did thank its guests for stopping by over the past four years. Belly Kitchen and Bar opened at the tail end of 2020, in what might be one of the most difficult times in history for restaurants in the United States. However, the eatery did weather the pandemic, as well as various distribution and worker problems that followed in its wake. The fact it was able to survive four years in itself is a minor miracle and should be celebrated. 

The restaurant has a solid following and is well-regarded by local reviewers, as it has maintained a 4.5-star rating on Google, 4.8 on OpenTable, and 4.3 on Yelp. 

Located at 4971 North 7th Avenue in Phoenix, the restaurant will maintain its normal hours of operation between 5 PM and midnight, seven days a week. 

The silver lining to this is fans of Belly Kitchen and Bar will still be able to head out to the Gilbert location. With a nearly identical food and drink menu the food should taste the same, though as is often the case with independently owned restaurants, the vibe at Gilbert is slightly different from that in Phoenix.