Gone but not forgotten: How many Lexington restaurants closed in 2023? And why?

Lexington’s restaurant scene has been through a rough few years, between the COVID pandemic closures, supply chain kinks and workforce difficulties.

Unfortunately, things were too much for some dining spots in 2023.

While lots of new restaurants opened this year, more than 20 closed. Some had been open only a few months, while others were part of the dining landscape for generations.

Many cited economic pressures, while owners of others were ready to move on to other things.

Here is a list of some of the dining places and bars we lost in 2023.

BoBi Cones

Local ice cream entrepreneur Toa Green and her husband, Mike, closed BoBi Cones in Palomar Center in August after two years. While their softserve and “fish cones” were hits, Toa Green said that they needed to keep their focus on other projects.

“So what happened was actually really simple. We tried the concept. We loved what we were able to produce. We had some bumps along the way that were out of our control and some within our control. But after being open almost 2 years, the concept didn’t perform as we needed it to,” Green said. “It was easy to know that our time, energy, and money could be spent in other areas of our life to better serve our family, our business and our team.”

Brewed

Brewed, a controversial coffee shop off Malabu Drive that defied Gov. Andy Beshear’s COVID shutdown, closed in February.

Owner Andrew Cooperrider, who also tried to impeach Beshear and sued him over the loss of his liquor license, said he planned to reopen elsewhere but that has yet to happen.

Broomwagon Cafe

Broomwagon Cafe inside the bicycle shop at the corner of Loudon and North Limestone closed at the end of October, although they continued to serve coffee through the end of the year. The connected bike shop is staying open and is looking for another concept to come in.

The North Lexington bike shop and cafe opened at 800 N. Limestone in September 2015 and served coffee, tea, fruit smoothies, sandwiches and wraps, including vegetarian and vegan options.

The cafe on social media blamed increased housing costs on the north side for the closure.

Broussard’s Delta Kitchen

Georgetown restaurant Broussard’s Delta Kitchen announced it will be closing after Christmas Eve brunch. Owner and chef Greg Scott blamed the rising cost of supplies and labor.

Scott also said the restaurant’s lease was up “and this just seemed like the right time. I’m a little tired and want to go back to being retired for a while.”

The Georgetown restaurant was known for using the Cajun and Creole recipes Scott learned from his grandmother as a child during summer visits to Louisiana. Grandmother Broussard was the restaurant’s namesake.

BurgerFi

Gourmet hamburger chain BurgerFi closed two Lexington locations, one at Hamburg and one near Fayette Mall, early in the year and left town owing lots of money to both landlords.

A default judgment against the franchisee in May ordered more than $371,000 in rent, utilities and fees be paid on the Fayette Plaza location, although it is unclear if the money was ever paid.

Coupled with the unpaid rent and taxes allegedly owed on the BurgerFi location in Hamburg, the restaurants allegedly owe at least $605,500 in unpaid rents and taxes.

When BurgerFi opened in Lexington in 2016, David Rodriquez, the registered agent for MMBB Holding Co. and franchise group president, said his business partners included Mike Miller, former Denver Nuggets basketball player. Eventually they opened three locations. All Lexington BurgerFi restaurant locations are now closed.

Common Grounds

Common Grounds just off Richmond Road closed in November as the coffee wars on that busy Lexington road heated up. With several new coffee kiosks opening up nearby, Common Grounds decided to close this location, even though it had a drive-thru. But the good news is that there are still two Common Grounds shops: One in Hartland and one on Old Todds Road.

Hager Hams

Hager Hams, which had sold specialty hams for more than 35 years, was forced to close the Regency Centre shop in February.

It was the second time owner Louis Hager’s been forced out: In February 2013, his store, then called Heavenly Ham, was forced to move from The Mall at Lexington Green.

“I already moved from Lexington Green to here, so I decided I’m not going to go through a move again. I’m 61, I don’t want to go through that again.

Julietta Market

This signature tenant of the Greyline Station at the corner of Loudon Avenue and North Limestone left the renovated bus garage at the end of October. The market inside the venue had food stalls as well as other vendors. Some of the food stalls “graduated” to their own spots in Greyline, including Rayann’s Popcorn and Papa Pretzel.

LaRosa’s Pizzeria

LaRosa’s was hit twice: First the dine-in pizzeria on Richmond Road closed in July after four years, then the carry-out only location on Southland Drive closed in November.

In both cases, sales just didn’t meet expectations, said Gary Holland of One Holland, which operated the restaurants. Now the Richmond Road spot is being converted into a Dunkin’ and the Southland building is for lease. So stayed tuned.

Lexington Diner

The locally-owned Lexington restaurant that started out downtown serving brunches and burgers closed on Lane Allen in March after nine years.

Owner Karin West said the diner had “come to the end of its lifecycle.” The diner opened originally at the corner of Upper and Short before moving to the Gardenside neighborhood in 2018 and adding dinner and a full bar.

Magee’s Bakery

After 67 years, Magee’s Bakery closed in May. Owners Beverly and Greg Higgins announced the sad news on social media and planned to offer limited amounts of baked goods one last weekend. But so many people turned out to say goodbye to the popular Lexington staple that they sold out in less than a day.

Their parents, Joyce and Ralph Higgins, bought the bakery in the late 1960s from founder Leslie Magee, who also had bakeries in Frankfort and Maysville. Their specialty was baked goods made from scratch using recipes passed down for decades: transparent pies, rolls, flaky croissants, doughnuts with rich chocolate fudge icing.

Beverly Higgins said that the bakery struggled during the pandemic and had trouble keeping enough employees. “This year has been exceptionally tough,” she said.

Maty’s Authentic Peruvian Cuisine

The locally-owned restaurant opened Nov. 29, 2021, at 4371 Old Harrodsburg Rd. Suite 160, offering authentic Peruvian food including Peruvian potatoes served in yellow huancaina sauce made with Peruvian aji amarillo chiles.

But owner Maria Rivera closed it in February after 14 months, blaming higher than expected costs, coupled with lower than hoped for traffic.

Noodle Nirvana

Noodle Nirvana, the Berea restaurant that served noodles to change the world in closed in September.

Owners Mae Suramek and her husband Adam Millikin launched their restaurant seven years ago to help local non-profits and along the way served great food. But Suramek said that the changing economy “made it impossible for us to sustain our business model with integrity and intention,” she said.

O’Charley’s Restaurant + Bar

O’Charley’s closed the last Lexington location of this once-popular chain restaurant at 2099 Harrodsburg Rd. in June. The Tennessee-based chain was known for its chicken tenders, rolls and free slices of pie on Wednesdays.

Also, the Richmond Road site of a former O’Charley’s, which closed in 2020, was demolished in March to make way for a new 7 Brew coffee drive-thru kiosk and a Slim Chickens restaurant.

Par 6 Social

Fayette Mall sports bar Par 6 Social closed after less than six months in July. The bar had a menu of upscale sports bar food, including burgers, wings, chops and steaks, along with craft cocktails and draft beer.

It also boasted three Topgolf Swing Suites where customers could play simulated golf, baseball, hockey, soccer or zombie dodge ball. But it wasn’t enough to stay in business.

Ramsey’s at Tates Creek

In June, Ramsey’s Diner in the Tates Creek shopping center closed after 32 years. Restaurant owner Rob Ramsey said that the closure of this location was planned, as the lease was ending. Employees were able to transfer to other Ramsey’s Diners or go open a new Ramsey’s Diner opened off Leestown Road a few months later.

Know for its menu of “meat and three” with seasonal homestyle vegetables, Ramsey’s opened its original location on High Street and then added the Tates Creek location. The original restaurant closed in 2014 and relocated to Zandale off of Nicholasville Road.

Southern Deli & Tavern

Southern Deli & Tavern, a downtown restaurant known for burgers and sandwiches such as the Memphis featuring Nutella, banana and peanut butter in homage to Elvis, closed in January. The restaurant opened in fall 2019 at 207 S. Limestone, hoping to capitalize on foot traffic between the University of Kentucky campus and downtown offices.

But owner Bryan Henderson said on Facebook that between the pandemic and the economy, things have gotten too difficult.

“We would like to thank the Lexington community for their support! We are incredibly grateful for the amazing feedback we received. We opened our doors only a few months before the pandemic started and the current economic climate hasn’t been redeeming to our industry,” he said in a social media post. “It is with these conditions that we have made the difficult decision to close our doors permanently. Thank you for supporting us for over 3 years through tough times!”

Taco Tico

Taco Tico on Southland closed on Aug. 31. The popular Mexican dining chain still has two Lexington locations open in town and developer/restaurant owner Lee Greer said it made more sense to focus on the Boardwalk and Pimlico Parkway spots.

Taco Tico was once a big brand in the area but dwindled to just one Lexington location when Greer Companies purchased the franchise in 2019 and began to revive it. They opened the Pimlico Parkway location and then added the Southland one in 2020.

Wine + Market

Wine + Market, which helped kick start the Jefferson Street dining corridor, is closing for good at the end of the year. Owner Renee Brewer announced the news on social media and in a message to customers, saying that she wants to focus more time on family.

Brewer and her husband, Seth, bought Wine + Market in November 2011 from Krim Boughalem and his wife Andrea Sims, who opened the business in 2008; Renee Brewer, who studied international wine marketing and management in Europe after graduating from the University of Kentucky, worked in the shop. Under the Brewers, the wine shop expanded the specialty foods selections and added more fine spirits, including bourbon, to the shelves.