BOULDER, Colo. — Zolo Southwestern Grill in Boulder will be closing after 26 years, according to the restaurant's parent company. The last day of business will be Nov. 25.
Dave Query, founder and chef of Big Red F Restaurant Group, released a statement that confirmed the impending closure of the restaurant, located at 2525 Arapahoe Ave., near the University of Colorado-Boulder campus.
Query says in the statement that the closure was an "unavoidable decision." He told 9News that restrictions due to COVID-19 have taken a toll.
"Obviously, losing 75 percent of our seating has an effect on business," he said. "Any business losing 75 percent of its capacity will feel an enormous and immediate effect on operations. Our landlord Tom Gart worked with us to try and find a solution, but as they say, the headwinds were just too strong."
Zolo Grill opened in 1994 and has served almost three million meals since then, Query says in the statement. According to the restaurant's website, Zolo Grill recycles and composts nearly 100% of their discards, grows and uses herbs from garden boxes, and partners with several regional farms and food producers.
Query said Zolo's employees would transfer to other restaurants in the group over the next few weeks. Big Red F Restaurant Group owns five other restaurant brands with locations in Boulder, Denver and other Front Range cities.
"It's been so fun running a restaurant that crosses generations," Query said. "And being able to do it in the town I grew up in is an enormous honor and privilege."
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