Capital Tacos announced on Facebook it has no plans of reopening either of its St. Pete locations following closures during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Our St. Pete stores were the newest ones we opened, and the first county where impactful business closures were mandated by local governmental authorities,” read a recent post from the company. “In these challenging times, we have made the difficult decision to focus the entirety of our operations in the communities we have our longest-standing ties and in locations where we were able to work in cooperation and partnership with our landlords.”
As pandemic shutdowns brought major profit decreases for many restaurants across the state, many are still facing struggles amid reopenings.
Although Capital Tacos has vacated both its St. Pete 4th Street and Tyrone Center storefronts, the restaurant is facing an eviction lawsuit filed by Nicklaus of Florida Inc., a St. Petersburg-based retail real estate owner.
In the lawsuit, Nicklaus of Florida Inc. claims it is owed $38,395.77 in back rent and damages by the restaurant.
CEO and president Gregg Nicklaus told the Tampa Bay Business Journal, “This is more of a formality than it is anything else to conclude that the lease has been terminated unilaterally."
The local chain opened its 4th Street location in 2018.
Pinellas County won’t be completely without a Capital Tacos location, though, as the restaurant said it will continue to serve through its Capital Pantry, full catering services and recently opened express service.
“We recently opened up our first Capital Tacos Express (capitaltacos.com/express) in Riverview in Hillsborough County, and ask you to stay on the lookout for news over the next months that may bring some Capital closer to Pinellas County again,” the post read.
Tampa Bay still has five other local locations.
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