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Closings Mon Mar 09 2009
Mambo Grill to Close Temporarily
Mambo Grill, a River North restaurant of Pan-Latin cuisine, will apparently be closing temporarily. You might think that it's the economy, but in this case, it isn't. The owner, Susan Fresca, says that they were forced to close the door of this 14-year-old restaurant, currently at 421 N. Clark, because they couldn't get a 90-day lease extension from the owner of the building while the restaurant prepares to relocate to 410 N. Wells in summer. Frustrated Frasca says, "Restaurants are closing right and left and Mambo's sales are up 5% from last year. We are rocking and now we have to temporally close until the new space at 410 N. Wells is complete and operational."
While the restaurant will reopen in a larger space in summer, about three quarters of its employees will be temporarily laid off on March 31, when the restaurant close. (The rest will be absorbed by Kinzie Chophouse, which is owned by the same company as the Mambo Grill.) If you are a dedicated fan, make reservation for your last-before-the-move dinner at 312-467-9797 through March 31.
Nina / March 10, 2009 2:01 PM
The owner of the building gave Frasca two extensions already and offered Frasca a ten-year renewal lease. Also, I believe the restaurant is being moved to a vacant space that Frasca herself owns. If there was no guarantee the owner would provide yet another extension to Frasca, it seems like risky business on her part to be asking for yet another extension just weeks from the expiration date of the most recent extension.