Jon Rosnow left the restaurant business during the pandemic, realizing that owning a food cart was a safer bet.
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Jon Rosnow bought the popular Common Pasta food cart this winter during the pandemic. Chef Brian Baur, the cart's co-founder, is pictured above in this file photo.
31 Madison-area restaurants that said goodbye permanently in 2020
Dragon I
The Asian-fusion restaurant Dragon I closed due to the competitive restaurant climate on State Street, its owner said.
Aichan "Wendy" Weng said it was a hard decision since Dragon I served the State Street community for many years. "There was a wall we couldn't get over," she said through her friend, Danna Viehl, who translated for her.
HungryBadger Cafe
They struggled for months, Shrestha said, largely because of the restaurant’s hidden second-floor location. But dealing with the extra weight of the virus forced his hand, and he negotiated a way out of his lease.
La Nopalera
La Nopalera gave no hint of its past as a Subway sub shop. It was a rare find: A restaurant that sold fresh-squeezed juice at a reasonable price and made exceptional sandwiches, too.
Pizza Brutta in Middleton
When Derek and Darcy Lee signed the lease for their pizzeria at 6712 Frank Lloyd Wright Ave., in Middleton, the floor was still dirt. The original Monroe Street location remains open and has online ordering.
The Tin Fox
“Being the first type of business that was forced to close and having the stay-at-home order extended through May” was devastating for The Tin Fox, said co-owner Greg Neal.
Not being able to sell the taps and cocktails that were “the cornerstone” of his business was also a factor, he said.
Common Ground
The owner of a Middleton restaurant, coffee shop and community space said the COVID-19 pandemic and its economic consequences took her “out by the knees,” but admitted the business was struggling before the pandemic hit.
Before opening Common Ground in late 2018, Adrienne Hulburt-Stroud was a stay-at-home mom, a role she resumed when she closed her business in March due to the virus.
“It was just strange, going from working and busy, busy, busy, running around, and then boom, a complete regression to a couple of years ago,” she said Tuesday, after she informed her Facebook community about her decision to close Common Ground.
Hulburt-Stroud said the hiatus gave her time to step back and contemplate the future of Common Ground. “It is with an unbelievably heavy heart that we will likely not be moving forward in our current state at the corner of Branch & Century Avenue,” she wrote.
Captain Bill's
Owners of the longtime Captain Bill’s seafood restaurant in Middleton announced in June that it wouldn’t reopen after a COVID-19 shutdown.
“Due to the coronavirus and the uncertainty of what the future holds, the hard decision has been made to consolidate our businesses to the town of Westport and not to reopen Captain Bill’s,” the owners said on Facebook.
“We thank you for your patronage over the past 27 years and we look forward to serving you at Mariner’s, Nau-Ti-Gal, or on a Betty Lou Cruise.”
Captain Bill’s, 2701 Century Harbor Road, overlooking Lake Mendota, had a supper club atmosphere and was in a group of restaurants owned by the von Rutenberg family.
Manna Cafe & Bakery
Manna Cafe & Bakery closed after 15 years, and in a letter to customers, the owners wrote: “Please understand — this is the hardest moment of our lives. It is the most difficult thing we have ever done, or imagined we would do.”
Barb and Mike Pratzel closed Manna for about a week at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic and then began offering takeout.
On May 26, the day local restaurants were allowed to open at a reduced capacity, Mike Pratzel said he and Barb were meeting with their managers the next day to discuss how to proceed. “I don’t think anybody around here is in a hurry to open it up,” he said then. “It’s a lot of effort to change things up for a limited amount of space.”
Doolittle's Woodfire Grill
"We ultimately closed because of COVID-19, I suppose, but it's a little more three dimensional than that," said John Sheehan.
Helbachs Coffee Roasters
Helbachs Coffee Roasters and Kitchen lost its lease in Middleton and closed in late August.
The closure came on the heels of “enforcement action, negative public statements and continued vindictive and hostile behavior” toward the shop from Public Health Madison and Dane County, the business' owners said in an Instagram post.
Public Health Madison and Dane County issued the coffee shop three citations for violating the county’s public health order, including not complying with the requirement to wear face coverings indoors.
Fazoli's
Fazoli's fast food Italian restaurant at 2143 Zeier Road on Madison's Far East Side closed this year.
Good Food Low Carb Cafe
Citing COVID-19 and vandalism to their property, the owners of the two popular Good Food carts and a cafe on Madison's East Side closed all three entities in July.
"Thanks for a great ten years of food carting and three years at the Low Carb Cafe, Madison," they wrote in a Facebook post.
"Between covid, pretty extensive vandalism to our property yesterday, the everyday never-ending struggles of restaurant ownership, murder hornets and meth gators, this year has just been too much for us," they wrote this summer.
Potbelly on University Avenue
The Potbelly Sandwich Shop on University Avenue has closed while the location at East Towne Mall remains open. The State Street location reopened in August after shutting down for a few months. The West Towne location is listed as temporarily closed.
HopCat
BarFly Ventures of Grand Rapids, Michigan, HopCat's parent company, owns 11 restaurants, nine of them HopCats, said Ellen Winterburn, the company's vice president of human resources.
In early June, BarFly filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Such a filing allows a company to continue operating and develop a plan to repay its creditors.
Pho King Good
"Pho King Good was no good," said owner Ting Cai Zhou with a laugh, adding that the restaurant closed "because of coronavirus."
Freddy Valentine's
"It is with a heavy heart that I inform you that Freddy’s will close permanently... We wanted to be open another 5 years, but COVID-19 had another plan," wrote Dave Owen, who owned the business with his wife, Jeaneane.
The Owens opened the restaurant in August 2012 in what was The Bank Restaurant & Wine Bar, 134 W. Jefferson St., in a neo-classical building, built in 1915.
Boston's Restaurant & Sports Bar
Boston's Restaurant & Sports Bar closed in September after one year at 1370 Water Wheel Drive in Waunakee. A Buck & Honey's recently opened in its place.
Charlie's on Main
"We have loved every minute of it!" he wrote in a Facebook post that he warned would be "happy, sad, emotional, frustrated and long."
Heide, who also owns the New Orleans, Cajun-inspired Liliana's Restaurant in Fitchburg, said that when restaurants were forced to close in mid-March due to COVID-19, he promised to keep his dining rooms closed no matter the financial burden, to keep customers and staff safe, "until the rates of infection had dropped consistently for two weeks straight."
In six months, he said, that target hadn't been hit once. In fact, he wrote, "it is still spiking and hitting new highs almost every day."
Rockhound Brewing Co.
Rockhound Brewing Company on Park Street closed in November, a move its owner said was “inevitable.”
“I figured I’d do it my way,” Nate Warnke said then, adding that he wanted to “close down gracefully, carefully, as opposed to just running out of money all of a sudden.”
Warnke said he'd been operating at the county-mandated 25% capacity to limit the spread of COVID-19, but only filled the space to that level three or four times. “I’ve noticed that people are skittish about sitting inside. It seems a great deal of Madison is, and I don’t blame them. I’m totally understanding of that.”
Plaka Taverna
Telly and Beth Fatsis sold the building to someone who is planning to open a Chinese restaurant in its place.
Beth said Plaka hadn’t opened its dining room under COVID-19 restrictions, and because it’s so small, they would’ve only been able to use two tables.
Sunroom Cafe
That was also the number of years he had left on his lease at the sunny, second-floor restaurant at 638 State St., which routinely had customers lined up down the stairs waiting on weekends.
Paradise just marked his 25th year of ownership, and in October said his decision was also based on the uncertainties of the pandemic and the unknowns about being able to reopen safely. He said he also worried about retaining skilled employees in a limited work capacity. “I guess there were too many variables,” he said.
Angelo's in Monona
“We have an older clientele and so a lot of them have been being safe and staying home,” he said.
At first, when dining rooms were closed by county order in March, McGuigan said Angelo’s did well with carryout, but that “trickled off” as the months wore on.
Pizza Di Roma
The Pizza Di Roma location on State Street closed after being damaged and looted during protests in late May and early June. Pizza Di Roma's West Side location is temporarily closed.
El Poblano
El Poblano on Milwaukee Street closed in March because of COVID-19 and due to construction of a new Woodman's gas station, its owner said. A location in Marshall is closed temporarily, but the closure may become permanent.
Original Pancake House Monona
The Original Pancake House, 518 River Place, in Monona, has closed, according to an employee at the Original Pancake House on Madison's Far West Side.
Martin O'Grady's Irish Pub
Martin O'Grady's Irish Pub ended a 20-year-run on Mineral Point Road on Dec. 19.
"It is with a heavy heart we bring the news that after 20 fun-filled years Martin O'Grady's Irish Pub will be calling last call one final time," its owners said in a Facebook post, adding that they were proud to be one of the last locally-owned pubs "standing in the land of chains" on Madison's West Side.
"Like so many others, we have felt the effects of the pandemic," the owners wrote. "We sincerely hope the tight restrictions placed on bars and restaurants in Dane Co. prove to be worth it."
Dok's Klassik Tavern
Dok's Klassik Tavern, 410 W. Verona Ave., in Verona, had its final day of service December 20. In a Facebook post, the owners wrote, "We would like to THANK our many dedicated employees, specifically Gary and Barb, for their hard work and loyalty over the years. There are not enough words to convey our appreciation for the devoted patrons we have had the pleasure to serve. We have had some amazing nights, made forever friends and shared countless laughs the last decade or so at The Klassik. We wish that we could do it all for another ten years. But, the good fight to keep the business successful and rewarding is nearly impossible given the restrictions in Dane County. We hope that you stay safe through these times ... and always remember... He's not a real doktor, but he'll take a look at it!"
Papino's in Windsor
In May, Joe Pipitone closed his 8-year old restaurant, Papino's, in Windsor. He said business wasn't great, and then COVID-19 made it worse. He's been back working at his parents' restaurant, Cafe La Bellitalia, on Madison's North Side.
S&A Cafe
S&A Cafe had the same menu and used the same recipes as when it was The Egg & I. It closed in the beginning of the pandemic, with Steven Daskam saying he and his wife, Ana Daskam, don't plan to reopen.
Nomad World Pub
Nomad World Pub, a soccer-watching venue at 408 W. Gorham St., closed last year due to COVID-19 and won't reopen.
Szechuan Garden
Szechuan Garden at 6654 Mineral Point Road on Madison's West Side closed in spring 2020, with its menu living on as part of Mr. Seafood on Williamson Street.
