Butterbean is latest restaurant closure in Tupelo
May 10—TUPELO — Butterbean Biscuits and Coffee served its last coffee and pastries last weekend.
The sister restaurant to Forklift on West Jackson Street, which shared the same building, closed its doors for good on Saturday. The small breakfast eatery and coffee shop opened in 2017.
Butterbean on Monday posted a message to its customers via its Facebook page:
"We are sad to announce that Butterbean Tupelo has closed. We are grateful for the amazing customers and staff that have passed through our doors for the last several years."
The post also encouraged its customers to continue shopping local venues.
"Please go enjoy some coffee and treats from one of our local Tupelo coffee shops," the post said.
Butterbean is the third Tupelo restaurant to shutter its doors since April.
Phyfer's, a cajun-inspired restaurant on McCullough Boulevard, closed after about seven months of operation.
Last week, All-American Dairy Bar on West Main Street ended its nearly two-year run.
The pandemic has been especially rough on the restaurant industry. A report last month from Datassential found that 10.2% of all U.S. restaurants have closed permanently since March 2020. That works out to 79,438 shuttered restaurants out of the 778,807 operating at the beginning of the pandemic.
While chain restaurants suffered the most closings, independent restaurants weren't immune to labor shortages, higher costs, and now, runaway inflation.
Other estimates on restaurant closings paint a bleaker picture. In December, the National Restaurant Association estimated that 17% of the nation's restaurants — about 110,000 — had closed permanently owing to the pandemic. In June of last year, the Independent Restaurant Coalition said 85% of independent restaurants could go under by the end of the year.
