Downtown Tucson Restaurant To Close After A Decade In Business

TUCSON, AZ — After a decade in business, a downtown Tucson staple is permanently closing its doors amid the coronavirus pandemic.

DOWNTOWN Kitchen + Cocktails, the brainchild of James Beard Award-winning chef Janos Wilder, announced it will be shutting down in a message on its website. Wilder opened the restaurant with Rebecca Wilder in 2010 at the start of downtown Tucson's renaissance.

“This is unmistakably a tremendously hard time for small businesses, especially restaurants the world over,” Janos Wilder said in a statement. “For me personally, it has also been an opportunity to take stock of where I am in my career and ask myself, is the day to day of running a restaurant really the best use of my time now?”

A September survey released by the National Restaurant Association revealed that nearly 100,000 restaurants have closed on a permanent or long-term basis in the U.S. since the start of the coronavirus pandemic.

Wilder has had restaurants in the Tucson area since 1983 when he opened Janos Restaurant at the Tucson Art Museum, earning himself the prestigious James Beard Award for Best Chef in the Southwest. He opened DOWNTOWN following the 2008 recession after many foodies turned away from the fine dining scene.

“After well over 50 years working as a professional chef, it’s time to continue my work without the rigor of 60–70 hour work weeks, spend more time with family and focus on propelling the incredible momentum so many have helped generate in recognizing Tucson’s distinct culinary heritage,” the statement continued.

The Wilders' Carriage House concept will remain open for catering and group events. In the meantime, the chef will put on a series of online cooking classes called "Cooking in the Time of COVID" full of easy meals families can make at home. He is also planning a second series all about Tucson's food scene and its flavors.

"Downtown Tucson will continue to thrive in the years to come," Wilder said. "Like the desert we live in, we are a resilient community. I am so grateful for all this city has given me and my family and I am eager to continue to serve the community moving forward.”

This article originally appeared on the Tucson Patch