Longtime Nashville Hispanic community anchor La Hacienda restaurant set to close April 30
La Hacienda restaurant, an anchor in Nashville's Hispanic community for 30 years, is set to close April 30, the owners' daughter confirmed to the Tennessean.
The pandemic, inflation and rising employee wages were among the factors that have hurt La Hacienda's profitability in the last three years, Rachel Yepez Gaines said Monday.
Owners Carlos and Lilia Yepez will look for a new restaurant operator for the space at 2615 Nolensville Pike and will concentrate on their tortilla manufacturing plant, the couple's original mission when they first moved to Nashville from Santa Ana, Calif., in 1992, Gaines said.
"It has been such a hard decision and an emotional one" Gaines said. "It’s been really really difficult. La Hacienda has been a staple of Nolensville Road. And to have a sitting president visit your restaurant? It has been amazing."
La Hacienda captured national attention Dec. 9, 2014, when then President Barack Obama came in and ordered five tacos, five flautas and chips and guacamole to take onto Air Force One after giving a speech at nearby Conexion Americas in South Nashville. President Obama also hugged owners Lilia and Carlos Yepez, shook hands with employees and customers and posed for photos.
Owners met Monday morning with the restaurant's 18 employees to tell them of the restaurant's forthcoming closure. Several will be offered jobs at the tortilla manufacturing plant, Gaines said.
The Yepez family hopes the community will help celebrate La Hacienda by stopping by before it closes.
"We hope to have as many people coming in and out as possible in the next three and a half weeks," Gaines said. "We want to say thank you."
The Yepezes' tortilla manufacturing plant is located at 431 Allied Drive.
After some challenges opening the plant, the family decided to open a market and then the restaurant to generate income while working through the obstacles.
During his unannounced 10-minute visit in 2014, President Obama consulted with employees before deciding on his order. He declined a side order of beans and rice — "Too messy" for the trip back.
At one point, the president threw down a paper napkin to help clean up a mess after a woman inadvertently knocked a drink to the floor.
"Who's going to ring me up?" Obama asked. The president then paid with cash.
La Hacienda joins Rotier's, Arnold's Country Kitchen and Dangure's Cafeteria as iconic Nashville restaurants that have closed during the pandemic era.
Reach Brad Schmitt at brad@tennessean.com or 615-259-8384 or on Twitter @bradschmitt.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: La Hacienda, a Nashville Hispanic community anchor, to close April 30
