CHARLOTTE, N.C. — After five years of serving customers in the Plaza Midwood neighborhood, Coaltrane's Char Grill is making its last call Tuesday night.
Restaurant owners admitted the announcement was on rather short notice in posts on the social media pages for Coaltrane's, but simply said "that's how the universe works sometimes".
According to National Restaurant Properties, Coaltrane's isn't so much closing as much as the owner wanted to focus on his Ballantyne restaurant Libretto's.
The restaurant's posts thanked patrons for their support and to neighboring businesses in Plaza Midwood for their community. The posts also encouraged customers to visit one last time.
The restaurant replacing Coaltrane's is called Que Onda Tacos + Tequila which already has four other locations in Charlotte.
Coaltrane's is not the first restaurant in Plaza Midwood to close recently; the all-day European café known as Sister closed its doors at the end of July 2022. Restaurant closing across the Charlotte metro in recent months is also nothing new, including long-time Mooresville pizzeria Pie In The Sky in March.
Nationwide, restaurants have continued to face rising costs and a sluggish labor market. New research from the National Restaurant Association showed inflation-adjusted sales in restaurants were down $1.3 billion in August 2022 after a peak in May. Job growth in August also slowed, with the restaurant industry still at 633,000 jobs below pre-pandemic levels after adding just more than 18,000 jobs.
Wholesale food prices are also up about 13% over the last 12 months according to the association, and menu prices also rose about 8%.