Tuesday, January 3, 2023

[CLOSURE ALERT] Mexican Eatery Pulls Irish Goodbye in Midtown

Guac Y Margys has abruptly closed its Midtown restaurant after less than two years in business.  The restaurant, located at 502 Amsterdam Avenue, opened in place of neighborhood favorite Amsterdam Cafe in July 2021.  According to those familiar with the closure and social media posts from those involved in the restaurant, the closure caught everyone by surprise.  

Drag performer "Edie Cheezburger" of "The Other Show" was one of the first to post about the closure.  "The venue we have The Other Show at [Guac Y Margys] is permanently closing."  The closure, which was reportedly permanent as of Monday, also caught Tyler Hunt off guard.  Hunt, who responded to Cheezburger's post, indicated he "ran the place day to day" and was "totally blindsided."   

Business partners Troy Meyers, Sebastian Romano and David Barton opened the original Guac Y Magys on Auburn Avenue in Studioplex Alley along the BeltLine in 2018.  Here, the margarita bar enjoyed a captive audience and a compact, not even 1,300 square foot space. 

On Amsterdam Avenue, Guac Y Margys was 6,700 square feet, more than five times as large as the original.  The trio opened a third location in 2022 at West Midtown at The Interlock that was even smaller than the original, measuring only 1,000 square feet.  

The vastly different size likely made the Midtown location both challenging and expensive to operate. 

The restaurant operated both a Midtown specific Instagram page (now deleted) and a Facebook page which updated its hours as "Permanently Closed" but posted no other announcement of the closure.   As recently as December 29, the restaurant posted a full calendar for January including nine events, more than the total scheduled at the other two locations combined.  

That said, it's incredibly disappointing to see the business, which had developed a local following, close so abruptly leaving not only its staff and patrons out in the cold, but performers too.  

What is your take on the closure of Guac Y Margys in Midtown?  What would you like to see open in place of Guac Y Margys in Midtown?  Are you a former employee or performer displaced by the closure?  

Please share your thoughts below.  

16 comments:

Anonymous said...

the limited menu doesn’t help - the place was just not that good.

Anonymous said...

they paid managers out of the tip pool meant for servers and bartenders.

Anonymous said...

Saw ownership asked the 22 year old manager 2 months ago if he wanted to buy the failing business on a facebook post. 15 employees out of work, because of poor ownership is sad.

Anonymous said...

David Barton, the majority owner of the company, is a capitalist hypocrite. The GyM Fam ideology was always a way for him to try to increase retention in his failing business. I feel bad that Troy Meyers has him as a business partner.

Anonymous said...

if you need more information my instagram is @tiedve. -Tyler Hunt former assistant location manager if GYM Midtown

Anonymous said...

Glad it’s gone. Food was terrible. Dave Barton is shady. Had an event there for a candidate’s campaign and he changed what the restaurant would provide from what was discussed prior right before the event. Shady.

Anonymous said...

I thought it was a bad chain

Anonymous said...

period

Anonymous said...

The food was disgusting and had no flavor what so ever.

Anonymous said...

I've never been to any of their locations and while I really hate the loss of jobs, it doesn't sound like they had a good plan.
There will be more to come. There are so many mediocre restaurants in Atlanta and only so many dollars to go around.

Anonymous said...

Guess the owners snorted the profit!

Anonymous said...

Guess the owners snorted the profit!

Anonymous said...

These comments about the restaurant and the owners aren’t fair or accurate. This place provided a great service by hosting countless promo events for community organizations. Unfortunately, that appears to not be enough to keep this large space open. My guess is this space is primed for redevelopment. GyM still has two other locations. I see no reason or basis to accuse people of being nefarious or mis-management when the reality is likely much more nuanced.

Anonymous said...

Nice try, David

Anonymous said...

dead

Anonymous said...

deceased

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