Mi Chola will close its doors on Friday after nearly 10 years on the corner of Main and Mill streets.
Owner Darren Chapple called the venture a “money pit” and a difficult business to run as the town changed over the last 10 years. Now at the end of his lease, Chapple said it was time to shut Mi Chola’s doors.
“It’s a very tough business and I think the dynamics in this town have changed dramatically, specifically for this restaurant,” Chapple said. “Our core demographic can’t afford to go out anymore, and prices have increased across the board, whether it be labor, cost of food, cost of booze and obviously our rent has gone up.”
Chapple signed a 10-year lease for the space that was occupied by El Rincon from June 2014 through September 2015, and before that by The Cantina for nearly 30 years. He was a server and eventually a business partner at The Cantina.
Mi Chola’s last month of rent was $42,000. If Chapple were to re-sign the lease, rent would have gone up to $85,000, he said.
“There wasn’t much in the way of conversation [to re-sign the lease] at all because, after 10 years, we haven’t even broke even,” he said. “So even a 5% increase would have been very difficult for us.”
Despite financial challenges, Chapple said he has tried to keep his core staff of 30-35 people happy and “here till the very end.” And for the most part, he has. Most of his staff have worked at Mi Chola for between three and six years, he said.
But it still was a challenge to afford labor, especially with competition in restaurants around town.
“It’s been a very big struggle, especially given how long the offseasons are and just how much competition we have in town now, and not just in town, but the downvalley is just a big competition as well,” Chapple said.
Once Mi Chola closes, Chapple said the building owners plan to subdivide the space. The west side of the building will become a retail store with an entrance on the corner, while the east side will maintain the patio, dining room and kitchen for a potential future food space, Chapple said.
The building owners could not be reached for comment by press deadline to confirm the plans for the space.
Former mayor Torre, who has seen a number of Mexican restaurant iterations in the Mi Chola space, lamented the loss of another local watering hole.
“These local watering holes are the place where we make community connections and enjoy time together and it’s a real cornerstone for our community, and it always has been,” Torre said. “It’s just another step in that loss of old Aspen. … I still have hope, but we need more than hope, we need some really benevolent and wonderful landlords to be taking care of business in our town for us.”
Mi Chola will close with one last hurrah Friday. The restaurant will host a closing party at 9 p.m. with local DJs and a plan to leave no tequila bottle unturned.
“We just expect to sell out of all our tequila and all of our beer and all of our enchiladas and move on,” Chapple said.
