After a kitchen fire closed Avila’s El Ranchito’s Huntington Beach space in November, the Southern California-born, casual dining chain, which specializes in Mexican-American fare, announced it will shutter the location permanently.
“It is with great sadness that we announce that we have decided to close the Avila’s El Ranchito in Huntington Beach,” read a Friday, June 28 announcement the owners posted to the restaurant’s Instagram page. “We acted as quickly as we could to clean up and rebuild, however we faced more challenges than anticipated and the whole process was much slower than we had hoped for. We were confident we would be open by summer 2024, but we realized overtime that would not be possible.”
SEE ALSO: Fire temporarily closes Avila’s El Ranchito in Huntington Beach
The missive goes on to say that the restaurant’s staff have since found other jobs, noting that “[t]hey are the reason our restaurant was always such a warm and inviting place to dine.”
Fans of the Huntington Beach Avila’s posted condolences and words of love for the 25-year-old eatery.
“My husband and I had our first date here … we are bummed,” wrote Lindsey Medici. While Steve McCartney noted, “Dang! So sad to hear you won’t be reopening this location. Downtown HB won’t be the same.”
Salvador and Margarita Avila (who passed away in 2022 and 2019, respectively) opened their eponymous restaurant in Huntington Park in 1966. The business has remained in the family, now owned by Avila family members Sergio, Marybell, Bianca, Maribel and Valerie.
Open Avila’s El Ranchito locations can be found in Corona del Mar, Costa Mesa, Foothill Ranch, Huntington Park, Lake Forest, Laguna Beach, Laguna Niguel, Orange, San Clemente, Santa Ana and Seal Beach.
