Local sports bar chain Taco Mac has closed its Lindbergh location after 15 years, citing, among other things, “safety challenges” as a reason for the closure.
The announcement was made in an email sent to customers.
“... the climate of the atmosphere around Lindbergh has drastically changed,” the email said. “The combination of recent restaurant closures in the development, safety challenges in the parking garage and a recent uptick of crime in Buckhead has made this location no longer safe for our team members.”
The pub, which opened at 573 Main St. in 2006, was one of more than 20 metro Atlanta Taco Mac locations. The email said there are plans to open five new locations in 2022.
The restaurant is “beyond eager to provide immediate placement for all managers and team members in surrounding Taco Mac restaurants,” the email read.
The location is listed as “permanently closed” on the Taco Mac website.
Mexican restaurant Botanico also cited Buckhead crime as a reason for its closure earlier this year on Pharr Road. A representative for Savi Provisions, which owned the building in which Botanico was located, said the closure was actually due to a failure to come to an agreement on the lease.
A man was shot and killed near Buckhead bar Hide Kitchen and Cocktails earlier this month, and a man was found dead after a shooting at Azule Restaurant and Lounge in the Lindbergh area in May.
Buckhead has seen an increase in shooting incidents and car thefts this year, causing some residents there to organize behind Buckhead seceding from Atlanta to create a new city.
Taco Mac is owned by Nashville-based Fresh Hospitality, which has a portfolio of 20 restaurant brands including Mary Mac’s Tea Room in Midtown.
Founded in 1979, the chain, best-known for Buffalo wings, is called Taco Mac because the first outlet was opened in a former Mexican restaurant. The founders decided not to spend the money needed to change the sign. Instead, they renovated the kitchen.
Fresh Hospitality CEO Harold Martin Jr. did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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