Avo, a Sicilian-inspired restaurant on Journal Avenue, will shut later this month after roughly 10 years in enterprise, the corporate introduced in a information launch.

The restaurant mentioned it is going to serve its closing company on Tuesday, Dec. 23, marking the top of a run that made it a fixture in Uptown New Orleans‘ aggressive eating scene.

In a press release shared with prospects, they mentioned the choice to shut was troublesome and expressed appreciation to diners, staff and the encircling neighborhood for his or her help over time. The restaurant inspired patrons to go to throughout its closing week of service.

Opened by chef and proprietor Nick Lama, Avo constructed its fame round Sicilian-influenced delicacies and a renovated courtyard eating house at 5908 Journal St. Lama, a fourth-generation Sicilian-Orleanian, beforehand served as chef de delicacies at Gautreau’s earlier than launching Avo.

The closure removes one other impartial restaurant from Journal Avenue, a hall identified for its dense focus of eating choices. Whereas no purpose for the closure was disclosed, the announcement underscores ongoing challenges dealing with native eating places, together with rising working prices and intense competitors.

Avo didn’t point out what’s going to occur to the house following the closure or whether or not Lama has plans for a future idea.