Houston is a little outside of my normal beat, and I wouldn’t ordinarily make note of this restaurant closing. However, it is closing for a reason that isn’t on my “Restaurant Closing Reason” bingo card.
Succulent Fine Dining at 1180 Dunlavy St. announced Friday on Instagram it would be closing its doors immediately.
And why? Two words: Parking. Sucked.
According to Succulent’s statement, a formal notice was given to Regent Square’s landlord and developer with complaints about not having shared spaces open in the parking garage, which is otherwise restricted to apartment tenants. “Despite eight months of efforts to resolve the matter” parking was still an issue, they claim, so they made the difficult decision to close. The restaurant’s last day of service was Thursday.
The Chron article reproduces an Instagram post from the restaurant. According to that post, this escalated as far as the city of Houston, who notified the developers that they were required to provide parking for the restaurant.
“Offering minimal valet at a $25 per car is egregious,” Virene continued. “Our valued guests have not been able to access our establishment at a reasonable cost or with ease, and that is simply not acceptable for the level of hospitality we strive to provide.”
We’ve been to a lot of places that had bad or questionable parking, many of which have closed. But this is the first time I’ve actually seen a restaurant close and cite parking as the reason.
