A local downtown eatery has closed. Again.
The Front Door/Back Door Restaurant has closed for a second time in less than a year.
Owned and operated by Danny Cameron, the restaurant closed its doors last week.
On Sunday, a woman commented on the restaurant’s Facebook page, complaining when the restaurant closed without notice, saying she had booked a party at the restaurant for 25 people for that afternoon. According to the woman, when she and her guests showed up, the doors were locked and the lights turned off. The woman said she called to confirm the party on Friday and spoke with an employee who did not mention the restaurant closing. Cameron responded to the comment saying, “The restaurant closed over a week ago so don’t know who you could have talked to on Friday.”
Main Street Director Barbara Bigelow said she was saddened to see the restaurant close.
“I’m terribly sorry to lose this for our downtown and I’m sorry for Danny,” Bigelow said. “I hate that he had to close the business but I understand you have to do what you think is best for you. I regret it terribly for downtown. It’s a great place and it’s been there for so long. I hope someone will come along and take it over and continue to have a restaurant there. We need restaurants in our downtown area.”
Cameron, who also owns CMM Renovations, purchased the restaurant from Steve McLemore last fall after a similar situation. Employees showed up to work and found the doors locked and the lights off. According to employees, they received no notice from McLemore that the restaurant was closing.
McLemore purchased the popular downtown eatery in 2012 from chef Sarah Labensky.
The restaurant, which was famous for its chicken salad, had been a fixture of downtown Columbus since 1996.
Sarah Fowler covered crime, education and community related events for The Dispatch.
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