- Local
- Community
- Journalism
Support the independent voice of Phoenix and help keep the future of New Times free.
After what was to initially be a temporary shuttering due to COVID-19, Phoenix Public Market Café has permanently closed in downtown Phoenix.
The restaurant had announced via Instagram in March it would cease operations until further notice. “As a small business, it is difficult to make such a decision,” the posts read, “but we know it is the right one to make to ensure all our staff and valued customers are safe and healthy.”
By phone, Phoenix Public Market Café chef and owner Aaron Chamberlin now says the closure is for good. The space didn't have much longer on its lease, and COVID has affected its main customer base of downtown ASU students and convention and business travelers.
"I could open and spend the next two years losing money," he says. "I'm just not willing to do that, unfortunately."
Chamberlin opened the café in spring 2013.
Last summer, Chamberlin announced that he was stepping away from his Tempe establishments, Tempe Public Market Café and Ghost Ranch. Tempe Public Market Café permanently closed in January. Chamberlin also told New Times this February, before the pandemic, that he was shifting to a new project called Chef Dad, meant to help families adopt healthier eating habits.
Now, though, Chamberlin says he's taking something of a break. "I've woken up and gone to a restaurant for the past 30 years," he says, explaining he and his wife have recently had a new baby. He says he's taking some time to reevaluate his next steps.
Taco Chelo on Roosevelt Row, Chamberlin’s other restaurant, is still in operation.
"Taco Chelo will continue," Chamberlin says. "We're doing great there."
Keep Phoenix New Times Free... Since we started Phoenix New Times, it has been defined as the free, independent voice of Phoenix, and we would like to keep it that way. Offering our readers free access to incisive coverage of local news, food and culture. Producing stories on everything from political scandals to the hottest new bands, with gutsy reporting, stylish writing, and staffers who've won everything from the Society of Professional Journalists' Sigma Delta Chi feature-writing award to the Casey Medal for Meritorious Journalism. But with local journalism's existence under siege and advertising revenue setbacks having a larger impact, it is important now more than ever for us to rally support behind funding our local journalism. You can help by participating in our "I Support" membership program, allowing us to keep covering Phoenix with no paywalls.