Gone in 2025: The Fort Worth restaurants we’ll miss most

Restaurant owners found all kinds of reasons to close in 2025, from retirements and high costs to changing tastes and — sometimes — better deals.

For former Lili’s owner Vance Martin and for many restaurateurs from the baby-boom generation, it was just time to retire.

After 47 years in the business and 18 at Lili’s on the Near Southside, Martin said he’s not surprised to see so many restaurants close.

“I really thought it would have happened sooner,” he said.

“So many people want to open multiple locations. Then they get stretched too thin. … And the restaurant market is really oversaturated.”

In a single week in 2025, 10 restaurants announced closings.

In April, when Goat & Vine closed in Montgomery Plaza, it was the 10th to fail in the same exact location.

But other restaurants closed for happier reasons: so the owners could enjoy the rewards of their hard work or move to better jobs.

Here are some of the dearly departed restaurants in 2025 we’ll miss most:

—Cat City Grill, a 15-year Near Southside steakhouse and bar known for weekend brunch, closed after beef prices and customers’ changing habits squeezed midprice restaurants, owner Martin Thompson said. The space became Enchiladas ¡Olé!.

—Belzoni’s Catfish Cafe, a heralded Mississippi-style catfish restaurant on Loop 820 West that grew from a popular concession trailer, closed because owner Dwight Cooley needed to recover from surgery.

—Sabar BBQ, a Texas Monthly Top 50 restaurant for its Pakistani-seasoned brisket and sausage, drew long lines Dec. 20 when it closed after pitmaster Zain Shafi became a co-owner of Goldee’s BBQ. Brix Barbecue nearby, a Top 100 restaurant, also closed.

—Bella Italia West, a Fort Worth tradition for 45 years and for 37 on Camp Bowie Boulevard, will close Dec. 31. Chef Carlo Croci lost his lease to plans for a new development.

—Bodacious Bar-B-Q, a popular East Texas restaurant, closed its 34-year Arlington location across from AT&T Stadium. The landmark 1958 building was originally a location of Texas’ iconic Underwood’s Bar-B-Q.

—Taco Heads, once a symbol of a small truck operator opening two thriving restaurants and margarita bars, closed after a proposed sale to a Dallas restaurateur was canceled.

—Mason & Dixie, a Southern-style lunch cafe in downtown Grapevine known for sandwiches and desserts, closed after a landlord dispute.

—Maiden Fine Plants & Spirits, a fine-dining vegetarian restaurant on the Near Southside, opened with a $150-per-person tasting menu, struggled and closed.

—Vice Burger, a worthy replica of a 1950s diner but serving plant-based burgers and hot dogs, closed on the Near Southside. Tres Amigos Tacos & Tequila, which replaced Yucatan Taco Stand, also closed on Magnolia Avenue.

—T & P Tavern, a grill and bar in the historic 1931 Texas & Pacific Railway train station popular with Trinity Railway Express riders, closed when Trinity Metro took it over. It will reopen as Station & Vine.

—Fire Oak Grill, a Southwestern steakhouse and one of the first restaurants in the downtown Weatherford boom around the courthouse square, closed after 18 years and was sold.

—Hutch’s Pie and Sandwich Shop, a bakery that opened in 1935 and grew into a fried pie company, closed when the Hutchens family retired.

—Second Bar + Kitchen, a casual grill by James Beard chef David Bull, closed in Mineral Wells when the Crazy Water Hotel management company changed. Bull had made Mineral Wells a must-stop. It was replaced by Oak & Third with chef Stefon Rishel.

—Campo Verde Mexican Bar & Grill in Dalworthington Gardens, once known for its elaborate Christmas decor, closed Dec. 24. It was never the same after 2022, when founder James “Smiley” Williams sold it before his death.

—Sam Won Garden, a 20-year favorite and Fort Worth’s first popular Korean restaurant, closed after Sylvia Chung retired.

—Sí Tapas, a Spanish restaurant in Artisan Circle by the co-founder of Dallas’ Cafe Madrid, never reopened after the 2024 Christmas break. It will be replaced by Partenope Ristorante.

—Mash’D, a 10-year Artisan Circle restaurant based on moonshine, closed at the end of its lease. It will be replaced by Top of the Morning, a breakfast cafe. Bar Louie, Hurts Donut and La Familia also closed, as did several bar-restaurants in Artisan Circle and the nearby Foch Street Warehouses.

—Pearl Snap Kolaches, a 12-year kolache bakery and burger grill, closed on White Settlement Road in Fort Worth. The space will become Seared, a neighborhood steakhouse.

—Heirloom at Archie’s, a sandwich and lunch kiosk with a patio in the middle of the Archie’s garden store, was replaced by the owners’ Gardenland Cafe.

—Cuco’s Sandwich Shop, a small family operation in North Richland Hills that became known for standout Cuban sandwiches, closed after 34 years. The Neira family retired due to health problems.

—F1 Smokehouse, a confusing barbecue-themed bar and grill in the Cultural District, never closed, but it simplified its name and changed the concept to the Little Tavern. It serves grill dishes and brunch items like those on the menu at the larger Tavern restaurant on South Hulen Street.

—Off the Bone BBQ in Forest Hill, ranked in 2010 by D Magazine as the No. 1 barbecue joint in North Texas, closed after an ownership change and the recent explosion of more elaborate craft barbecue restaurants.

—Paco’s Mexican Cuisine, a 21-year Tex-Mex restaurant in three locations, closed both in Sundance Square and on the Near Southside. The Southside location switched to Shōgun Taqueria.

—Pinstripes, an Illinois-based “bowling, bocce and bistro” center, closed in the Shops at Clearfork after a corporate restructuring. The restaurant was known for its sprawling Sunday and holiday brunch buffet.

—La Fiesta, a 50-year Cleburne landmark built originally as a Jose’s, was destroyed by fire.

That isn’t even counting the endless chain restaurants and franchises that failed or folded, many due to overexpansion in new suburbs or the passing of food fads.

Nor does it count restaurants that took a break and have now reopened: Chadra Mezza (in a new South Freeway location), Clown Burger, Enchiladas ¡Olé!, Los Vaqueros, the Malt Shop in Weatherford, Old Neighborhood Grill, Pizza Verde, Taste of Europe and Uncle Julio’s.

The flagship Tommy’s Hamburgers on Camp Bowie Boulevard is under repair after a fire and will reopen by mid-2026.

This story was originally published December 26, 2025 at 4:17 AM.