(Image: Tango)
One of Capitol Hill’s most popular date spots — and a throwback to turn of the millennium Seattle — has closed leaving more big shoes to fill along the Pike food and drink scene.
Tango Restaurant and Lounge has shuttered. The closure of the 19-year-old restaurant at the base of Capitol Hill at the corner of Pike and Boren was announced via social media to start the month:
In addition to the good news for El Diablo dessert fans, owner Travis Rosenthal says slowing business led to the closure and that Tango employees were offered jobs at his other establishments.
Neighboring rum bar Rumba, which opened next door in a former retail space in 2012, remains open.
Rosenthal grew his restaurant group with Tango at the base after acquiring the tapas joint in 2006 from founder Danielle Philippa. In 2012, he opened Rumba with Caribbean spirits expert Kate Perry. Along the way, Rosenthal grew his presence on Capitol Hill with Corretto, an Italian cafe by day, bar by night concept that he sold out of in 2015. That teed up one of the stranger episodes in CHS restaurant coverage, when new owner Jason Orr changed the name to Workhorse for a week, before going back to Corretto. Today, the space is home to BOCA Restobar & Grill.
Rosenthal’s investments have increasingly shifted north of the Montlake Cut. This year, he debuted his takeover of Agua Verde.
The restaurateur has also been active in the Capitol Hill business community with advocacy for small and restaurant businesses and the neighborhood around Tango near Melrose Ave. Paired with the recent death of Plymouth Pillars neighborhood advocate Patrick Jones, the exit of Tango will also mean another quieted voice for the area bridging downtown and Capitol Hill.
Tango’s closure also adds another large space — and large opportunity — open for new food and drink investment along Pike below Broadway. July also brought the closure of Trove at Pike and Summit after nearly five years of business.
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Here’s a dissertation worthy inquiry for some aspiring Doctoral candidate – Do food service owners with multiple locations in the same area sabotage their businesses by spreading their customers out rather than consolidating in a single location?
Yes, there are a host of other factors, but this is a dissertation topic. Please email me a copy when your awarded your degree. Thank you.
While they are in grad school, you might occupy your time in Basic English 101 to learn the difference between you’re and your.
I’m blaming it on auto correct. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.
Being pedantic is boring.
Best practice, Do not use compound words.
Is it really that difficult to type or say “you are”
Just one more keystroke. Exhausting!