Listen to article \u2022\u00a00:00 min<\/p>\n
Sancho Pistola\u2019s, the Mexican bar and restaurant that helped establish Fishtown<\/a> as a destination for tacos, craft beer, and late-night dining, has closed after 12 years, less than two months after its owners shut down Jose Pistola\u2019s in Center City<\/a>.<\/p>\n The closing of Sancho Pistola\u2019s, at 19 W. Girard Ave., leaves business partners Joe Gunn and Casey Parker with Pistola\u2019s Del Sur on East Passyunk<\/a> Avenue in South Philadelphia<\/a>.<\/p>\n Gunn said Sancho Pistola\u2019s continued to draw customers, but debt accumulated during the pandemic proved difficult to overcome. With the lease nearing its end, the partners faced a choice between committing to another five years or cutting their losses.<\/p>\n \u201cWe fell behind during COVID, and we\u2019ve been fighting like hell to dig ourselves out of it ever since,\u201d Gunn said. \u201cWe could keep going, potentially making things worse for another five years, or we could cut our losses.\u201d<\/p>\n The restaurant closed after service Sunday. Gunn said he and Parker made the decision Friday and informed the roughly 25 employees Saturday morning. The partners hope to place some at Pistola\u2019s Del Sur and help others find jobs elsewhere.<\/p>\n Sancho Pistola\u2019s opened in January 2014 at Girard Avenue and Leopard Street, in the former Bubba\u2019s Texas BBQ<\/a>. It followed the formula that had made Jose Pistola\u2019s a Center City fixture: Mexican-inspired food, craft beer, cocktails, and a casual neighborhood-bar atmosphere. Its fish tacos, ceviche, and other seafood dishes attracted a late-night crowd, partly drawn from nearby concerts, Gunn said.<\/p>\n A third partner in Sancho Pistola\u2019s was chef Adan Trinidad, a native of Puebla, Mexico, who had transformed the food at Jose Pistola\u2019s before helping expand the business to Fishtown and South Philadelphia. Trinidad, 39, died in October 2021<\/a> after an apparent fall near his South Philadelphia home. His death was a major loss for the restaurants, where he had overseen the kitchens and mentored employees.<\/p>\n