AUSTIN, Texas — Longtime Austin standout Italian restaurant Vespaio Ristorante and companion space Chapulin Cantina will close their doors on Feb. 28, according to owners Daniel Brooks and Ryan Samson.
Vespaio, which has been open since 1998, was one of the first restaurants to revitalize South Congress and turn it into the destination neighborhood it is today. Brooks and Samson, in their post, said that “as South Congress continues to evolve, we felt like this was the right time to close this chapter on our own terms.”
Brooks and Samson took over the restaurant in 2018 from original owners Alan Lazarus, Scott Bolin and Claude Benayoun, and Samson has worked at Vespaio since 2002, serving as executive chef. They recently opened a new restaurant, Vespa Rossa in Dripping Springs, and will continue to operate there.
They say they wanted to remain open for one last season so that guests will have the opportunity to celebrate the restaurant one last time before it closes its doors forever.
There is as yet no word on what business will occupy the now-iconic space in South Austin.