Bone-chilling cold is now affecting Wichita’s ability to dine out as many favorites close
It hurts to go outside, even if you’re a restaurant owner.
The extreme weather, which for the last two days has kept Wichita temperatures at dangerous lows, has caused school cancellations, business closures, rolling blackouts, power outages, burst water pipes and now this indignity, too: Restaurants are closing.
Many favorite restaurants in the Wichita area closed because of cold on Monday, and several are now extending the closures into Tuesday.
Some owners are saying it’s just too cold to open. Among them: Connie’s Mexico Cafe, Picasso’s Pizzeria, River City Brewing Co., Felipe’s Jr., the Felipe’s at 119th and Maple and at 3434 W Central, Caesar‘s Table, Lola’s Bistro, Buster’s Burger Joint, Pig In Pig Out, Twelve and Lilikoi Asian Bistro. Both Tanya’s Soup Kitchen and Jimmy’s Egg owners say they’re closing to help conserve energy in the city.
Some are having cold-related building problems, like power outages and burst pipes. Hurt’s Donut is without power on Tuesday morning and says it will open when it’s back on, urging customers to check social media for updates. Fuzzy’s Taco Shop at Wichita State University is without power, too, but the Rock Road restaurant is open on Tuesday.
Thao’s Bistro has burst water pipes and won’t reopen until Friday. Prost also has been dealing with frozen pipes and will stay closed until Wednesday. And the Paradise Donuts store at 612 E. Douglas downtown Wichita will stay closed through Thursday, though its west-side store on Maple is open.
Still, if cooking your own pot of chili isn’t in your wheelhouse, rest assured that many tough restaurant owners are at work on Tuesday and ready to serve the freezing populace. Among them: The Angry Elephant, NuWay, M.I.F. Deli, Livingston’s Diner and Uno Mas.
And don’t forget that its’ Fat Tuesday, and it appears that all the Cajun feasts are still a go, including at Whiskey Dick’s and Emerson Biggins.
The moral of this frigid story: If you’re planning to dine out today, call the restaurant before you go to the trouble of putting on all those layers and letting your nose hairs freeze.
This story was originally published February 16, 2021 at 9:55 AM.
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