Restaurant that battled road construction for a year and a half has given up and closed
The owners of a restaurant that has been fighting road construction practically from the day it opened have finally given up and closed the place, they announced on Facebook on Thursday.
But they say they hope to eventually find a new space and reopen.
Fernando Aguirre and his brother-in-law Hector Onate opened Los Compas under the name Los Cunados at 4559 N. Woodlawn in July of 2021 — just two months before the City of Bel Aire launched the massive Woodlawn Expansion Project. Pretty quickly, customers were having a hard time finding their way to the parking lot of the restaurant, which operates in the space that was home to Bob & Luigi’s for 18 years.
Ever since, the owners have been regularly posting pleas and asking customers to try to find their way in.
“Hello friends,” the owners posted on Facebook on Feb. 4. “We continue to invite you to continue supporting this small business since the construction is affecting us a lot. We are waiting for you to keep going, thanks for your support.”
Some regulars even tried to help by replying with explicit directions to the parking lot through the cones.
On Thursday, fans of Los Compas expressed dismay that it had closed its doors.
“Worst news of the week!” one wrote. “How will I survive without my Choripollo? Please let us know if you open up again. We’ll be back for sure.”
Contacted on Thursday, an owner said that the restaurant just lost too much money during the construction and could not continue anymore. He lost workers because he could no longer pay them, he said, and the debt kept building.
He said that he hoped that he could find a new spot — somewhere far from road construction — to restart the business.
The owners changed the restaurant’s name from Los Cunados to Los Campos in early February. Los Cunados translates to “the brother-in-law,” which describes the relationship of the owners. The new, more appropriate name translates to “the compass.”
The Woodlawn Expansion Project is expected to be complete sometime this summer or fall.
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