Ciao Italian Kitchen closes in west Wichita | The Wichita Eagle

The west Wichita Ciao Italian Kitchen has closed.

“People talk about always wanting to sponsor local business, but they don’t,” says managing member Guillermo Perez-Munoz.

“That’s certainly how I felt.”

Perez-Munoz says his east-side Ciao will remain open. He says he feels more support there than he did on the west side.

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“The difference was significant.”

In October, Perez-Munoz filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy to reorganize.

He opened his first Ciao at the Waterfront in 2011.

In 2012, he opened a second one in the former Tommy’s Restaurant and Lounge space near 21st and Tyler.

At the time, the company’s chief operating officer said the idea was to build a brand and possibly expand with more Ciaos.

Perez-Munoz says he’s not sure if that will ever happen.

“At this point, I don’t know.”

He says the east-side Ciao is “doing well.”

“We can always do better, right? Everybody loves to do better.”

Slavi Georgiev is one of the partners who owns the west-side space where Ciao was. He says he and his partners are looking for a new tenant – or tenants for divided space – for the 7,500 square feet.

“We don’t have anything right now.”

He says another restaurant would make sense, especially since the space is already fully equipped for one.

“That’s the easiest.”