The place was packed Saturday evening as Grand Junction residents showed up to enjoy one more meal at this iconic restaurant.

After 50 years of service, Los Reyes on 7th Street in Grand Junction said farewell. Word hit the streets some time ago the owners were planning to retire. Longtime fans of the restaurant set aside their Saturday evening to enjoy one more dinner.

In my experience, when most Grand Junction restaurants close, they simply shut their doors and disappear. That has been the case with several establishments, Bocaza for example. I had been to the restaurant the day before they closed and saw no indication whatsoever they were about to shut their doors.

Like I said the other day, most restaurants have customers; Los Reyes had fans. Some of the restaurant's regular customers stepped up the pace and began visiting the restaurant more frequently after hearing about the impending closure.

One longtime customer, Fruita resident Frank Bregar, heard some time ago the restaurant would be closing. He began visiting more often, and made special plans to visit on their final day.

We discovered Los Reyes about 30 years ago. We have tried to go there at least once a month. Since we head they were closing we have been there every week. - Frank Bregar

As you can see in the photo at top, quite a few people turned out (thanks to Frank Bregar for the photo). There was a short wait just to get inside the building. Bregar said,  "Not sure how many people were there yesterday, but I am sure they were at the maximum capacity of the restaurant. Not one table was vacant." He added, "Some folks were also ordering a quart of green chili to go."

Think about that for a minute; a Fruita resident driving all the way to downtown Grand Junction to go to a Mexican restaurant. How many Mexican restaurants would a person drive past between Fruita and Grand Junction? That's customer loyalty.

Following that final dinner on Saturday evening, November 3, the doors closed forever. According to an employee, the property has already been sold. It is not clear at this time what type of business will be taking over the building.

Los Reyes Grand Junction 4
Waylon Jordan
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Thank you for a job well done, Los Reyes. I hope the owners get the chance to enjoy every moment of their retirement.

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