Gone for the Gustofino
This has been mentioned on a couple different blogs and restaurant review sites, but Gustofino, the Italian quick-service deli/grocer on Church Street which I profiled in my "Business Briefs" column in September of last year, has closed. The shop has been papered over for a while, but there were rumors that it was just being renovated but not closed.
I'm not sure what sort of business plan would justify a renovation after just 4 months in business, but hey, it's the Castro. Stranger things happen. Daily. But the phone number was disconnected and the email address was bouncing, so those were pretty good indicators.
I went by the location today and got official confirmation that Gustofino is no more. The new resident is going to be a bakery, and it's supposedly opening in "a couple weeks." I'll have more detail on this soon.
I did ask why the old shop closed and was told the classic story: lack of capital. "No drama -- they just ran out of money," is the direct quote.
That's rough. I know that the #1 reason for new businesses failing is undercapitalization, but still, Gustofino's owner, Matthew Rutledge, really seemed like he had done his homework. It's hard to believe that he could overestimate his cash flow that dramatically, and yet, the picture above pretty much tells the story.
Definitely sad to see this one close.
Comments
hmmph.