LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) – Highlands-area Mexican restaurant La Bamba, known for its “burritos as big as your head,” will close next month to allow for demolition and construction of a larger building that also will house retail space.
The work at 1237 Bardstown Road is expected to be completed in April 2020, according to a news release.
“We’ve loved being part of the Highlands for the last 22 years and are excited to bring not only a better space for the restaurant, but opportunity for more retail space in this sought-after area,” said Ramiro Aguas, owner of the Illinois-based restaurant chain. “We’ll miss our customers over the next several months, but will be back bigger and better in the spring.”
La Bamba’s building will be razed in mid-November, and an aggressive construction schedule will have the new retail and restaurant space open in April, according to the release.
Derby City Shop Manager Brandon Amos welcomed the improvements.
"Anytime somebody wants to spruce up an old building in the Highlands I think it’s also a good thing – even if it’s been a business that has been around forever," he said.
The barbershop is right next door to La Bamba and has seen businesses in the area come and go over the years.
"There’s a certain vibe or a certain element among the businesses that are in the Highlands that are just a little different maybe than other neighborhoods, he said.
In a move that will please city planners, the new building will be right up on the Bardstown Road sidewalk, with the parking lot in the rear of the lot and accessible only by alley.
The two retail spaces, 2,090 square feet and 1,675 square feet, will front Bardstown Road. The new, 1,400-square-foot La Bamba space will in the rear.
A rendering shows the planned La Bamba restaurant and retail building at 1237 Bardstown Road. It is expected to be finished in April 2020.
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