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Baby A's Barton Springs location closes
The staple Tex-Mex restaurant Baby Acapulco has closed its doors at the Barton Springs location after decades of service.
AUSTIN, Texas - The staple Tex-Mex restaurant Baby Acapulco, also known as Baby A’s, which is famous for their purple margarita, has closed its Barton Springs location after decades of service.
It's one of many businesses to leave Barton Springs Road in recent years.
"It feels like a staple. This is like a monument that belongs in Austin, so I don't know it is so weird to see it closed because it feels so foundational," says Sarah McPartland.
Baby A's is a locally owned Mexican restaurant that has been in Austin for more than 40 years.
The restaurant chain has been reduced from three locations to two. Many that frequented the Barton Springs location are finding it hard to say goodbye.
"My parents lived here in the 80s and they loved this place. I moved here recently. When I first moved here, they were like ‘we have got to go there,’ so, we went there and tried a purple margarita, it was so yummy," says McPartland.
The Tex-Mex restaurant is famous for its fruity margaritas, and original purple rita.
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Another South Congress business closes
Several businesses on South Congress are closing their doors for good. One of those is retailer Mi Casa Gallery.
"There was actually one table with a bunch of people my age that all got margaritas, and they were playing some kind of drinking game, and it looked like it was so much fun," says McPartland.
On Tuesday, movers removed the furniture from the inside and patio of the establishment that is now listed as permanently closed online.
"I feel like if somebody walks by, and they are like, ‘oh I have so many memories here,’ it is going to be upsetting," says McPartland.
In 2020, another popular eatery on Barton Springs Road called Shady Grove closed its doors after nearly 30 years in business, citing a rise in property taxes and losing millions of dollars from COVID-19.
That same year, Austin Eastciders, a tasting room and restaurant, opened its doors on Barton Springs Road. It shut down just three years later.
Those living in the area say expectations are high for businesses looking to take over the former Baby A's location.
"I hope it is a good business, especially as where this is it is so busy, it is such a high traffic place," says McPartland.
The corporate office says they are not commenting on the closure at this time.