After more than a century, Chandler’s oldest family-owned business is closing. Serrano’s Mexican Restaurants has announced its flagship location in downtown Chandler will close June 1.
The three other locations – two in Mesa and one in Queen Creek – will remain open, as will fast-casual spinoff Pronto by Serrano’s in Tempe.
The reason
‘‘With the influx of new restaurants downtown, we’ve seen a decline in business over the past few years, and with more than 13,000 square feet, it’s also our most expensive restaurant to operate,” CEO Rick Serrano explains.
The property, which includes a parking lot on the southwest corner of Boston and Washington, has been put up for sale.
The history
Serrano’s was founded as the Serrano Brothers Popular Store in Chandler in 1919. Ernie and Eva Serrano transformed it into a Sonora-style Mexican restaurant in 1979.
Today, the business is operated by Ernie and Eva’s seven children.
