Legendary Restaurant in Middletown Permanently Closing After 49 Years

One of the most popular restaurants in Middletown, New York, has announced that they will be permanently closing this month.

The last couple of years have been really hard on numerous restaurants across the Hudson Valley. In 2024 we said goodbye to some well-known places like AJ's Café in Wappingers Falls, Max's on Main in Beacon, and Huckleberry in New Paltz, NY, to name a few. The year before that (2023) we also lost a few fan favorites like the Jolly Cow's in Port Ewen, and Schatzi's in New Paltz, NY.

We also learned in 2023 that one of the most popular places for Mexican food in Middletown, NY would be closing for a bit and rebranding under a new name.

El Bandido in Middletown, New York Closes

The Tello family, who have owned and operated El Bandido in Middletown for almost 50 year's announced in November 2023 that they would be closing until further notice, saying "El Bandido has come under hard times and unfortunately we will be closed until further notice." The message posted on Facebook said, "El Bandido has been a staple in the community and one of the oldest restaurants around. We will be back soon and stronger than ever. Our family thanks all our loyal customers for sticking by us all these years. The Tello Family"

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Shortly after closing El Bandido located at 536 East Main St, Middletown, the Tello family reopened the restaurant under the new name VIVA Bandido. Soon after opening in late 2023, they had to temporarily close again after dealing with "complications with sales tax and issues with the state of NY." As soon as they resolved those issues, they reopened for a while, but according to a recent post on Facebook, they are permanently closing.

El Bandido Permanently Closing in Middletown, NY

The post explained that after 49 years and many fights to keep it alive, the Tello family is saying goodbye, "With a heavy heart, we announce that Viva Bandido will be closing its doors this month." The post didn't give an exact closing date but did say that a new business will replace Bandido soon. When that information becomes available, we will update his article. The Tello family ended their post thanking all of their loyal customers saying,

"We didn’t make it this far alone. We made it because of you—the customers, the staff, the family who made this place what it was. And for that, I will always be grateful. So today, we’re not saying goodbye. We’re raising a glass. We’re telling one more story. We’re sharing one more meal....Thank you for 49 years of memories, of loyalty, of being part of something greater than just a business."