Vinaigrette to close after landlord sues for $53,010 in unpaid rent

Vinaigrette, a downtown Albuquerque restaurant known for salads, soups, and sandwiches, will close its doors on Nov. 5. The shutdown affects approximately 30 employees and marks the end of a location that opened in 2012. Owner Erin Wade said the decision to close was not driven by a single factor, but by a combination of rising costs, shifting customer habits, and recent operational struggles.

The closure comes amid a lawsuit filed by Jay Rembe’s Country Club Plaza Partners LLC, the restaurant’s landlord. The complaint, filed in the 2nd Judicial District Court on Aug. 10, alleges that Vinaigrette has been chronically behind on payments. According to the filing, the business owed $53,010 in unpaid rent and other charges when Rembe issued a three-day quit notice on July 16. The notice demanded payment by July 19 and eviction by July 20.

Vinaigrette remained at the property after the notice and made two payments in July. However, the complaint states the business still owed $34,761 as of July 28. The lawsuit also seeks to recover $196,689 in previously forgiven rent from two other Wade-led restaurants, Modern General and The Feel Good, which occupied nearby spaces. The landlord is asking the court to allow him to take possession of the property and to sue separately for the back rent from those other establishments.

Wade said the restaurant’s difficulties began several years ago when construction for the Albuquerque Rapid Transit system along Central Avenue disrupted business. Those challenges were compounded by the COVID-19 pandemic, a rise in remote work, and inflation-driven price sensitivity among customers. A Gallup poll released in October found that only 39% of Americans now eat out at least once a week, down from 53% in 2019.

In 2024, Vinaigrette relocated from 1828 Central SW to 1720 Central SE, a spot two blocks away that had previously housed Wade’s restaurant Modern General. Wade described the move as rushed due to pressure from the landlord, who owned both properties. She said her team did not have sufficient time to train in the new space or resolve kitchen inefficiencies. This led to a drop in quality that Wade said was difficult to reverse, causing sales to fall sharply in 2024. Many customers were unaware of the move and assumed the restaurant had closed.

Wade characterized the lawsuit as "a little bit harsh," noting that Rembe has a history of working with tenants who struggle. "We have been his longest, most consistent, and I’ve watched so many tenants come and go, and he has never done this with them, so it’s weird," Wade said. She stated that the pressure from the landlord was a contributing factor to the financial strain, though she maintained that the landlord dispute is not the primary reason for the closure.

The dispute centers on whether Wade met the conditions for the forgiven rent from Modern General and The Feel Good. Rembe’s lawsuit claims Wade failed to meet conditions, including not defaulting on rent beyond applicable cure periods. Wade said she did meet the conditions, which included investing more than $500,000 in building upgrades. "Jay and I always had a super solid landlord-tenant relationship," Wade said. "At some point in that process, he and I had a disagreement, and he has been pretty hostile since."

Rembe declined to comment on the specific dispute since it is before the court, but he acknowledged that recent years have been challenging for downtown restaurants. "I’ve spent more than 30 years investing in … Downtown because I believe neighborhoods are built by strong local businesses. Erin built something special with Vinaigrette," Rembe said. "We remain committed to (the area)."

Wade said she has good legal representation and could fight the suit if she chose to do so. "I just stopped believing that we could make it work as it’s going right now," she said. She expects to settle all debts using funds from her remaining locations in Santa Fe and Austin, Texas, which remain open. The closure will end the Albuquerque operation after 14 years, with Wade citing the end of a chapter that began when the restaurant was once the company’s most profitable site.

The restaurant’s Santa Fe location opened in 2008, and the Austin location opened in 2016. Neither of those sites will close. Wade said she is taking memories of the restaurant’s early success and continued customer support as she transitions the business. "We did our best to make it work," she said. "Things don’t last forever, and sometimes it’s OK for things to come to an end."