Enzo's Bistro and Bar in Rancho Mirage is closed for what its website describes as maintenance and renovations, but owner Hal Griffith says there are no plans to close permanently. The shutdown ended the jobs of the restaurant’s entire staff, who learned of the decision at a mandatory meeting last week.
According to NBC Palm Springs, employees received a group text on Monday about a mandatory meeting scheduled for Wednesday. They were told at the meeting that the entire staff was being let go. Griffith cited an emergency maintenance issue and mounting financial losses as reasons for the shutdown.
A former employee told the station the decision left them feeling “untrustworthy, invaluable and expendable.” The former worker also said there had been no known maintenance problems at the restaurant before the shutdown, disputing one of Griffith’s explanations.
The owner’s explanation
Griffith told the station that sudden shutdowns are common in the restaurant industry because advance notice can create security and theft concerns. He said Enzo's stayed open until the owners had no other choice, and that keeping the business operating as long as possible was, in his view, for the employees’ benefit.
Griffith said he believes the business did what it could to take care of its staff and hopes rehire opportunities may be available in the future.
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The future of the restaurant is uncertain
Griffith says there are currently no plans for a permanent closure. The former employee who spoke to the station disputes that characterization, saying the shutdown appears to be more than a temporary pause.
The restaurant had operated in Rancho Mirage for four years before the shutdown, according to the station. Its website now says it is closed for maintenance and renovations, while the former employee told the station they knew of no prior maintenance problems. The website lists an address on Avenida La Fonda in La Quinta, however, while NBC Palm Springs identifies the business as a Rancho Mirage restaurant; the discrepancy remains unresolved.
A Pattern of Starts and Stops
This isn't the first time Enzo's has dealt with a rocky reopening. Back in March 2022, KESQ reported that the Rancho Mirage location had just reopened after sitting closed since the start of the pandemic, with only the bar area initially back in operation. At the time, Griffith said he didn't have enough qualified staff on hand to reopen the full restaurant and that Enzo's was actively hiring front-of-house workers.
The 2022 reopening shows Enzo's has previously resumed operations in stages, but the available accounts do not establish whether the current shutdown will follow a similar path. For now, the owner’s description of a temporary closure and the former employee’s view of its permanence remain at odds.
