Cha-Cha's Mexican Restaurant closes after more than 30 years

Cha-Cha's Mexican Restaurant at 5616 Bandera Road has closed. Click ahead to see where else to try top Mexican dishes in San Antonio, according to Readers' Choice. Cha-Cha's Mexican Restaurant at 5616 Bandera Road has closed. Click ahead to see where else to try top Mexican dishes in San Antonio, according to Readers' Choice. Photo: KEVIN GEIL, San Antonio Express-News Photo: KEVIN GEIL, San Antonio Express-News Image 1 of / 33 Caption Close Cha-Cha's Mexican Restaurant closes after more than 30 years 1 / 33 Back to Gallery

Cha-Cha's Mexican Restaurant has closed.

Ricardo Ruiz announced via his personal and business Facebook pages that the 32-year-old business at 5616 Bandera Road is permanently shuttered.

"There was no announcement of closing because there was a potential buyer to continue the family name legacy," the post reads. "Discretion was needed in order to finish the deal but the buyer decided not to follow through. Being closed for the trial selling period made it difficult for me to reopen."

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Ruiz wrote that being the place where generations of San Antonio families celebrated milestones is accomplishment he and his family "cherish."

Fans of the restaurant can take some solace in the fact that though the establishment's final remaining permanent location has closed, Cha-Cha's will still exist in some form.

It will still compete in the annual Margarita Pour-Off on Sept. 23, a competition it has won in the past.

Cha-Cha's will still cater and operate as a "margarita machine business," the post said.

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The Bandera location was the last remaining Cha-Cha's restuarant after the Babcock spot closed in 2014.

That restaurant closed on Sept. 13 after 20 years of business, according to mySA.com archives.

Ruiz was not immediately available to respond to requests for comment, but said in his post "My life and heart is in Cha-Cha's and it is very difficult to end such a great era."

"Let the margaritas and memories live on," he said.

mmendoza@mysa.com

Twitter: @MaddySkye