Updated at 12 p.m. Sept. 10 with new comments from Courtney Luscher.

Lower Greenville restaurant institution The Grape is closing on Oct. 10, owners Brian and Courtney Luscher announced Tuesday.

The Luschers bought the restaurant in 2007 from original owners Kathy McDaniel and Charlotte Parker after working for them for years.

"As I look towards future endeavors, I am so fortunate to look back on the fantastic journey that The Grape has taken me on over the past 15 or so years," Brian said in a statement. "It was always a kitchen that felt like home to me. And as far as the restaurant goes, well, they just don't make joints like that anymore. I'll miss the ol' gal."

The Grape restaurant owners Brian and Courtney Luscher on Wednesday, February 4, 2015. (Ashley Landis / Staff Photographer)

The Grape, which originally opened in 1972, stopped serving Sunday brunch in February 2019. "Quite simply, we do not have the number of guests visiting us to make the work and products necessary to execute the Sunday brunch shift result in a profit," Brian Luscher wrote then in a letter to guests.

The closing of The Grape, known for its great burger and for launching the food and beverage service careers of many in Dallas, is a heartbreaking loss for many:

"My heart is breaking at the news that sweet Courtney Luscher and her wonderful chef-husband Brian Luscher will close The Grape Restaurant on October 10. This lovely bistro has been at the heart of so many celebrations for more decades than most of us care to count. Wishing happy trails to you, Luschers. I look forward to seeing what you have up next," said Fort Worth food writer June Naylor Harris in a Facebook post.

The closing is of course sad for the Luschers, but they're also excited for a new chapter and to spend more time with their daughter.

"Obviously this is super bittersweet, and it's a mixed emotion situation," Courtney says. "But as abrupt as it seems to the public, it's something that we've looked at from a million different ways. And ultimately, we decided to do what was best for the team. And for ourselves and our family," she says, adding that they were at a "crossroads" with their lease.

"And frankly, I'm yearning to spend more time with my kid, who, in a few years, will be out of the house," she adds. "She was a part of our conversation, too."

Courtney is looking at this as a "super exciting time" for her, and "Brian's got lots of things in the works that he's super excited about, too," she says. "I'll find something else that gave me the same feeling as The Grape gave me all these years."

The Grape, 2808 Greenville Ave., Dallas.

With additional reporting by Tina Danze.