Popular Mexican Restaurant in Middletown has Closed Again?

One of Middletown, New York's favorite places for Mexican food has apparently shut its doors due to complications with New York State but has something special planned for its loyal customers.

Back in November of 2023, we learned that after 40+ years the family that owns and operates one of Middletown's most familiar names in Mexican restaurants announced they were closing. El Bandido in Middletown, NY made the announcement on Facebook saying,

"El Bandido has come under hard times and unfortunately we will be closed until further notice. 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"

 

Closed or Open?

A few weeks after making the announcement we spoke to the Tello brothers, Tony & Angel and they explained why they were closing both their Middletown and Spring Valley, NY restaurants. They told us it had a lot to do with losing their father, "Sadly after his passing, we no longer had our identity, we had lots of debt accrue, and with the pandemic arriving shortly after we hit a very tough spot. After many months of trying to catch up, unfortunately, we were forced to close."

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The brothers went on to tell us that the closing was temporary and soon after they reopened the Middletown location under a new name.

New Mexican Restaurant in Middletown, New York

VIVA Bandido opened in late 2023 and as far as we can tell stayed open for a while but now it appears they have closed again. According to a recent post on the restaurant's Facebook page, they are currently closed posting, "Bandido as of now is closed due to complications with sales tax and issues with the state of NY." The post didn't go into details regarding its future at 536 E Main St, Middletown, NY but did announce that they would be doing something special this month.

Free Holiday Party in Middletown, NY

The Bandido family extended an invitation to the community inviting them to the restaurant on Sunday, December 15th for a FREE holiday event. They will be offering free food and drinks for their loyal customers, Santa will be making an appearance, so bring the family and celebrate the holiday and the memory of Bandido.