"With a heavy heart we have decided to close Modest Rogers," the post reads.
We swooned over the Venezuelan spot last November. Thoughtful dishes were served in a cozy and intimate space, and we were excited to add the restaurant to our list of favorites. Chef Rodriguez is an El Centro culinary program alumnus with Nonna and Carbone's Fine Food and Wine on his resume. With the encouragement of his wife, Kathy, he started cooking food from his native Venezuela with a pop-up, Mo's Plancha, then got the opportunity to open this spot last year.
But the math didn't work. Rogers told The Dallas Morning News that even on busy nights, the small space couldn't turn enough profit to keep up with constant repairs. This summer he expanded to Saturday brunch from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. but that evidently wasn't enough.
The restaurant's Instagram page is full of posts about temporary closings (nine total), some for maintenance. In his final post, Rogers also cited challenges caused by the pandemic.
For now, he has no plans for another space, writing in the post "the future is unclear."
