Ruta del Vino Wine Bar Closes After 2-Year Run in Petworth

Ruta del Vino, the Petworth wine bar and restaurant that showcased grapes from across Latin America, closed this past weekend. According to its latest Facebook post, the neighborhood staple had plans to ring in its second anniversary on Saturday, November 10.

A tipster told Popville that Saturday was the final day of operations for Ruta del Vino. In an email to Eater, co-owner Justin Logan confirms the closure, writing that “business was down for us and it didn’t make sense for us to continue as we had been.”

Logan adds that his team is searching for someone to take over a lease that runs through 2025 with a 5-year option. Interested parties can contact rutadelvinodc@gmail.com. “It’s a turnkey spot at a fire sale price,” Logan writes.

Ruta del Vino shares a block on Upshur Street NW with two of Washington’s most celebrated restaurants, Himitsu and Timber Pizza Company. Logan owns Ruta del Vino with Jessica Logan (his wife) and Michelle Rodriguez.

Last year, Eater interviewed Justin Logan, a first-time restaurateur, about what he’d learned during his first year in business. He said at the time he wanted to better use analytics to avoid “white-knuckle squeezing to keep the restaurant running.”

In March, Ruta del Vino brought in a new chef in Wille Harner. In August, Eater named Ruta del Vino one of Washington’s 13 essential wine bars.

Since Ruta del Vino’s opening two years ago, competition in that area has increased with the additions of Maxwell Park in Shaw and Primrose in Brookland.

Update: November 13, 2018, 1:20 p.m.: This story was originally published earlier in the day. It has been updated to include Justin Logan’s response to Eater.

• Dagger – Ruta Del Vino Closes in Petworth after 2 Year Anniversary Celebration [Popville]
• Ruta del Vino Founder Discusses the Lessons Learned From Opening a Wine Bar [EDC]
• New Ruta del Vino Chef Brings More Seafood and Vegetables Into the Mix [EDC]
• D.C.’s 13 Essential Wine Bars [EDC]