Gordy’s Sichuan Cafe closes for good

Rising costs and dwindling patronage mean a longtime South Hill favorite is shuttering.

“I’m devastated,” Gordy’s Sichuan Café owner Leigh Riendeau said. “I want this to work. I did everything I possibly could.”

Facing these pressures, Gordy’s closed its dining room early last year and switched to take-out only. A sudden outpouring of support led the restaurant to reopen for dining a few weeks later. But that support didn’t last, and word never really got out that they had reopened.

“There’s a way to keep this going,” Riendeau said. “I don’t know what it is, and I’m not the person to figure that out.”

Founded by chef Gordon Crafts in the late 1990s, Riendeau took over the restaurant with two of the cafe’s chefs about a decade ago. The made-from-scratch Chinese restaurant used ingredients sourced from China.

A line of customers waiting to be seated stood outside the restaurant in the rain Friday afternoon. Inside, friends and family pitched in to help keep up.

Overcome with emotion, Riendeau said it was bittersweet.

“It’s amazing to see everyone come out, and to see the support, but it’s kind of sad,” Riendeau said. “I kind of want to kick them all. Like, where were you? If you guys would have been doing this all the time, we wouldn’t be where we’re at.”

Cost of product and paying staff a fair wage means the business isn’t breaking even, Riendeau said. She raised prices recently, but it didn’t help.

Despite her efforts, she said she feels like a failure.

“I failed the community, I failed the staff, and I failed this restaurant, and there’s nothing I can do to fix it,” Riendeau said. “I feel like I’ve done everything I could, but I failed.”

Still, looking back over the past 10 years, she said she enjoyed the entire experience and learned a lot. She doesn’t know what she’ll do next. Perhaps she’ll take the bar exam and become a lawyer. She’s done with owning a restaurant, though.

Gordy’s will stay open until it is out of food. If there is any left over Saturday, the restaurant will have a buffet to sell the rest.