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TacocaT said in a Facebook post that it has decided to shut down its South Essex Avenue restaurant after its final day on Sunday, July 7. The restaurant's Kitty Cat food truck will continue to operate for hire and appear at festivals.
The restaurant said after serving Cal-Mex food for five years, it made the hard decision "despite a record-breaking summer and extraordinary year-over-year growth."
"Anyone who knows us personally and has become part of our TacocaT family will be surprised by this sudden decision," owners Mike and Randi Talley posted. "The truth is: We are as nearly surprised as all of you. But a combination of factors that include inadequate staffing that is impossible to replace and train in the middle of summer, an expiring lease, and pure exhaustion are all part of this decision."
TacocaT started as a "small counter" inside The Exchange food court in nearby Linwood.
"Along the way, we served tens of thousands of tacos, burritos, nachos, tuna poke, cheesesteak eggrolls, Brussels sprouts, and our famous wings, which even took home some hardware at the annual Atlantic City Wing Fest," the Talleys wrote.
Fans of TacocaT mourned the end of the restaurant.
"You brought a great experience to that location and to the island with amazing food and service," one person commented on Facebook. "Extremely sad to hear of your closing the brick and mortar business but totally understand and respect the burnout! Thanks for a lot of great and memorable meals. Tacocat Margate was one of our favorites- wishing you nothing but the best."
"You will be missed but we look forward to seeing Kitty Cat in our neighborhood," another Facebook commenter wrote. "What you guys accomplished in such a short time is impressive to say the least. We look forward to your next chapter."
The Talleys said they're hoping to continue serving plenty of more tacos in the future.
"We aren’t saying goodbye," they wrote. "TacocaT will be around one way or another. Until we figure out what that means, the most important thing we can do is thank you for your loyalty, patronage, support, love, and excellent tastebuds."
TacocaT also said you can text 609-612-9900 for catering and food truck events from Kitty Cat.
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