Photo by tedeytan

Shaw’s Tavern, the restaurant that recently opened on Florida Avenue NW but has been unable to serve alcohol, announced late Friday night that it would close its doors, reopening only after it secures a liquor license. From their Facebook page: “Shaw’s Tavern is closing its doors from Saturday 27th of August. We could not survive without a liquor license. We will re -open when we are allowed to serve alcohol. To all of our 936 plus loyal fans and 30 dedicated employees, we thank you for your amazing support and understanding.”

Head chef John Cochran commented on the post that he will no longer be affiliated with Shaw’s, which prompted another commenter to question whether the venue truly plans to reopen.

Shaw’s was cited for serving alcohol at a private pre-opening party (according to Cochran, it was a charity event for local victims of domestic violence) before the restaurant officially opened.

If you’re looking for more context, City Paper’s Chris Shott has a good read on the restaurant’s troubles with the city liquor regulators.