(Photo courtesy of Pedro and Vinny’s)
The clock is running out on Pedro & Vinny’s Burritos. The longtime favorite of the downtown lunch scene will serve its final meal tomorrow, May 19.
Last week of Pedro and Vinnys on K street forever…..for this week I will be around the corner from my usual spot, ill be on K st not 15th
— PedroandVinnys (@PedroVinnys) May 15, 2017
The small cart at 15th and K St. gained cult status for its affordable, quick, and filling burritos. In an interview with the Washington Post, owner John Rider said he used to do $300 an hour in business, but that crowds declined in recent years as construction and larger chains crowded the K St. corridor.
“My wife and I have been trying to stay here — we really don’t want to leave, we have family here — but then I start looking around, and if I’m honest with myself, it’s like, this area doesn’t need another freakin’ food place,” Rider told the Post.
The Pedro & Vinny’s influence reached beyond D.C., too. It had licensed its name to a location at 2599 Columbia Pike in Arlington. That expired at the end of 2016—it’s now named Burrito Bros. And a cart operated by Rider’s daughter at 12th and F St. NW also shuttered due to sagging sales.
Fans of Pedro and Vinny’s will no doubt mourn the loss, but there are still two lunches left to try it out for the final (or first) time.