Update 9/10/19: Mexicue will take over the Meatball Shop’s space, according to Washington City Paper. As its name suggests, the restaurant specializes in mashing up Mexican and Southern cuisine.

Like The Meatball Shop, Mexicue is a New York-based chain eyeing 14th Street as its first storefront in the District. “As we started spending more and more time there, we became increasingly excited by all the cool, vibrant neighborhoods,” owner Thomas Kelly tells City Paper. The chain launched with a food truck in 2010 and has since grown to five locations in New York and Connecticut. The menu is packed with tacos, tostadas, bowls, nacho plates, and other shareable, customizable dishes.

When Mexicue opens—reportedly in October—expect such dishes as chorizo-heavy Mexican jambalaya, mac and cheese studded with poblano peppers, rice and beans bowls ladled with brisket chili, and cornbread French toast topped with local honey. Kelly tells City Paper some D.C.-specific cocktails and dishes are in the works, as well.

Original: Last fall, The Meatball Shop announced its arrival on 14th Street by proclaiming “Our balls have dropped!” Less than a year later, the New York import has served up its last ball. A representative confirmed to DCist that the restaurant near Logan Circle has closed.

Popville was the first to report that the restaurant had closed.

“We are so thankful to the D.C. community for welcoming us into their amazing and vibrant city. Unfortunately due to some challenges beyond our control, we have made the difficult decision to close this location,” Meatball Shop CEO Adam Rosenbaum said in a statement provided to DCist. “We still believe very strongly in the city of D.C. and look forward to returning to the District under better circumstances.”

According to Rosenbaum’s statement, the company moved almost all the 14th Street employees to “other jobs.” A representative told DCist via email that DCist that the District’s closure does not affect other Meatball Shop locations in New York.

The 14th Street Meatball Shop—which took over the space formerly occupied by Cork—was the first restaurant outside of New York for the nearly 10-year-old chain. The menu specializes in meatballs, obviously, in beef, chicken, salmon, pork, or veggie options, and served swimming in sauce, atop pasta, alongside veggies, or in other customizable settings.

As their aforementioned announcement might suggest, the brand puts off-color humor in pretty much just the one vein up front: The bar was emblazoned with signs that read “#showusyourballs,” the menu offered a “Baller Plate” of various meatballs, and the bathroom doors were marked with cringe-inducing signs saying “Balls” and “No Balls.”

Around the opening, Rosenbaum told DCist that the team hoped 14th Street would be the first of many D.C.-area Meatball Shop locations. He said that as a “restaurant row,” the Logan Circle-adjacent strip was a natural first location for the region. “There are a lot of people in D.C., on 14th Street that are really interested in having a great meal, having great drinks, listening to great music, and just hanging out,” he said in October.

This is the latest closure on 14th Street after a busy summer. In June, Policy Lounge, Masa 14, and Drafting Table all shut their doors. Two of those spots are set to be replaced by out-of-towners just like Meatball Shop: Atlanta’s Gypsy Kitchen is coming for the Masa 14 storefront, and Vin Sur Vingt Wine Bar of New York will replace Drafting Table. And it’s not just food that’s feeling a shift—music venue and bar Black Cat downsized last fall and shop Home Rule closed its doors in March after 20 years.