Longtime Lenexa restaurant abruptly closes 'indefinitely'

Popular Lenexa spot Panzon's Mexican Restaurant has closed, and its future is unclear.

A sign on the door this week says: "Due to unforseen [sic] circumstances, Panzon's is closed indefinitely. We would like to thank everyone for their years of patronage and apologize for the abrupt closing. Please be patient for a new future Panzon's and we will keep you posted."

The owner couldn't be reached for comment Tuesday.

The restaurant, in the Country Hill Shopping Center, featured an eclectic mix of artwork that owner Chuck Mahowald collected over the last five decades in his travels across the southwest and Mexico.

Panzon's originally opened in Old Town Lenexa in 1990 as a "homey old taproom serving familiar Mexican dishes in generous portions at an attractive price," according to a late 1994 review in The Kansas City Star, when the restaurant relocated to its current spot at 8710 Lackman Road.

It was last inspected on March 6, 2018, but only had six priority violations.

The property manager was surprised by the abrupt closing.

"It was quite a shock. We are kind of in the dark," said Rob Epstein, property manager for the center with Block & Co. Inc. Realtors. "If they could reopen that would be the best thing. They are kind of an institution out here."

This story was originally published March 20, 2018 at 3:46 PM with the headline "Longtime Lenexa restaurant abruptly closes 'indefinitely'."