1 week Ago By [email protected] (William Williams)
American cuisine restaurant, cocktail bar and live music venue Sambuca — known for its jazzy ambiance and lively nighttime crowd — has ceased operations in the Gulch after a 20-year run. Sambuca, which operated at 601 12th Ave. S.
, also offered private space for rent related to wedding and corporate events. The owners of the Texas-based Sambuca parent company announced the closing via social media , citing challenges including "the lingering impacts of COVID." The downtown Houston Sambuca closed in December 2024.
Brother and sister Kim Forsythe and Holly Forsythe envisioned a modern-day supper club as early as 1991, eventually opening the first Sambuca in Dallas’ Deep Ellum neighborhood. They went on to open Sambuca locations in Houston, Denver and Atlanta, with Nashville being the sixth at the time of its starting of operations in 2005 . “The lingering impacts of COVID and the rising cost of doing business have created a perfect storm that we could not weather," Sambuca officials posted on Facebook.
"Though we fought with everything we had to keep our doors open, we're choosing to close this chapter with gratitude, carrying countless memories over the past 20 years.” Nashville-based MarketStreet Enterprises owns the building from which Sambuca operated. The development company owns various Gulch structures and has developed multiple sites within the downtown district.
A version of this article was first published by our sister publication, the Nashville Post..
