After 15 years in downtown Elon, The Root Trackside is closing Oct. 30. The restaurant announced the news via social media post Sept. 3. Elon alums Lynn Terrell ’97 and Chris Brumbaugh ’97, who own The Root, said the closing is bittersweet.
“We’re sad, and we won’t pretend otherwise,” they wrote. “But we’re also proud — we built something meaningful. If you’ve seen a bunch of these bittersweet posts from small, independent spots lately, the industry and economy have been putting up a fight. We’ve been watching those changes for years and did everything we could to adapt along the way. We think we still came out ahead.”
The post had more than 200 likes and 90 comments after just an hour. Terrell and Brumbaugh, who also own Tangent Eat + Bar in downtown Elon, encouraged customers to visit the restaurant in the next few weeks of their “Grand Closing.”
“Get your favorite dish one more time,” they wrote in the social media post. “Help us close out these 15 years in a style worthy of our blood, sweat, tears, laughter, friendships, and memories. We’ll be crying in the shed, then walking into the dining room with our brave faces on — if you know, you know.”