City Park Mexican restaurant to close after 13 years

Erin Udell, Fort Collins Coloradoan
·2 min read

After 13 years running Lupita's Mexican Restaurant with his family, Ernesto Becerra is getting ready to say goodbye to the one that's formed within the eatery's walls.

Lupita's, 1720 W. Mulberry St., will close Feb. 24, Ernesto said. After more than a decade, the decision was a bittersweet one for Ernesto and his family.

"I'm going to miss the relationships I have with my customers," he said while sitting at a small table in the restaurant's cozy dining room overlooking City Park late last week.

Ernesto and Martina Becerra opened Lupita's in 2010, following Martina's longtime dream of having her own restaurant. They named it after Martina's mother and have run it as a family with daughters Vanessa and Nicole Becerra and son-in-law Jesus Varela.

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They later opened a Lupita's in Greeley around 2014 and a Berthoud restaurant in 2020. The Greeley restaurant closed in 2016 and the Berthoud Lupita's shuttered later in 2020 due to effects of the pandemic, Vanessa said.

Lupita's flagship location had a lot thrown at it in recent years, starting with the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, a fire at the gelato shop next door that July and construction on West Mulberry Street that hampered access to the eatery throughout the summer of 2022.

"People always found ways to support us," Vanessa said, noting that when the pandemic hit, customers kept showing up for takeout.

Even when the 2022 roadwork shut down access to the restaurant, regulars parked on nearby streets and walked to Lupita's, according to Vanessa.

"The community is what kept us open," she said.

After weathering the curveballs of the past few years, Ernesto said business at Lupita's has been good. But after 13 years, their lease is up, and he and Martina are ready to ease into retirement.

Vanessa Becerra takes a customer's order at Lupita's Mexican Restaurant on Wednesday. After 13 years overlooking City Park, Lupita's will be closing its doors in late February.
Vanessa Becerra takes a customer's order at Lupita's Mexican Restaurant on Wednesday. After 13 years overlooking City Park, Lupita's will be closing its doors in late February.

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"It's the right time," he said.

Still, the prospect of saying goodbye to all the friendships forged over Lupita's beloved breakfast burritos and plates of menudo — a Saturday morning special that draws diners from as far as Wyoming — is hard for Ernesto.

"(The customers) are sad. They're going to miss us ... our food ... our friendship," he said, choking up. "They've become like family."

This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: Fort Collins restaurants: Lupita's says its goodbyes after 13 years