We can all blame the COVID pandemic for bringing about the end of an era for several of our favorite Yakima-area restaurant businesses.

8 Devastating Foodie Losses in 2020

Carousel Restaurant

Carousel Restaurant was a fancy, chi-chi place where one could get a whole roasted duck and other distinct French cuisine. The place was perfect for romantic dates or a classy night out on the town. The pandemic made it nearly impossible for the owner to keep the doors open because customers were rightly staying home during the quarantine. Carousel is GONE!

Pho King Crab

Half the fun of dining at Pho King Crab was just saying the name because we are very childish, but the other half of the fun was the delicious food. During the pandemic, the owner of this restaurant decided to switch up the menu and the renamed the new restaurant Mi Ma Dim Sum.

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Pita Pit

Pita Pit is a favorite hangout in the college town of Ellensburg and when the owners opened a franchise in downtown Yakima, many foodies were delighted. I even had one of their Pit cards. I had downloaded the app and everything. I will never get those "points" back! Oh well, you win some, you lose some. Thanks to COVID-19, the Pita Pit is GONE!

Santiago's Gourmet Mexican Restaurant

Santiago's had a good chicken burrito with rice, black beans, and salsa. That's what I always ordered from them when I ate there. I mostly went for the drinks and the authentic Mexican themed bar. After being in that location for decades, the quarantine destroyed business for the cantina. Santiago's Gourmet Mexican Restaurant is GONE!

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Gilbert Cellars Downtown Yakima

I remember the first time I was lucky enough to step foot inside Gilbert Cellars: It was elegant, swanky, and inviting. I have met many friends there for a fun "grown-up" night on the town. It almost felt like you were in a metropolitan city when you were inside Gilbert Cellars, even in the basement. Sadly, Gilbert Cellars is GONE!

Obento House

I never got to dine at Obento House but I've often heard great things about it. If it wasn't the closure of Astria Regional Hospital that killed the business, it was bound to be the pandemic shutdown. Bye-bye, Obento House, you are GONE!

Jack-Sons Sports Bar and Clubhouse Lounge

It was truly the end of an era when Jack-Sons closed down. Quite shocking news, if you ask me. It used to be one of the only places in the Yakima area to go club dancing. I have been a patron many times, including my favorite memories of "Rainier Bible Study" which we affectionately nicknamed the night's the bar sold Rainier cans of beer for a quarter, YES, A WHOLE QUARTER! Years later, I would end up cutting my teeth as a club DJ there. That gig actually helped sustain me as a single mom during the first couple of years of my child's life. Good times, Jack-Sons, but you are now GONE!

Gasperetti's Restaurant and G Spot Bar

No one who's ever dined inside Gasperetti's will forget the rosemary fries, champagne cocktails, Lobster salad, onion rings, risotto, or the calamari rings. Anniversaries, birthday parties, and quite a few "divorce parties" have been celebrated in this hometown restaurant that will be missed for decades to come. Arrivederci, Gasperetti's and G Spot Bar, you are GONE!

Check out this great memory of the Gasperetti's highly entertaining annual "Yakima Cabaret" show, featuring restaurant owner, John Gasperetti, famed madame of Yakima, Melissa Labberton, and the multi-talented musician, Bart Roderick.