First reported 12/23/2009 1:07 p.m.
Pompei, the Italian restaurant at the corner of Harlem Avenue and Lake Street, closed its doors a week and a half ago without prior notice.
A letter on the regional chain’s corporate letterhead, addressed to “Dear guest” and signed “The Pompei Family,” is taped inside the rear glass door at 7215 Lake in River Forest.
“We regret to inform you that we closed this location on Sunday, Dec. 20, due to our inability to secure a long-term lease. We sincerely appreciate all the support you have given over the years, and hope to see you again at one of our six other locations throughout Chicagoland,” the letter reads.
The River Forest location has already been removed from Pompei’s Web site, as has its S. Dearborn location in Chicago. A call seeking comment from the corporate office was answered with a wish for a good day and then a hang-up.
Representatives from Mid-America Management, which handles leasing at River Forest Town Center, did not immediately return calls for comment.
The regional chain of Italian restaurants marked its 100th anniversary this year.
Its River Forest location made local news in November when police arrested its manager, Benjamin J. Denwood, for alleged theft of money from the restaurant. River Forest police said Denwood, 28, a Plainfield resident, was implicated after an auditor found $1,698 in cash missing from the restaurant’s safe, as well as another $1,531 shortage in two deposits.