Avanti's will permanently cease operations at its West Main Street location later this month.
The restaurant will close at the end of business on April 9.
Avanti's has operated at 1301 W. Main since 1989. The first Avanti's restaurant opened across the street in 1966.
In a statement, Avanti's owner and CEO Stefan Zeller blamed traffic congestion at Main and University, changing habits of dining consumers due to the pandemic, and "demographic and population shifts in the West Bluff area" for making the location no longer viable.
The restaurants on Rockwood and Knoxville will return to seven-day service after the W. Main location shuts down. Avanti's restaurants throughout Peoria and Tazewell counties have been closed on certain days of the week since the onset of the pandemic, with the Italian restaurant chain citing ongoing employee shortages for the shortened hours.
Zeller said all employees at the W. Main St. Avanti's were offered positions at one of the other Avanti's locations in the Tri-County area.
