Flatrock Coffee, Tea & More — a South Nashville community staple for almost five years — will cease operations on Saturday, May 25.
Located at 2640 Nolensville Road in the Woodbine area, the cafe is closing due to a major rent increase, the owners of the business tell the Scene.
Of note, the equipment related to the food and beverage business is for sale. Two part-time employees will be impacted by the closing. The closing represents the second of its type in the area this decade. Flatrock Café (an unrelated entity) opened in 2010 and closed shortly thereafter at 2624 Nolensville Road.
Karen Estevez-Gill, who owns Flatrock Coffee, Tea & More with husband Steve Gill, says the future rent would have been excessive for the mom-and-pop business.
“We were not given any notice that our rent was going to increase more than double,” she says.
Estevez-Gill said she and Steve decided to attempt to find a future place to reopen because the response from customers was so heartfelt.
“We have lived in this neighborhood 28 years,” says Estevez-Gill, adding that the cafe will reopen, if possible, within Woodbine.
Estevez-Gill thanked friends and neighbors who “we now consider family for supporting us over the years. We will miss seeing them on an almost daily basis. It is with much love and gratitude that we walk away from the coffee shop.”
Yuri Cunza, president and CEO of the Nashville Area Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, said Estevez-Gill and her husband provided a space for nonprofits to work, a neighborhood amenity that makes the closing doubly difficult. For example, the chamber uses the space for its annual Hispanic Heritage Month student mentorship program.
“This is the last place I want to see close," Cunza says. "Flatrock, to my understanding, is the only coffee/community venue in District 16 and it is the second Hispanic-owned business to close in the area [in] the last few weeks. The cafe will be missed and we hope it reopens nearby.”
