It’s been a wild ride in taco-related news these last few months. Bartaco announced its plans to open a location in Short Pump, RVA Mag took a tour through Southside for some of the best secret taco spots, and Don’t Look Back announced its return with two locations, one in Forest Hill, and the other in the former Triple location on West Broad Street, which just opened last weekend. And now, its sister restaurant in Carytown, Best Friends Forever, has announced it will close at the end of this week.
The burrito joint announced the news Tuesday afternoon that would close on Friday so many of the employees could return to their former jobs at Don’t Look Back.
“This Friday will be the last day of BFF. A major chunk of our staff has returned to Don’t Look Back & it really doesn’t make sense to continue with our burrito shop. And because DLB needs reinforcements, closing this weekend assures jobs for the rest of the BFF crew. We thank you for your tremendous support & hope to see your faces before we close our doors!”
Don’t Look Back was a longtime favorite for so many in Richmond with its chicken skin tacos and Frito pies, and locals were saddened when the Carytown restaurant caught fire last summer and forced it to shut down. (That was a dark day.) Luckily, owner Hamooda Shami opened his rotating pop-up restaurant Eleven Months in Carytown just a few months prior, which originally started out with the theme, “Best Friends Forever.” It was meant to be a restaurant with a different theme and menu that switched up every eleven months, but ultimately, Shami and Chef extraordinaire Nate Gutierrez decided to shutter the revolving pop-up and rebrand with the original theme Best Friends Forever last September. The restaurant has kept our bellies happy and full with giant sauce-drenched burritos and margaritas ever since.
This was definitely a popular spot in Carytown so it will be sad to see them go, but luckily its sister has risen from the ashes just in time to feed the people. Last Friday, Don’t Look Back finally emerged in the former Triple poolhall spot at 3306 W. Broad St. The restaurant is now decked out with some sweet murals courtesy of Mickael Broth and fans of the food can rejoice because it looks as though they’ve kept the same menu with $3 and $4 gringo and traditional style corn and flour tacos, enchiladas, taquitos, and chips and salsa of course. And not to fret longtime Richmonders or those who you used to frequent The Triple, they’ve left the iconic triangle sign up so you can’t miss it as you’re frantically driving down Broad Street dodging The Pulse buses to get to your delicious tacos.
Don’t Look Back also has plans for a location in Forest Hill, which is slated to be open sometime this summer. So long Best Friends Forever, we will miss your burritos. Hopefully, they will make an appearance on the new DLB menu.
Photo By: Best Friends Forever
