Republican Rep. Lauren Boebert’s gun-themed cafe “Shooters Grill” in Rifle, Colorado, has closed its doors.
The cafe, where servers were encouraged to openly carry firearms, closed on Sunday after the building’s landlord decided to not renew the lease.
Boebert tweeted a statement from her and her husband on Thursday and said the landlord’s decision was a business decision and not politically motivated.
Thank you to everyone who believes in what Shooters Grill has always stood for! We love you! pic.twitter.com/krromjMVG3
— Lauren Boebert (@laurenboebert) July 14, 2022
In the statement, Boebert said never in their “wildest dreams” did they believe the small restaurant would become a “national and international symbol for the Second Amendment.”
Boebert began her campaign for Congress in 2019 after telling then-Democrat presidential candidate Beto O’Rourke that he would not be taking away her guns, reported The New York Times.
“I was one of the gun-owning Americans who heard you speak regarding your ‘Hell yes, I’m going to take your AR-15s and AK-47s,’” she said to O’Rourke at the time. “Well, I’m here to say hell no, you’re not.’”
The lease for the congresswoman’s campaign office, which is located next to Shooters, will also not be renewed.
According to the menu on the company’s Facebook page, the cafe served American food with items like “Shotgun burrito,” “Rifle Toast” and “Guac Nine” burgers.
The restaurant first opened in 2013 but the gun theme came later. Reports of a man dying after being beaten near the cafe prompted employees to ask if they could openly carry weapons at work. It was later discovered the man died from a methamphetamine overdose, according to the Post Independent.
Boebert and her husband plan to continue the brand but said they would “scale it back” by maybe creating a coffee shop with pastries, breakfast sandwiches and merchandise.
In June, the freshman congresswoman won the Colorado Republican primary election in her bid for a second term. Her primary win comes after she said she is “tired of this separation of church and state junk” while speaking at a worship service.
Boebert will continue on to the November general election and face Democratic candidate Adam Frisch, a former Aspen council member.