LINCOLN PARK — Sarks in the Park, a Lincoln Park brunch spot once tangled up in legal matters with a famed Evanston breakfast spot, has closed.
The last day for Sarks in the Park, 444 W. Fullerton Parkway, was Tuesday, confirmed co-owner Eva Knapp, who bought the restaurant with her sister, Erin, in 2012.
"While we are saddened to close Sarks in the Park, we closed to pursue other opportunities that we felt would be more beneficial to our family," Eva Knapp said in a prepared statement.
Since opening in 2009, the owners of Sarks in the Park have been battling with the owners of Sarkis Cafe, an Evanston staple since 1965.
The first year Sarks in the Park opened, Sarkis Cafe owners wrote the city eatery a letter, demanding it drop the Sark name and take signature items, including the Loretta sandwich, off the menu.
Three years later, Sarkis Cafe filed a lawsuit against Sarks in the Park, arguing the city eatery was unfairly trading on its name and menu.
The lawsuit also claimed negative Yelp reviews for Sarks in the Park by users who thought the two businesses were related put a bad light on the Evanston Sarkis.
Eva Knapp said the legal trouble had "nothing to do with the closure."
She said closing the restaurant was the natural choice for her family. She has decided to pursue a career in real estate and her sister, Erin, is attending veterinary school, she said.
"While we will miss our many customers who made the experience of running a restaurant so rewarding, we felt this was the right decision for our family," she wrote in a statement.
The owners of Sarkis Cafe were not immediately available to comment on the closure.
For more neighborhood news, listen to DNAinfo Radio here:
