Elgin's Solo restaurant suddenly closes

Solo Restaurant & Wine Bar in downtown Elgin closed this week after eight months in business.

Owner Renae Marin said she and husband Frank decided not to reopen the restaurant at 13 Douglas Ave. Tuesday after its regular day off Monday. "It was a tough decision, but it was the healthy thing for our family," she said.

The closure stemmed from a combination of factors, mainly personal reasons including the health of a close family member, Marin said.

The restaurant had a "slower start," which required the couple, who live in Barrington, to be in Elgin more than they thought, she said. That negatively affected her own design business, she said.

"It was turning, unfortunately, into more of a stress," she said. "It's very hard for us. We are very attached to the place and it has great potential."

Elgin Senior Planner Sarosh Saher said the city was told the gas was turned off at the restaurant sometime in the last few days. City inspectors tried to visit the eatery but it was closed, he said.

Marin said any issue with the gas company was not a major factor in the decision to close, which she and her husband had been mulling over for a while.

"There was a second meter we didn't know about," she said. "Apparently there are two different gas meters and we never got billed for that."

The couple had hoped the revitalization of downtown Elgin, touted by city officials, happened a little faster, Marin also said.

Elgin wasn't their first choice but they fell in love with the building, which is owned by the Steffen family, with whom she and her husband are friendly, she said. Fred Steffen, father of Elgin Councilman John Steffen, owns the building, she said.

Marin said she and her husband are working with a business broker to sell the restaurant. Any new owners could keep the name Solo, she said.