June 12th, 2026
A Quad-Cities Classic Closing: Lunardi’s Italian Restaurant Shutting Its Doors
For almost four decades, Lunardi’s Italian Restaurant in Davenport has been serving up savory dishes and great service, but this weekend, the locally-owned spot will shut its doors for the last time.
The restaurant announced its abrupt departure on social media, due to bureaucratic mistakes by the city and state leading to their unplanned and rushed closing after being dedicated to the area and providing jobs, tax dollars and excellent food and service to local residents for several decades.
The announcement read:
“After 37 incredible years of family ownership, memories, and authentic Italian cooking, we have been forced to make the sudden decision to permanently close our doors.
Our final day of operations will now be this Sunday June 14th, or until we run out of product.
On June 5th, 1989, Terry Lunardi first opened these doors with a dream to bring true, made-from-scratch Italian food. Paul (Terry’s nephew) was right there beside him on day one. Over nearly four decades, Paul poured his life into this restaurant, proudly working his way up from dishwasher, to cook, to manager, and eventually taking over the family legacy as full owner in 2009.
While our love for our food and our guests has never changed, the current economic climate—including skyrocketing food costs and unprecedented operational hurdles—has made running a small business incredibly difficult. We were planning a full summer run through July 26th to step into our well-deserved retirement, focus on our personal health, and step back from the grind.
However, life has given us a sudden change of plans. A major third-party insurance clerical error during the state’s new computer database migration automatically cancelled our liquor license in error. Because our local city council cannot meet to resolve this state glitch until July, we are legally unable to serve our wine or spirits. An authentic Lunardi’s experience requires our highest standards of hospitality. Paul refuses to compromise the legacy his uncle built, the proud standards he has personally maintained as owner for the past 17 years, or the dining experience you deserve by running a compromised, dry kitchen for the next six weeks. We have decided to go out on our own terms, with our pride completely intact. We refuse to quietly slip away without thanking the loyal customers who became our extended family, and the dedicated staff members who stood by us through thick and thin.
Even though our timeline was cut short by corporate paperwork, we want to give everyone one final chance to come celebrate this legacy with us, share stories, and enjoy their favorite dishes this weekend.
Our final hours will be Friday and Saturday 4-9pm and Sunday from 4-8 pm, sooner if we run out of product.
Thank you for letting our family serve yours since 1989. Let’s pack the dining room, finish this beautiful chapter strong, and make these last days unforgettable!
Sincerely,
Paul & Brooke Lunardi & Staff”
We at QuadCities.com thank the Lunardi family for their years of great food and service, and all the memories they’ve brought to Quad-Citians, including many of us working here at QuadCities.com!
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