Last remaining On the Border location in Colorado Springs closes
On the Border Mexican Grill & Cantina is no more in Colorado Springs.
The brand’s last remaining Springs location at 5832 Barnes Road has permanently closed.
“Thank you for your support over the years. This location is permanently closed. It has truly been our pleasure to serve this community,” a sign taped to the restaurant’s front doors, observed ahead of usual operating hours on Monday morning, alerted customers to the closure.
It was unclear when exactly the restaurant closed, though a recent community post on a local foodies Facebook page indicated the location shut its doors for good by the end of last week.
On the Border’s Texas-based parent company, Pappas Restaurants Inc., did not respond to emailed questions from The Gazette.
Other Colorado Springs locations, at 7695 N. Academy Blvd. just south of Briargate Boulevard, and at 2190 Southgate Road in the Broadmoor Towne Center, had also previously closed.
A list of On the Border’s Colorado locations on its website Tuesday afternoon showed one remaining in the state, at the Hilton Garden Inn Denver Airport hotel at 16475 E. 40th Circle in Aurora.
On the Border debuted in Dallas in October 1982 and merged into American hospitality company Brinker International in 1994. It went through several acquisitions by private equity firms between 2010-2014 and was most recently owned by Argonne Capital Group.
On the Border filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in March 2025, closing 77 locations across 24 states. The brand cited inflation, rising interest costs and low demand as factors.
In May of that year, Pappas Restaurants announced it would purchase On the Border after a successful auction bid. Pappas’ portfolio includes brands like Pappadeaux Seafood Kitchen, Pappasito’s Cantina, Pappas Bros. Steakhouse, Pappas Bar-B-Q, Pappas Burger and Yiayia’s Green Kitchen.
Under Pappas ownership, On the Border saw a sweeping overhaul of its menu. The Pappas team enhanced food quality, strengthened operations and elevated the overall guest experience, the company said in a news release earlier this month.
Pappas did not indicate in the release that it planned to close additional On the Border locations across the U.S., but several have recently shuttered, including in Kansas, New Jersey and Florida, according to local news reports.
According to its website, On the Border has 42 locations in 16 states, mostly in Texas.