After 15 years, Black Rabbit owner says goodbye

LAKEVILLE — After 15 years running the Black Rabbit Bar & Grille, Kendra Chapman decided it was time to stop working 70-hour weeks and spend more time with her family. The restaurant at 2 Ethan Allen St. closed Sunday, Nov. 8, following a busy final week filled with farewells from longtime customers. She announced the Nov. 8 closing date on Oct. 31. Chapman, 56, said the workload had been weighing on her for some time. After more than 27 years in the restaurant business, she said she was exhausted. “I’m tired,” she said. “The restaurant business is hard.” The final week brought an outpouring of support — and enough customers to prompt a joke from one of her kitchen staff: “Are they trying to support you or kill you?” “It was a joke but honestly summed it up in a nutshell,” Chapman said. Chapman thanked her patrons for their loyalty over the years and for reaching out to her when word got out she was closing.

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