Popular Tapas Eatery Loca Luna Evicted After Parking Lot Shootout

SANDY SPRINGS, GA – Popular Midtown tapas bar and grill and Loca Luna is being evicted by its Sandy Springs landlord Halperin Enterprises.

The news comes after an altercation that began inside the restaurant Sunday night spilled over into a violent shootout in the parking lot that left one man injured.

Reached by phone, Halperin spokeswoman Stacy Schuch said the company chose to terminate the restaurant’s lease “because of the (Sunday night) incident and others like it,” referring to a fatal shooting in October.

The restaurant’s website confirmed the news with an announcement appearing in a banner over its home page.

“Loca Luna is temporarily closed,” the site said. “New location coming soon!”

Atlanta Police were called to the eatery inside the Amsterdam Walk complex adjacent to Piedmont Park just before 11 p.m. Sunday night in response to reports of gunfire.

Two groups of women were said to have been arguing when men with both parties joined the fray and opened fire at one another, according to Channel 2 Action News.

Channel 2 posted video footage pulled from social media of the incident showing people running to hide behind cars as rapid-fire shots were heard and several cars sped away from the location.

Just four months earlier, a man was killed outside the restaurant, Atlanta Police said.

On the night of Oct. 25, Andres Munoz saw a teen leaning on his car as it was parked in front of Loca Luna and confronted him. The dispute escalated, and Munoz was shot to death. Police later arrested 18-year-old Brian Betancourt-Calderon and charged him with murder. He remains in the Fulton County Jail.

Halperin declined to say if there were immediate plans to replace Loca Luna in the Amsterdam retail complex.