The Farmacy’s sudden closure leaves employees without pay as owners focus on new California project

After a decade as a brunch staple in Albuquerque’s Nob Hill, The Farmacy permanently closed its doors in mid-October. However, for many employees, the abrupt shutdown left more questions than answers.

The announcement, made via Facebook on October 15 by owners Mary Hammack and Jacob Elliot, came as a surprise to longtime customers. “We regret to announce that The Farmacy has permanently closed its doors,” the Facebook post read. “Thank you for all of your continued support thru good times and bad—Covid, break-ins, bursting water mains, to name a few!”

Behind the public farewell, however, staff say the closure was handled poorly and left them unpaid, uninformed, and frustrated.

Karah Lizotte, a former server at The Farmacy, said the closure wasn’t entirely surprising, but the way it unfolded was. “We all kind of had a feeling it was going to close once Jacob and Mary started working on opening [their new restaurant] in San Diego,” said Lizotte.

Dymond White, another former server at The Farmacy, said staff were told the restaurant would close for just one week due to low inventory, but that turned out not to be the case. “We were all just sitting in limbo, waiting to hear what was going on,” said White. “That’s when I saw the Facebook and Instagram post saying we were permanently closed.”

Lizotte echoed the frustration with how things unfolded. “We were told to expect a temporary closure, but they weren’t restocking anything, and by Sunday brunch, we were out of half the menu,” said Lizotte. 

The restaurant never reopened. By Wednesday, Lizotte learned of the permanent closure through a friend who sent her the social media post. “I jumped into our server groupchat and tagged Jacob: ‘Saw the social media post. When can we get our paychecks?’” said Lizotte. “He said he had tried to message us the night before, but none of us believed that.”

Former server at The Farmacy, Sophia Nuanez, confirmed that version of events. “We did find out about it officially from the social media post,” said Nuanez. “Later, Jacob sent us a message through our work app and claimed he had tried to message us earlier, but that it didn’t go through.”

Roughly 18 employees were left without jobs and without their final paychecks.

Staff were told that because the owners had filed for bankruptcy, they no longer had access to business accounts and could not pay employees directly. Former employees had to contact the owners’ lawyer and file wage claims through the New Mexico Department of Workforce Solutions. Court records reviewed by The Paper. show that the company officially declared bankruptcy on Wed. Oct. 15.

“We got in contact with the lawyer ourselves, filled out forms, and were given our final pay stubs so we know what we’re owed,” Lizotte said. “We’re just hoping it comes through. A lot of people are depending on that money.”

White said what upset her most wasn’t the money, but the lack of communication and respect. “I get that people make mistakes, but we knew Jacob. We expected the bare, basic bit of respect,” said White.

The community’s response to the closure was emotional, with many expressing heartbreak and gratitude, but for the former staff, the closure of the Farmacy has left a bitter aftertaste.

The Paper. reached out to the former owners multiple times but received no response.

After this story was published at The Paper. last week, it was shared online in San Diego where the owners Hammock and Elliott had already opened their new Farmacy shop.

Sandiegoville reported that “The restaurant’s Google listing has been flooded with one-star reviews, with commenters accusing the owners of abandoning their former staff.”

Although the owners failed to respond to multiple requests for comment to The Paper., Elliot did respond to Sandiegoville with a statement blaming local officials there for years of delays which, he says, required them to file “emergency bankruptcy.” Eliot did not say why they had not communicated the closure to employees before the filing.

In an emailed statement to SanDiegoVille, Chef Jacob Elliot clarified that the bankruptcy applies only to the Albuquerque LLC, which he says is a legally separate entity from the San Diego restaurant.

“Albuquerque restaurant The Farmacy Coffee Shop LLC filed for emergency bankruptcy,” Elliot explained. “This is a separate LLC with a different ownership structure from the San Diego location known as The Farmacy.”

Elliot said the filing occurred mid-payroll cycle, preventing him from legally issuing checks to employees.

“My bankruptcy attorneys informed me that I could not legally issue checks for that pay period,” he said. “The bankruptcy court assigned a third-party trustee who now controls any and all of the LLC’s assets. To distribute funds on our own would be illegal. We made sure every employee received the necessary documents and information to file claims.”

Elliot added that the decision to close was made abruptly due to financial strain caused by delayed permitting in San Diego and declining sales in New Mexico.

“Our San Diego permitting process was severely mishandled by various city agencies, delaying our opening by nearly two years,” he said. “With no return on investment on a leased property in downtown San Diego, our funds were rapidly depleting. We had hoped to run both locations in tandem, but it very suddenly became clear the Albuquerque business was no longer financially viable.”

The Farmacy’s sudden closure leaves employees without pay as owners focus on new California project is a story from The Paper.. Publishing from New Mexico’s largest city, The Paper is your source for local, independent news, covering politics, arts, culture, and events.