Fort Sumner restaurant closing after 40 years

FORT SUMNER — After 40 years serving the people of Fort Sumner and beyond, a staple closed its doors Saturday.

Fred’s Restaurant owners Fred and Ron Gauna apologized to their clientele for closing “so soon,” but explained that “we simply do not have the business or crew to keep Fred’s running.”

“While the past few years have been difficult, these past few months have been even more daunting,” they said in a news release.

Ron Gauna, Fred’s son, explained that a “slow economy” and a meager work force were the primary causes of the closing.

“Back in my day, when we used to work, anybody who could work you could train. Now I felt like I was working for them, (rather than) them working for me,” he said.

Ron Gauna has worked at the family business — which served everything from New Mexican food to chicken fried steak — since 1978, when he was 13. In 1985, he began managing the restaurant.

The best part of Ron Gauna’s experience at Fred’s was working with his parents, he said, adding that he would miss cooking the most.

“The quality time of running a business with my parents was amazing,” he said.

Fred Gauna began his business as Fred’s Bar in 1968, according to Ron Gauna, and moved into the food service industry in 1978, after acquiring the Golden Ox Bar. In 1981, Fred’s Restaurant was established in its current location on Sumner Avenue.

Fred Gauna enjoyed the time he spent managing the restaurant with his wife, Mary, who passed away in 2014.

“My wife’s been gone three years now. It’s kind of rough. I enjoyed going there and doing whatever I need to do,” he said. “A lot of friends and people would come in from all the way in Clovis.”