Heart Attack Grill to close Las Vegas location

The Heart Attack Grill, the Las Vegas restaurant known for its calorie-loaded Bypass Burgers and hospital-themed servers, will close its doors.

The restaurant was founded by Jon Basso in Chandler, Arizona, in 2005. It moved to downtown Las Vegas in 2011.

It gained attention for its indulgent menu, which included massive burgers, fries cooked in pure lard, and unfiltered cigarettes. Other features included public spankings for customers who did not finish their meals and free food for patrons weighing more than 350 pounds.

In a statement on its website, the restaurant said it would not renew its long-term lease. It blamed major casinos and corporate greed for pricing average Americans out of the quintessential American experience of affordable indulgence in Las Vegas.

Our core value, Eat big and laugh loud, no longer fits a city peddling $40 artisanal avocado toast, the restaurant said. The honest, heavy-duty calories that built our reputation are now considered gauche by a city that has excluded the middle class and lost its swagger in the process.

The business also said it was proud of its 21-year impact on America’s waistline. The obesity rate has risen from 30% in 2005 to nearly 45% today, and we pat ourselves on the back for leading the charge, the statement said.

Speaking to The Daily Campus, Southern Methodist University’s newspaper, in 2011, Basso said the restaurant was intended as a commentary on America’s obesity epidemic. The basic idea is to make money, Basso said. But I’m doing my part to create a diner theater environment, which forces such philosophical introspection. He added, I provide a valid service — it’s that shock value.

The new announcement indicated the Heart Attack Grill does not intend to close permanently. We are seeking new opportunities to continue our high-calorie mission, the statement concluded. We look forward to finding new communities that still appreciate a Bypass Burger and the freedom to feast without apology.

The announcement drew mixed reactions online. I’m sad, I wanted to go to Heart Attack Grill so bad, said one commentator. I should’ve gone when I had the chance. In a world full of fake healthy marketing, at least they never lied about what the burger was doing to you, another user said. Even for Vegas, we found that place too sleazy, haha, wrote a third person.