Tempe Tavern shuts down after 15 years, blames ‘smear campaign’ by officials

Tempe Tavern closed for good last week amid intense scrutiny by city and state authorities over several high-profile incidents.

An attorney for the longtime watering hole near Arizona State University on Apache Boulevard east of McClintock Drive said the business became unsustainable due to “countless smear campaigns.”

“Tempe Tavern has been forced to close after 15 years because of dramatically reduced business due to harassment by the Arizona Department of Liquor and the Tempe Police Department,” attorney Timothy La Sota told KTAR News 92.3 FM in an email Wednesday. “Tempe Tavern has endured countless media smears but not one single charge has been filed against it by the Department of Liquor.”

Why was Tempe Tavern under scrutiny?

La Sota said the decision to close on Sept. 16 was not related to a deadly collision that night involving a Tempe Tavern patron.

Investigators with the Arizona Department of Liquor Licenses and Control served a search warrant at the bar and determined that 21-year-old Zachary Robert Penrod had been drinking there before he allegedly caused a crash that killed one person and seriously injured two others on US 60 near Higley Road in Mesa.

Penrod, a Queen Creek resident, was arrested on suspicion of manslaughter, aggravated assault with a dangerous instrument and endangerment after being treated for minor injuries.

“Its decision to close was made at the beginning of September, well prior to the unfortunate accident on US 60 last week,” La Sota said of Tempe Tavern. “The closing date of Sept. 16 was chosen and staff and vendors were notified prior to that date.”

Tempe Tavern was already in regulators’ sights for previous incidents.

In November 2025, a Tempe Police Department underage drinking enforcement operation at Tempe Tavern resulted in 249 arrests in a single night. A previous raid in April 2025 reportedly yielded 173 arrests for underage drinking.

The November raid was conducted after investigators learned that a 19-year-old woman was drinking at the bar before she was involved in a fatal hit-and-run collision near Rural Road and Lemon Street in September 2025.

Tempe Tavern is pursuing a lawsuit, selling off assets

In February, the owners of Tempe Tavern filed a federal civil rights lawsuit accusing the city, its police chief and other officials of orchestrating a coordinated campaign of selective enforcement and harassment in an effort to shut down the bar.

La Sota said Wednesday his clients are still going forward with the lawsuit.

In the meantime, Tempe Tavern is holding a liquidation auction for restaurant equipment, decor and more, with over 330 items on the block. Bidding ends Thursday at noon.

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