A new restaurant is preparing to open its doors to customers after extensive renovation caught the Chapel Hill public’s attention.

‘Ay Por Dios!’, which is a Mexican Bistro focused on authentic Mexican recipes, announced on its Instagram page that it plans to hold a grand opening for the business on Thursday, September 28.

The restaurant is the latest to operate in 431 West Franklin Street, which is home to several locally-owned businesses as part of The Courtyard development. ‘Ay Por Dios!’ has spent more than a year preparing and overhauling its unit, which is on the corner of West Franklin and South Roberson streets. Previously, the space was home to Kipos Greek Taverna for seven years until it moved to Eastgate Crossing in Chapel Hill at the end of 2020.

‘Ay Por Dios!’ is set to become the latest restaurant offering along West Franklin Street in Chapel Hill.

‘Ay Por Dios!’ is owned and operated by Edy Barahona, who is no stranger to the Chapel Hill restaurant scene. He also owns Kahlovera Mexican Bar & Grill in Meadowmont Village. But as Barahona told the Daily Tar Heel in January, his staff at ‘Ay Por Dios!’ are trained by chefs from Mexico and will offer dishes made-from-scratch that he ate in the city of Oaxaca, Mexico — as well as a variety of other styles of food. Miguel Rebolledo will serve as the executive chef for the restaurant.

While ‘Ay Por Dios!’ is expected to be a sit-down restaurant for all ages, the style of the interior is expected to be popular for social media users, with bright colors, vibrant artwork, neon light fixtures, and funky styling being incorporated throughout. The bistro also will boast extensive patio seating — which was part of the long renovation process.

More details on the September 28 grand opening are expected to be shared ahead of the opening date, but the website for ‘Ay Por Dios!’ lists its initial hours as being from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.

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