Why Andrés Carne de Res in Medellín Was Sealed Shut in June 2026

If you showed up to Andrés Carne de Res in El Poblado between June 9 and June 18, 2026, you found the doors sealed and an official notice from the Antioquia government plastered on the entrance. The closure of one of Medellín’s most recognizable restaurant brands made national headlines—and left a lot of expats and visitors wondering what exactly happened. Here is the full story, sourced from Colombian press coverage.

What Happened: Antioquia Tax Authorities Seal the El Poblado Location

On June 9, 2026, agents from Antioquia’s Department of Finance (Secretaría de Hacienda de Antioquia) physically sealed the Andrés Carne de Res restaurant in the El Poblado neighborhood of Medellín, according to El Tiempo. The measure ordered the restaurant to remain closed for ten days—through June 18, 2026.

The action was the execution of an administrative resolution issued years earlier. The restaurant did not close voluntarily.

The Root Cause: One Bottle of Frangelico

The origin of the administrative case traces back to a routine liquor-inventory inspection in 2017, when authorities found a single bottle of Frangelico—an Italian hazelnut liqueur—bearing a fiscal tax stamp from the Gobernación de Cundinamarca rather than Antioquia’s own tax stamp, according to Pulzo and El Colombiano.

In Colombia, each department collects its own liquor taxes; a bottle stamped for one department cannot legally be sold in another. Antioquia’s tax authority classified the Frangelico bottle as a liquor-control irregularity under regional fiscal law.

The restaurant’s management characterized the finding as a logistical error—not systematic smuggling or deliberate tax evasion—but that classification did not stop the administrative process from moving forward.

A Seven-Year Administrative Process

What followed was a slow-moving bureaucratic timeline spanning nearly a decade, as reported by Hora 13 Noticias:

• October 2019: Antioquia’s Finance Department formally issued a pliego de cargos (charges document) against the establishment.
• July 2021: A resolution was issued ordering a ten-day temporary closure as the administrative sanction.
• June 9, 2026: Authorities physically executed the sealing—nearly five years after the resolution was signed.

Andrés Medellín’s legal team stated publicly that the restaurant had no prior formal notification of the 2021 resolution before the doors were sealed in 2026. According to Portafolio, the company only learned of the sanction on the morning agents arrived to execute it.

The Company’s Legal Response

Andrés Carne de Res filed tutela actions—Colombia’s constitutional mechanism for urgent protection of fundamental rights—arguing that the lack of proper legal notification violated its right to due process, according to El Colombiano.

The company stated its goal was to resolve the situation and reopen before the June 18 deadline. Under Colombian procedural law, a tutela can result in a judge suspending an administrative sanction while due-process claims are reviewed—though outcomes vary by case.

A spokesperson cited in national media said the brand has “complied with all applicable regulations,” echoing language the company used earlier in 2026 when other Andrés locations faced separate regulatory actions from the Superintendencia de Industria y Comercio (SIC) related to electrical and gas installations at its Chía and Bogotá sites.

Where Things Stand Now

As of the scheduled end-date of the sealing (June 18, 2026), the closure window has passed. Whether the restaurant reopened on schedule or whether the tutela proceedings altered the timeline was not confirmed in sources available at the time of writing. Visitors should verify current operating status directly with the restaurant before making plans.

The episode is a reminder that Colombia’s layered regulatory environment—where departmental liquor taxes, national consumer protection agencies, and labor authorities can each act independently—creates real operational complexity for large restaurant groups operating across multiple cities.

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For the latest on Medellín’s dining landscape, see our July 2026 restaurant news roundup, which covers new openings including a World’s 50 Best chef debuting in Provenza. If you’re planning where to eat in El Poblado in the meantime, our guide to the best brunch spots in El Poblado is a solid starting point.