Three years after opening El Chupacabra, a restaurant and bar on
Phinney Ridge, owners James Hardy and Aaron Wright are locked in a
brutal legal battle over the fate of the business. Hardy and Wright are
each struggling to gain control of the restaurant. Both have sought
protection orders against each other. Meanwhile, both partners are
working to open other businesses on the side.
This is Hardy and Wright’s first business together. The two were
roommates in San Francisco before Hardy moved to Seattle and opened the
Storeroom Tavern on Eastlake. The Storeroom closed in 2001, and three
years later, Hardy and Wright went on to open El Chupacabra.
On May 2, Hardy and Wright filed antiharassment orders against each
other in King County Superior Court. Although the orders never went
into effect—King County Commissioner Bruce Gardiner quashed the
requests, saying that a business dispute was not grounds for a
protection order—they do offer a number of revealing details
about the feud.
Hardy’s filing is brief. He claims Wright removed property and stole
mail from his apartment above El Chupacabra last September.
Additionally, Hardy’s filing claims Wright “repeatedly” changed the
locks and put up plywood on Hardy’s front door to try to keep him out
of his own apartment. Finally, Hardy says Wright called police on May 1
and told them Hardy was breaking into the apartment.
Wright’s filing, meanwhile, contains a long list of allegations
against his business partner. Wright claims that Hardy stole more than
$10,000 from the business, and that Hardy’s tenancy in the building,
where he’s lived for nearly three years, caused “emotional distress”
among the staff. However, one staff member at El Chupacabra,
interviewed at the restaurant, said employees weren’t aware of any
problems at the business and had never seen the owners fight. In his
court filing, Wright also says Hardy hasn’t been involved in managing
the restaurant in over a year. However, when The Stranger contacted Hardy, he said he was busy updating the restaurant’s computer
system.
Complicating the rift between Hardy and Wright, both men are working
to open their own restaurants. While Hardy was not specific about his
plans, Wright recently filed for a liquor license for his new
restaurant, The Chupa—which translates, literally, to “the
suck.”
Citing ongoing legal issues, Wright declined to comment for this
story, although he did acknowledge that he was trying to buy out
Hardy’s half of the business. David Osgood, El Chupacabra’s attorney,
wouldn’t comment on any aspect of the case.
Wright’s new business partner, James Newell—owner of Sal’s
Barbershop on Capitol Hill—says he found the new location, at 129
Belmont Avenue East, last December. “I’m putting up [80 percent of] the
money and doing the build-out,” Newell says. Since construction at The
Chupa got underway, though, Newell says he’s had his own disagreements
with Wright—especially over the name.
“I couldn’t figure out why he wants to call it that. It’s not
totally up to him,” Newell says. Additionally, Newell says he has heard
rumors about Wright’s falling-out with Hardy, but hasn’t been able to
get his partner to open up about the situation.
“He won’t tell me anything, and I’ve heard things that really bother
me,” Newell says. “I’m at the point where I’m not sure that I want to
be involved in a business with him. I’m starting to get really worried
about the situation.”
Because of the legal dispute between El Chupa-
cabra’s owners,
Hardy would not directly address the accusations in Wright’s filing,
although he did say that he’s hoping to acquire the restaurant. For
now, Hardy says he’s avoiding talking to Wright, and may not do it
until they’re in court. “We don’t usually talk; we text,” Hardy says.
“It just gets ugly real fast.”
Right now, Hardy and Wright are both hoping to get a court to force
a sale. Hardy says he and Wright will meet with a mediator in the next
few weeks. Although El Chupa-cabra isn’t likely to close, it remains
unclear who will be managing the restaurant in the future. 
