Customers queue up at the Anna’s Taqueria inside MIT’s Stratton Student Center. (Photo: Anna’s Taqueria)

Anna’s Taqueria has closed its Massachusetts Institute of Technology location permanently, owner Betsy Kamio said Thursday.

It was an unwelcome closing forced by administrative management at the 84 Massachusetts Ave., Area II, Stratton Student Center, Kamio said.

“We are unable to run a business there within the administration’s new parameters. The space has its challenges and MIT has decided it isn’t a great fit for a restaurant; instead, it plans to turn the area into a student lounge,” Kamio said in an email.

Director of Campus Dining Mark Hayes told The Tech, the MIT student newspaper, that it was possible the eatery could return “at some point,” but that the school would look into “alternatives” for the space – which wouldn’t necessarily be for food.

The Anna’s location has been open since February 2005, and has been popular with students and faculty. The pandemic closed its doors in March 2020.

“As a locally owned business, it stings to have to close our doors, especially on a college campus where we’ve felt so much support and been a part of the community for so long,” Kamio said.

The chain has six other locations, with the closest ones being in Porter and Davis squares, and Kamio said she hopes to open more. “We are always on the lookout for the right spots for future locations,” she said.