Castillo said the business was having “operations issues.”
“I tried...to actually keep the business open because I really love it. That was my baby,” Castillo said.
The city of Middletown issued a statement regarding the closure: “While the city of Middletown is saddened at the closure of Primo, our commitment to the community remains unchanged. Our desire to support a unique and vibrant upscale dining experience within our downtown is as strong today as it was in 2022. We are already exploring the options and interests of new end-users for the elegant space, and we intend to utilize our investment into the fixtures and equipment as an attractive resource for the future tenants of the location.”
The city did not respond to questions on the status of the $219,200 loan and if there were plans to recoup any of those funds, but there was a resolution on the agenda for Tuesday’s council meeting to accept “certain collateral from Primo Middletown LLC as full satisfaction of debt.”
Pending lawsuits
Nelson Castillo is the named defendant in two pending Hamilton County Court of Common Pleas civil suits, one filed in December 2024 and one in July.
When asked if there was validity to the lawsuits, Castillo said, “It’s a lot of defamation...there’s always two sides when it’s a lawsuit.”
In the December 2024 lawsuit, Castillo is accused of misappropriating hundreds of thousands of dollars by Cincinnati Restaurant Holdings LLC, which owns Prime Cincinnati.
In response to the accusations, Castillo said, “How could it be true...when all the money was totally in the business. How could it be mismanaged when the business had been a success for 10 years?”
Nelson Castillo oversaw day-to-day operations and was the point of contact with vendors for Prime Cincinnati, according to the filing.
He managed Prime and his wife, Karoll, was a bookkeeper.
The Castillos were terminated from their leadership positions on Nov. 25 following an extensive investigation.
In the lawsuit, Cincinnati Restaurant Holdings LLC is asking for at least $25,000 in damages from the Castillos on eight issues.
Another lawsuit filed July 16 alleges Castillo represented himself to Desiree Harding that he was a “one-third owner” of Cincinnati Restaurant Holdings/Prime Cincinnati and “in the process of acquiring a greater interest.”
Harding agreed to invest in Primo Middletown if Castillo guaranteed repayment and secured the repayment with his ownership interest in CRH/Prime, according to the filing.
In June 2023, Castillo provided to Harding a promissory note in the amount of $100,000 with Primo Middletown as borrower and Harding as lender.
Interest payments due to Harding were either paid late or not paid at all, the lawsuit alleges. A payment due in January 2025 had allegedly not been paid as of the July filing date.
The filing alleges Castillo was “not now and has never been an owner of CRH/Prime.”
Castillo defended his statement by saying he was “treated” like a part owner for eight years.
He said the paperwork never “came through” and was not finalized with respects to ownership.
Harding is asking for hundreds of thousands of dollars in damages from Primo Middletown and Nelson Castillo.
Moorman, owner of the building leased to Primo, said they came to a “mutual agreement” to end the lease with Castillo.
The tenant had not been making full payments to Moorman since January.
Castillo said he tried to renegotiate the rent two times, which is why he hadn’t made full payments.
Moorman said though the restaurant didn’t work out, it was popular.
“It wasn’t like people weren’t going (to Primo),” she said.
Now, they are looking for new tenants at the space at 6 S. Broad St. and hope to place another restaurant there.
Loan from Middletown
In 2022, Paul Lolli, Middletown’s city manager at the time, called it a “calculated risk” to approve the $200,000 forgivable loan agreement with an upscale Cincinnati-based steak restaurant that wanted to expand into Middletown.
Council unanimously approved the emergency legislation to loan the money to the Castillos.
Primo was authorized to use the loan for expenses incurred to purchase furniture, fixtures, equipment and other similar tangible personal property to be used at the Middletown location.
Castillo said all furniture, fixtures and equipment were left at Primo, and the city has those investments in their possession.
He said he “didn’t want to cause any more damage, so everything is intact there.”
Castillo said he is no longer connected to Primo or any Cincinnati Restaurant Holdings, LLC restaurants.
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