LOS ANGELES -- Mariachi fans will gather at the beloved La Fonda restaurant for the last time on Sunday.

La Fonda's owner, Nati Cano, said today "many hearts are broken" that the restaurant is closing after more than three decades of hosting world class mariachi music at the landmark restaurant.

Cano, 74, welcomed guests Sunday for a series of final performances.

"Some people are crying," said Cano, who founded the restaurant's popular house band, Mariachi Los Camperos. "We've been here for almost 40 years and people remember."

The restaurant has showcased famous and fledgling mariachi acts since opening in 1969. Faithful fans of the restaurant have turned out in force to say goodbye, selling out the band's final shows.

"We're going to have four shows," said Cano. "The last show will go until 12:30 and then 30 minutes to say goodbye."

The closing will also be hard on the staff, many of whom have been with the restaurant for decades.

"Here we're family," said Cano. "The waiters, cooks, dancers, bartenders -- everybody. Most people have been here for more than 20 years."

La Fonda's closing comes after an unsuccessful legal battle against eviction, which started several years ago when the building was sold to new owners.

Cano said he's spent "half his life" at the restaurant on Wilshire Boulevard, but made the decision to pack up and leave after his rent went up three times the current rate.

"They knew what we had and they want it," he said.

Undaunted, Cano pledged to reopen in a new location in downtown Los Angeles.

"I can't say exactly where, but next year we're going to open another place downtown," he said.