Unfortunately, we have to say goodbye to some of our favorite stores in the country. Mind you, it is not only retail stores suffering from this period of economic difficulties but restaurants as well. The ones that we will mention on the list decided to close certain locations for various reasons. We are sad to see them go!
It Is Time To Say Goodbye To These Beloved American Restaurants
Pizza Hut
Pizza Hut opened its doors in 1958. There are around 18,431 branches in different parts of the globe right now. This Yum! Brands subsidiary started in Wichita, Kansas. In the United States, there are approximately 7,500 locations. Recently, Yum Brands said that it is planning to shut down 500 locations that fail to reach the quota. The process is going to be finalized in two years.
Pizza Hut
Luby’s
Luby started popular chains such as Koo Koo Roo, Luby’s, Cheeseburger in Paradise, and Fuddruckers. It started under the name Luby’s Cafeteria in 1947. At the moment, the actual restaurant has 83 branches but decided to close less successful branches. This was done as a way to improve company revenue by obtaining profits of $6.6 million.
Luby’s
Steak ‘N Shake
Founded in 1934, Steak ‘N Shake started out as a burger joint in Normal, Illinois. At the moment, it operates in America, the Middle East, and Southwest Europe. The company boasts 628 locations, 214 of which are franchised. Sadly, it is now looking for a franchise partner as it temporarily shuts down dozens of locations.
Steak ‘N Shake
O’Charley’s
O’Charley’s started in 1971. It now boasts almost 200 restaurants in the Midwest and the South. Sadly, it decided to shut down eight locations in a single day. Fidelity National is now thinking if it should keep the struggling company open.
O’Charley’s
Tim Hortons
Headquartered in Toronto, Tim Hortons is the biggest fast-food chain in Canada. It was founded by Jim Charade and Tim Horton. At first, they wanted to open a burger restaurant but eventually switched to donuts and coffee. Tom Horton’s Inc. used to operate 4,848 branches across the globe. However, it recently decided to downsize and shut down underperforming locations. Recently, it abruptly shut down four locations in Ohio.
Tim Hortons
Red Robin
The burger chain has its origins in Seattle, Washington and was founded in 1969. A decade later, its first franchised location was opened. The company now has 562 restaurants, of which 90 are franchises. Sadly, it saw a decline of 85.4% and chose to shutter ten locations. However, the company has rejected the suggestion of investors to close altogether.
Red Robin
HomeTown Buffet
HomeTown Buffet opened its doors in 1983. At its peak, the company had 250 restaurants. This Ovation Brands subsidiary has gone through a change in management when it was bought out by Food Management. The new change is not ideal. As proof of this claim, the company has already shut down more than 200 locations by August 2019.
HomeTown Buffet
McCormick & Schmick’s
After shutting down almost half of the locations, McCormick & Schick’s plans to shut down more by 2020. Headquartered in Portland, Oregon, the company is a subsidiary of Landry’s Inc. There are around forty locations in the United States and five more in Canada. If you look at its assets, equity, revenue, and net income, you can tell that it is not doing well. Landry’s has shut down a number of branches and moved its HQ to Texas.
McCormick & Schmick’s
Fuddruckers
There was a time when fans of crispy chicken fingers went to Fuddruckers to get their fix. When the business was at its peak, it had almost 111 franchises on top of 77 locations across the country. Its revenue rests at $150 million. The company is hoping to improve its profit by shutting down certain locations. The headquarters are located in Texas, and the business has seen many ownership changes.
Fuddruckers
Roy Rogers
This burger chain is named after an Old western actor. Roy Rogers Restaurants has locations in the Northeast and the Mid-Atlantic. Formally, it goes by the name RoBee’s House of Beef. The Marriott hotel corporation bought it and launched a sales campaign, which worked to attract more customers. At one point, the business had 600 American branches. In 1990, Hardee’s purchased the company. Unfortunately, the number of locations has since gone down to 48.
Roy Rogers
Boston Market
Formally known as Boston Chicken, the company is best known for the special rotisserie chicken. Now called Boston Market, Sun Capital owns it. Most locations are found in the Midwest and the Northeast, as well as Florida. In 2013, it had around 462 branches. The number has gone down drastically. It has admitted that it is currently working on a “multifaceted transformation plan.”
Boston Market
Perkins
In 1958, Perkins opened its doors as a breakfast and bakery restaurant. It used to go by Pancake House but changed its name to Perkins Family Restaurant a couple of years later. The locations are spread out across 32 states in the United States. On top of that, it has a presence in four provinces of Canada. Now owned by Marie Callenders, the business went bankrupt in 2019. Sadly, this made the store close down locations and lay off 25,000 employees.
Perkins
Friendly’s
You are going to find Friendly’s on the East coast more than anymore else in the country. First founded in 1935, the company has undergone a lot of changes and even declared bankruptcy a couple of years ago. It has since made a comeback and transformed its menu. At the moment, there are 167 branches. However, it is planning to close the doors of locations that do not get enough traffic.
Friendly’s
Del Taco
In the ‘60s, Del Taco started out as a Mexican-inspired restaurant that sells fries and burgers as well. This proved popular among the residents of the Southwest and the West. Overall, it now has 564 restaurants. Sadly, it has announced plans to close underperforming stores by 2020. It also expressed an interest in franchising. In 2015, Levy Acquisition bought the company. Its plans to open stores East did not prove successful, although it still rakes in quite a revenue. It is considered a Taco Bell competitor.
Del Taco
Applebee’s
Applebee’s and IHOP are sister restaurants. Sadly, both of these restaurants plan to shut down stores. Founded in 1980, Applebee’s now has 1,830 restaurants across the globe. The majority of these are franchised. There was a time when it made a revenue of $2.5 billion, had $935 million in assets, and employed 28,000 people.
Applebee’s
IHOP
We are sure that you have at least heard of the International House of Pancakes. The company is owned by Dine Brands Global and has its roots in Los Angeles. The headquarters are still located in California. It is a strong competitor of Waffle House, which also plans to shut down locations. In the past, IHOP made $350 billion and employed 32,300 people. Sadly, this does not seem to be the case any longer.
IHOP
Burger King
Burger King was founded in 1966 and used to go by the name Insta-Burger King. At the moment, it boasts 17,800 restaurants all over the country. Sadly, the number is going to go down soon. After all, the company is planning to shut down 200 to 250 locations soon.
Burger King
Ruby Tuesday
Ruby Tuesdays can be compared to chains like Applebee’s and TGI Friday’s. It opened its doors in Knoxville, Tennessee in 1972. At the moment, it has around 491 stores. Most of these locations are on the East coast. Sadly, it announced its plans to shut down stores that are not making enough revenue.
Ruby Tuesday
Marie Callender’s
We have to admit that this one is painful. Marie Callender’s is a local joint that sells the best pies out there. Marie Callender opened the restaurant chain while she was residing in a trailer park. At first, she baked pies to provide for the family. It was a good thing that the investment turned out to be a success. In 2009, the family underwent trauma that disrupted its success. After her husband died of head trauma, the restaurant went bankrupt and shut down a lot of locations. Not all is lost, however. You can still visit a number of branches in California, which is where the headquarters are still located.
Marie Callender’s
Kona Grill
This sushi restaurant started in Scottsdale, Arizona in 1989. At the moment, Kona Grill has 40 locations in the United States and Puerto Rico. Sadly, it has been struggling with closures from the very beginning. In 2019, the company announced that it was applying for bankruptcy. The chain has not given up just yet and remains hopeful that it can land a merger even though the CEO has expressed his desire to resign.
Kona Grill
Quiznos
In 2014, Quiznos declared bankruptcy. Luckily, the fast-food sandwich store has since made a comeback after bringing down its debt. In 2002, it had 5,000 locations across the world. The number is now at 800. In 2007, the company started closures after bidding goodbye to 1,000 stores in the United States.
Quiznos
Carrabba’s
In 1986, Carrabba’s started out as a family business. It has experienced a lot of success after a merger with Outback Steakhouse. It later renamed the company to Bloomin’ Brands and opened more locations in the United States and abroad. Even though it has a lot of Bloomin’ Brands restaurants, the Carrabas brand is undergoing a high number of branch closures.
Carrabba’s
Starbucks
We are sure that you are a bit confused about this addition to the last. It might be best known for its coffee, but it also sells food. In 2018, the coffee company shocked a lot of people by announcing its plans to close 150 locations across the United States. It reached this decision to optimize the current market. Just so you know, these closures are thrice the average closure rate of Starbucks.
Starbucks
T.G.I. Friday’s
T.G.I. Friday’s was founded in New York City in 1965. Apparently, it was opened as a way to offer young people a space to get together. The target consumer base is people in their 20s and 30s looking for somewhere to meet and mingle. The popularity of the chain is now going down among members of this age group, unfortunately. In 2018 and 2019, the restaurant chain shut down branches in Tallahassee, Washington DC, and Staten Island. What makes it even worse is that these are considered key locations.
TGI Fridays
Papa Murphy’s
Murphy’s has offered all of us a solution to our cold pizza deliveries. The company started the take-and-bake method. This involves customers retrieving the pizza from the window, bringing it home, and baking it in their own kitchen. Even though this sounds like a great idea, the company decided to shut down more than 60 locations all over the United States in 2018 and 2019.
Papa Murphy’s
Taco Bell
It is a good idea to clarify that Taco Bell is not exactly authentic Mexican food. More accurately, it is Mexican-inspired. At the moment, it is looking at expansion abroad. Even though this sounds like great news, there is a price to pay. In 2019, it closed locations in Arkansas, Pennsylvania, and four in Maine.
Taco Bell
Pollo Tropical
Pollo Tropical is a restaurant chain known among Southern Floridians for its Caribbean offerings. Sadly, things did not go well after it expanded into Venezuela, Haiti, and Cuba. It also had plans to open a store in Texas, although this did not come to fruition. Thanks to the huge financial losses that it suffered, it shut down 23 locations when 2019 rolled in. In 2019, this trend kept coming with more store closures.
Pollo Tropical
Papa John’s
These days, Papa John’s is the fourth biggest pizza delivery restaurant chain in the United States. It is having a hard time staying afloat. The founder landed in hot water after using a racial slur and ended up stepping down. The outrage around this incident resulted in a management shakeup. However, the sales also dipped by 7.8%. Analysts said that store closures were expected to happen in 2019. According to their estimates, up to 250 branches could close.
Papa John’s
Pie Five
Do you want a handmade pizza pie that has everything that you could ever want? If this is the case, you should go to Pie Five. Even though it has not even ten years since it started, the fast-casual concept became a hit in the United States. Despite the quick rise, it has started to go down as well. In the past years, the company shut down over 30 locations. In 2019, it closed even more stores.
Pie Five
Pizza Rev
Pizza Rev entered the market 8 years ago, but it has already made its mark. It served as the Californian version of Pie Five. Customers could get pizzas even when they were on a lunch break. This idea ended up spreading to other states, but the rapid expansion did not go smoothly. As a matter of fact, the business shut down as many as 9 locations in 2019 alone.
Pizza Rev
Eat ‘N Park
For seventy decades, people in Pennsylvania, Ohio, and West Virginia enjoyed what Eat ‘N Park has to offer. While the restaurant has no problems on the business end, the company shut down five of its stores in Ohio in 2019. Despite this, it is not all bad as the company upgraded certain locations as well.
Eat ‘N Park
Subway
Subway was not immune to recent closures either. In 2018, the sandwich company shut down 1,100 locations in the United States. The year after that, it continued to close more stores. You do not need to despair because Subway remains the biggest chain restaurant on the planet. The company plans to keep its most lucrative locations open.
Subway
Chipotle
Chipotle closed 50 different locations in 2019. Even though it continues to grow in popularity, it has seen a number of setbacks that damaged the reputation of the company. Only a couple of years ago, it dealt with bad publicity. A number of customers fell sick with E. coli, which was associated with the food that they had at Chipotle. On top of that, a cyberattack left the personal information of customers at risk in 2019. Despite this, there is a silver lining as the company opened 150 new branches in the same year.
Chipotle
Potbelly Sandwich Shop
The name of this store has not scared off the health-conscious generation. In the past couple of years, Potbelly Sandwich Shop has expanded abroad and opened stores in India. Even though it is still growing, it is contracting at the same time. Three years after it launched its Toronto location, the shops in the Canadian city was shut down. As you can imagine, this piece of news cannot be good for the business.
Potbelly Sandwich Shop
Jack In The Box
Jack in the Box has not seen the same level of success that its competitors did. It first opened in 1951, but American kids seem to prefer McDonald’s to it. This has not changed since its inception. Qdoba, the former parent company, sold it in 2018. It has since lost a lot of business and closed down certain locations because of this. As a matter of fact, the company is looking at closing at least 14 locations.
Jack In The Box
Noodles & Company
Noodles & Company was founded in 1995 and enjoyed a couple of years of success. Sadly, the revenue has started to go down. After the early ‘00s, people no longer seemed as interested in noodles as before. However, what really put a damper on the campy was the 2016 data breach that compromised the personal information of the customers across several states. In fact, the company lost $11 million in revenue because of this controversy. On top of that, it shut down 10% of its stores in 2018.
Noodles & Company
Joe’s Crab Shack
A lot of Americans used to adore Joe’s Crab Shack, which is an informal seafood chain specializing in huge buckets of stuffed shrimp and crab. However, it has not been doing very well as of late. Many attributed this to its strong competitors like Bubba Gump and independent seafood restaurants. In 2017, the business declared bankruptcy and shut down 41 locations. At the moment, it still has 58 stores open. However, this number is expected to go down some more before the year ends.
Joe’s Crab Shack
Howard Johnson’s
There were a lot of things to look forward to at Howard Johnson’s. Among other things, it had fried clam and 28 ice cream flavors. During the ‘60s and ‘70s, it had more than a thousand roadside locations. Founded in 1925, Yelp reviews claimed that the New York restaurant was already on the verge of dying not that long ago. As a matter of fact, the final store closed merely two years ago.
Howard Johnson’s
Houlihan’s
Houlihan’s was founded in 1972. The co-founders purchased an old haberdashery called Tom Houlihan’s Men’s Wear. The architect called the project “Houlihan’s Old Place,” but the name stuck. Although it does not seem to be doing anything wrong, the company is suffering from a debt of $50 million. This was part of the reason it shut down a number of locations.
Houlihan’s
Baja Fresh Mexican Grill
Do you also enjoy the taquitos, burritos, and self-serve salsa offered by Baja Fresh Mexican Grill? It opened its doors in 1990. Twelve years after that, Wendy’s acquired the bar. Back then, it had nearly 300 locations spread across 21 states. The chain has declined steadily and started closing stores in 2004.
Baja Fresh Mexican Grill
Ground Round
The slogan of Ground Round is “The place for families, friends and sports fans.” The company welcomed diners in 1969. As of 2004, it had more than a hundred locations when it declared bankruptcy. On top of that, nearly all the locations have since shut down. There are only 17 stores in operation right now.
Ground Round
Pinkberry
In 2005, Pinkberry started as a yogurt shop in West Hollywood. Its popularity shot up after celebrities started to go there. Even though the yogurt was great, this simply was not enough. After a while, the company started operating in 21 countries. In 2015, however, there were only 139 stores in the U.S.
Pinkberry
TGI Friday’s
When it comes to casual dining, you should probably check out Thank God It’s Friday. It has 870 stores around the world right now. Alan Stillman and Daniel Scoggin founded it in New York City but later transferred its headquarters to Texas. Sadly, it is no longer as prominent as it used to be. In a recent announcement, the business announced that it would shut down stores from 2019 to 2020.
TGI Friday’s
Carl’s Jr.
CKJE Restaurant Holdings is the current owner of Carl’s Jr. It is easily one of the best known fast-food joints in North America. In the beginning, it was nothing more than a hot dog cart until it expanded to a proper restaurant. Even though it is still popular, the business is dealing with a lot of problems. More and more locations are closed with the passage of time. At the moment, it has 1,490 stores worldwide.
Carl’s Jr.