The chain has made a few tweaks in recent years, opting to get rid of the white slouch socks that were a hot athleisure trend in the ’80s. And if you were a burger lover or a fan of the Gold Rush fried chicken sandwich, you absolutely loved hitting up the Fixin's Bar for all your topping needs. The chain started to fail, and eventually Metromedia purchased it . At its peak in the '60s, this California-based chain had 750 restaurants across the country. Planet Hollywood. Bennigan’s is an Irish-themed restaurant chain that was founded in Atlanta in 1976. March 12, 2011. Or reach out to the Yelp reviewer, who wrote: "Was the best of all time! As one Baltimore reporter noted, "It was a favorite of mine as a kid—so much so that I had a birthday dinner there once. Bloomin' Brands, who owns the Outback brand, saw its stock drop eight percent during the summer of 2017, signaling that they're having trouble getting diners through the door. But by the 2000s, Hot 'n Now was forced to close two-thirds of its locations. Basically, it was the best publicity Kenny Rogers Roasters could've asked for. Indeed we did. There's some speculation that the drop in sales is due to a decreasing interests in breasts in general, but Hooters is also plagued by the same issues that haunt other restaurant chains: stiff competition in the sit-down, casual dining market. The outbreak left four dead and affected over 650 others. In that same report though, they also noted that their traffic has dropped for 10 straight quarters. Only 1970s Kids Will Remember These Restaurants, Pillsbury bought Steak and Ale in the '80s, Only 1990s Kids Will Remember These Restaurants, largest Hepatitis A outbreak in the country, 14 Charlie Brown's locations still remain. After all, who doesn't miss looking at the "famous" film props that adorned these restaurants and wondering, "What movie is that even from?". These 20 restaurant chains and franchises were once popular in Upstate New York, or attempted to crack into the market, but just couldn't cut it as well as the competition. The company announced the closure of between 30 and 40 of its restaurants in 2018, following up on the 23 that closed the previous year. After the regional chain was bought out in the 1980s, things took a turn. Jim Hyatt, former CEO of Church’s Chicken was announced as his successor in April of 2017, but he was quickly ousted in December of that same year, when the chain was sold to a private company, NRD Capital. As the Lansing State Journal reported, "There are no longer 39-cent menu items, but patrons can buy burgers, fries, and drinks for about $1." In the 2003 episode, Kyle excludes Cartman from his birthday dinner at the famed Mexican chain, and Cartman will stop at no lengths to get an invite. This is a list of defunct fast-food chains.A restaurant chain is a set of related restaurants with the same name in many different locations that are either under shared corporate ownership (e.g., McDonald's in the U.S.) or franchising agreements. Little Tavern was a chain of charming, cottage-style restaurants that felt like a home away from home for many children of the '90s in the Baltimore-Washington, D.C. area. A study from Cornell’s school of hospitality on restaurant failure rates found that 30% of all restaurants go out of business within their first year. On the Pizza Haven Facebook page, fans still wax poetic about the chain's glory days. And by the mid-1990s, Little Tavern suffered financial issues and these local favorites started closing one by one. Sizzler USA: The restaurant chain, which was one of the country’s first casual restaurant chains, filed for bankruptcy because of Covid-19 lockdowns that forced it to temporarily close its restaurants’ dining rooms. "I remember the great pizza deals the Mariners had on the back of their tickets," one man wrote. With 42 locations in California and the Pacific Northwest, the future was looking bright for Pizza Haven. That means that many of those ubiquitous restaurant chains you'd find in every shopping and strip mall are no longer feeding throngs of hungry shoppers like they used to. In spite of their failure on a national level, though, their Southern California locations — where they started business back in 1978 — will likely continue operating. In most cases, they're at least given a heads up, but that wasn't what happened with Joe's Crab Shack locations around the country. True Religion (previously filed for bankruptcy in 2017) And we're not just talking about iconic '90s snacks like Dunkaroos and Fruit by the Foot. But that trend could be shifting, as Ovation Brands, the company that owns HomeTown Buffet, Old Country Buffet, Ryan's, and Fire Mountain abruptly closed more than half of it's restaurants in 2016 and filed for bankruptcy. But competition grew fierce in the casual-dining chain arena. For now, the company still operates 140 US locations, but they're limited to Florida and the greater Atlanta area. With an extensive selection of pasta-based dishes like barbecue pork mac, spicy Korean beef noodles, and spaghetti and meatballs, this Colorado-based fast-casual chain caters to pretty much every palate. They closed 46 restaurants in 2016, 99 in 2017, and have announced they'll close another 60-80 in 2018. After Pillsbury bought Steak and Ale in the '80s, the chain went national with 280 locations. Planet Hollywoods popped up everywhere. They now operate less than 100 stores, as they have closed 20-30 restaurants including those in Kansas, Utah, Illinois, and Dallas. It was delicious. While we certainly hope to extend our reach, we can't alienate Boomers or Gen-Xers in the process," according to Business Insider. Outback Steakhouse, home of the culinary calorie bomb known as the Bloomin' Onion, is yet another restaurant feeling the pinch as of late. "It's not like if a sink is backed up, you can just call a plumber," he said to the newspaper. If you were a Geri's fan, you can show your love with this T-shirt. Still, the company says they'll be opening up to 100 new locations, so they're not giving up yet. Ah, the 1990s. As it turns out, things become positively tragic when the failing business is a festive family restaurant. But besides the toys, TV shows, movies, and music, there was the food. Buffet-style dining is not unpopular in the the United States. In a 2017 call with investors, Brand President John Cywinski said, "In my perspective, this pursuit led to decisions that created confusion among core guests, as Applebee's intentionally drifted from what I'll call its 'Middle America' roots and its abundant value position. There were nearly 90 worldwide during the chain's heyday in the mid-1990s, as The Telegraph reported. By 2008, we all said goodbye to "The Best Steakhouse in Town" as Steak and Ales nationwide closed down. The All American Burger – a regional American fast-food restaurant chain founded in 1968 in Los Angeles, California, by Aaron Binder and made famous in the movie Fast Times at Ridgemont High Last location was in Hollywood and was replaced by a Chipotle in 2010.; Bajio Mexican Grill – a Mexican food chain that was acquired by Costa Vida in 2011 And if your meal didn't end with a sparkling chocolate volcano, you were doing something seriously wrong. FoodFirst Global Restaurants (parent company of Brio Italian Mediterranean and Bravo Fresh Italian restaurant chains) 8. There are many reasons restaurants fail, from health related closures to consistently bad reviews. Business Insider reported that in a letter to shareholders, she wrote, "Millennial consumers are more attracted than their elders to cooking at home, ordering delivery from restaurants, and eating quickly, in fast-casual or quick-serve restaurants." A former vice president of McDonald's opened Geri's Hamburgers in 1962, and he wasn't shy about following the same model. But it turns out, that concept wasn't good enough to last. Like all the other themed restaurants you've read about here, Rainforest Cafe struggled to maintain its luster. Stock Expert Issues Rare "Home Run Buy" Alert, 17 Ways These $20 Lights Will Upgrade Your Home, Refinance rates at 1.89% APR (15yr). According to those investors, their other restaurant interests, including Bonefish Grill, Carrabba's Italian Grill, and Fleming's Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar, are taking away from what should be their primary focus — Outback Steakhouse. Back to News Scott Sloan. Gorillas make running a restaurant pretty hard, it turns out. In 2016, they closed 27 underperforming restaurants in several states, including in their native Ohio. After being revamped in the late 2000s, Bob's came back a little bit, and the chain now has multiple locations across California, Michigan, North Dakota, and Ohio. Currently, just one new location opening in California is on the books. At the same time, the company closed all of its locations in Tennessee, but opted to keep its 13 locations in the greater Atlanta area open. Kids today probably don't know the glory of a salad bar, many of which have been deemed unsanitary. The company was conceived by a marketing director in 1995 and spread throughout the country, operating 60 locations in its home state of Colorado alone. An American Express commercial even warned that 90% failed in … So if you're in the area, bring younger millennials on over so they, too, can feel the joy of plastic tongs in their hands as they select crispy veggie toppings for their side salads. In an effort to boost sales, the company did roll out a "NoodlesREWARDS" customer loyalty incentive in an effort to keep customers from straying in favor of other fast-casual dining options. For one reason or another, plenty of once-major restaurant chains fall off the face of the earth, never to be heard from again. Recent trends toward healthier eating (and smaller portions) could be one major reason for the floundering buffet business. "One of the things we talked about was when you're in the zone it's a special experience. Sometimes it can be difficult to get others to join the fiesta, even when you know you have a good thing going. This Mexican restaurant chain first opened in Minnesota in the 1970s, but at its peak in the mid-1990s, it had 210 locations nationwide. Here's a list of famous restaurant chains that, surprisingly, are struggling to hold on in a new dining landscape. The Beatles even hit up Bob's Big Boy in Burbank, which was the coolest to children of the '60s. Sure, the steak was great. Bennigan's is an Irish-themed chain of pubs that has struggled to stand out. Fewer foods are more iconically American than chicken wings, but that's not providing much solace for Buffalo Wild Wings, whose stock numbers have been disappointing as of late, especially when compared to fast-casual powerhouse Panera. Some of the biggest celebrity athletes of the '90s were behind The Official All-Star Cafe. If you were lucky enough to still have a Roy Rogers near you in the 1990s, chances are high you were a serious devotee. That's due to a drop in sales at franchises and a rebranding that left … Six decades after its start in the 1920s, Little Tavern had grown to nearly 40 locations. RELATED: Sign up for our newsletter to get daily recipes and food news in your inbox! However, seemingly for every success story, there are countless defunct restaurant chains. Californians had In-N-Out, but if you grew up in Michigan, it was all about the Hot 'n Now. Soon, everyone was able to experience the glory of olives as a burger topping. They ultimately filed for bankruptcy by the late 1990s. The Miami-based chain has been serving up fried plantains and mojo pork since 1988, but has struggled to get folks in outside markets to jump on its conga line of Latin flavors. Casual dining chains were already facing challenges before COVID-19, hurt by the rise of fast-casual competition and increased food costs. They're going to have to do a lot more if they want to bring those numbers back up. Calculate your rate now, © A Tribute to Chi Chi's Mexican Restaurant/Facebook, © Bring Back Hot'n'Now to Wisconsin Now/Facebook, 17 Failed Chain Restaurants From the 1980s. But business has not been booming lately for the orange and white purveyor of wings, beer, and cleavage. Your ultimate restaurant and supermarket survival guide is here! Do you like baby back ribs? Many assumed it was breakfast, until the company revealed it was an effort to get people in the door for a burger. Metromedia closed the remaining 50 restaurants in 2009. ", In 1990, Marriott sold the fried chicken chain, which was originally RoBee's House of Beef when it first began in 1968 in Indiana, to Hardee's. And the last one to cave shut down in flames in 2003, sliders. 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