12 Once-Popular Restaurant Chains That Have Filed For Bankruptcy In 2024

Hearing that a favorite restaurant or business is filing for bankruptcy feels like a nearly weekly occurrence after the COVID-19 pandemic. Having changed everyday life in such significant ways for both short and long-term, some businesses simply can't stay afloat. Unfortunately, as new normals begin to solidify, and the years unfurl, it's become even clearer that some chains won't be sharpening their knives for long and are quite literally having to leave the kitchen.

When customers hear that a restaurant is filing for bankruptcy, it can feel like the end is imminent. However, although it sounds intimidating, Chapter 11 bankruptcy should give businesses a cooling off and reorganization period. A Chapter 11 bankruptcy allows a business to remain in control while enjoying a pause in debt collection as the process unfolds. Though some businesses choose to begin the process on their own, if things are in rocky shape, others are required to do so by creditors. So, when we hear that a business has voluntarily gone into Chapter 11 bankruptcy, it means that the business chose this course rather than being told to do so.

Throughout the Chapter 11 bankruptcy process, the business provides a great deal of information about its liabilities, expenses, and income so that a bankruptcy court can help the business right itself. Over the course of the bankruptcy proceedings, a business will create a plan for reorganization. This plan needs to be approved by the court and any creditors before moving forward, and in the end, a business might end the bankruptcy process with debts that have been adjusted and the continuation of operations under a different plan. Some chains make it out of the bankruptcy process, and seem to be thriving once more, but others aren't so lucky. Many chains lose locations in the process, and some even need to close down and liquidate all together.

We love a good origin story, and Eegee's is a pretty fun one. This chain got its start in a vending truck, selling frozen lemonade in the surrounding areas of the Sonoran desert. Mostly popular in Tucson and Phoenix, this is the place to go for an eegee (which is somewhere between a snow cone and a slushie), grinder sandwich, chicken, and loaded fries. Unfortunately, this Arizonian favorite is also one of the many chain restaurants to file for bankruptcy in 2024.

Perhaps some of the first signs of trouble began in 2018. Eegee's endured a string of changes, even switching CEOs a couple times, as a result of new ownership. Additionally, it seems the rising cost of consumable goods as well as customer eating habits over the last few years have led to a smaller amount of profit hitting coffers. With the announcement of filing for bankruptcy, Eegee's also closed a handful of locations bringing its total number of locations to just beyond cracking two dozen. Closing several locations will no doubt upset nearby customers, but the chain promises to reinvest in the stores it still has.

TGI Fridays is one of those restaurants just built for the weekends. It might always be Friday here, and that was a great play at one time, but the glory of Fridays has certainly begun its slow fizzle. Somewhere between a burger joint and a bar, Fridays has all the classics that similar restaurants like Chili's and Applebee's offer. It's the type of place with endless artifacts on the walls (and on its staff) from past and present. Now, however, TGI Fridays closed several locations, pulling its numbers down to  163 locations, down from the 270 restaurants once under the TGI Fridays umbrella.

TGI Fridays filed for bankruptcy at the beginning of November of 2024. The restaurant chain intends to use its voluntary Chapter 11 filing as a way to invest in the future success of Fridays. To allow locations to breathe in the coming changes and make the challenging choices moving forward, TGI Fridays put a pause on rent for its landlords and other vendors the bankruptcy might affect. Like so much of our everyday world after 2020, TGI Fridays' financials never fully recovered. The chain explains that this was one of the challenges it faced and what led it to this bankruptcy filing.

It's important to note that just because a chain files for bankruptcy, doesn't mean that it's done and you should write it off for all eternity. Take Red Lobster, for example. The chain closed over 50 locations before officially filing for bankruptcy in May 2024 and exited bankruptcy only a few months later, in September.

Comically, it's easy to pin the chain's necessary bankruptcy on its endless shrimp promotion, but it seems Red Lobster had been seeing quite the decline in customers, with an alarming 30% decline in overall customer visits since 2019. Of course, like most chains, much of that would have to do with the recent pandemic, but even as things attempted to return to normal between 2021 and 2023, sales only increased 25%. It seems the decline started before 2020 and has continued after. One of the biggest decisions Red Lobster made to come back from its bankruptcy filing was to offload those stores that were underperforming. That may be why you've seen so many around the country close. This mass closure was part of former CEO Jonathan Tibus' plan to help get Red Lobster back on its feet and keep offering meals fueled by those cheddar bay biscuits. New CEO Damola Adamolekun is expecting customers to stampede back into restaurants with a fan-favorite return (hush puppies). No need to start looking for that copycat biscuit recipe quite yet; all indications point to Red Lobster's plans to stick around.

BurgerFi, is another chain negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. One of many fast casual restaurants in the upscale burger space, BurgerFi is known for offering extravagant burgers and fries that rival some of our favorite larger chains. Even though the burgers here might be tasty and even impressive, it isn't enough to shield the company from issues many brands might face, like the rising cost of ingredients, a decline and overall sales, and staffing that turns over quickly. As a result, BurgerFi International filed for a Chapter 11 bankruptcy in September 2024 in an effort to reorganize finances and attempt to stay afloat.

Many people believe that as a result of bankruptcy, restaurants immediately close down, but that isn't the case, and for BurgerFi, the bankruptcy applies only to the corporate owned locations. Franchisee owned businesses haven't been impacted by the bankruptcy or the proceedings. The chain also says that 144 locations, even those included in the bankruptcy filings, are open, so you can still pick up your favorite truffle burgers, even while the company grapples with its future.

Buca Di Beppo's menu is pretty simple, but since it's served family style, it feels distinctive. Although certainly a cool concept, and even a way of dining that many Americans experience on the daily at home, at their own family tables, the novelty of enjoying a meal this way in a restaurant isn't quite enough to shield Buca di Beppo from the rash of bankruptcies sweeping the restaurant industry. In fact, in the first five months of 2024 alone, the brand saw a drop of its revenue to the tune of over 74 million dollars. While that's a pretty staggering stat, it also has 1.36 million dollars of gift cards floating around, all unredeemed. That's money that the company has already earned that it hasn't made good on, and for a business struggling, even missing gift card balances are accounted for.

This drop in revenue comes as a result of customers eating out less and less, and like other chains, the bankruptcy filing was a nearly obvious outcome. As part of bankruptcy, some restaurants are being closed down, but the brand continues to open new locations.

Tijuana Flats is all about tacos, burritos, and Tex-Mex food. Tijuana Flats is pretty similar to most fast casual Tex-Mex dining places, but it's got a funky vibe, so it feels more youthful and vibrant. Unfortunately, it's getting harder to access Tijuana Flats as it's one of the restaurant chains that closed the most locations in 2024. As part of its Chapter 11 bankruptcy, 11 locations have been closed. Most of them were in Florida, but one location was in Virginia Beach.

Still largely a Florida based chain, it got its start in Winter Park of central Florida. With new ownership under Flatheads LLC, perhaps Tijuana Flats will bounce back and continue growing, and it'll once again become easier to access this Tex-Mex, with a lime, twist.

To spring back following this bankruptcy filing, the chain has made some changes that it's been testing. As part of these changes, those who decide to dine in will get a basket of chips with salsa. We're wondering if it's the small things (like chips) that can make a big difference, but will it be enough to draw enough customer return? CEO James Greco is hopeful that Tijuana Flats customers will return for these changes. While some may be sad to see their location close down amongst the filing and subsequent sale, the chain continues to open new locations, even outside of its home state of Florida.

Beer fans who live on the east coast no doubt know about the World of Beer. This chain offers an extensive range of draft beers from within the states and even across international waters. In addition to this wide array, there is a complete menu of burgers, bowls, and flatbreads, and pretty much anything you could want to go with a beer. The same beer fans will no doubt be disappointed to learn that this favorite beer stop filed for bankruptcy in 2024.

For many of the same reasons that other restaurants fell to the same fate, World of Beer saw a rising interest and inflation rates and operating costs in general. Place that beside customers' reluctance to return to the pace that they previously had been eating out before the pandemic, and you have a perfect storm, even for the best of beer joints. To help alleviate some of the burden during the bankruptcy process, the chain closed just shy of a third of its locations, scaling back to help preserve any chance of potential longevity for World of Beer.

It's not every day someone goes on a spring break trip and returns with an idea for a business. More often, it's a massive hangover and even some questionable souvenirs. In any case, much to the appreciation of future fish taco customers, Ralph Rubio took a different route, returning home from his spring break trip with none other than a fish taco from Mexico. It wasn't long before Rubio would begin a taco stand in San Diego, and that taco stand would eventually become Rubio's, a chain with tacos, burritos, and plenty of other Mexican dishes, with roots back to that apparently transformative spring break trip.

Though Rubio's weathered bankruptcy in 2020, exciting the process just before the new year, the world has changed a great deal since that filing. In 2024, the chain declared bankruptcy for still a third time. Even though it had been through bankruptcy before, the chain has still suffered from many of the issues other chains have. With those concerns, plus the Californian increase in minimum wage to $20 per hour, the chain has been slow to recover from its last bankruptcy, with some locations still underperforming, even though there was much hope they may recover and thrive. Hopefully, this time, Rubio's will move through bankruptcy with clear sights on offering baja-style fish tacos for many years ahead.

It's always disappointing to see a unique restaurant or chain struggling, especially when it's far different from the American cuisine that so many chain restaurants serve. Rōti Modern Mediterranean, for example, is heavily focused on seasonings that you just don't get in many chain restaurants in the United States. Unfortunately, Rōti's noteworthy differences haven't been enough to keep the chain from the 2024 bankruptcy wave, and it, too, filed. Although The chain has a fairly small roster of locations, it hopes to retain those, even amidst bankruptcy.

Like many restaurants, the COVID-19 pandemic did a number on Rōti Modern Mediterranean, but Rōti suffered even more than other restaurants, all thanks to that all important consideration: location. Half of Rōti's Modern Mediterranean restaurants were located in downtown areas. Especially during the height of the pandemic, these business districts, once bustling with people in suits moving from meeting to lunches to coffee and back to the office, were nearly vacant, and slow to fill again, thanks to remote working situations. It seems these losses never fully recovered, so Chapter 11 bankruptcy seemed like the most reasonable option. Like many chains going through bankruptcy, Rōti Modern Mediterranean is seeking investors or even purchasers as it attempts to move beyond bankruptcy.

We love a grilled cheese, but nailing that perfect blend of cheese to melt to bread ratio can be challenging. Thankfully, there's places like Melt Bar and Grilled to get us closer, but as with so many other chains, Melt's finances were, well, melting in 2024.

While it might be distressing to discover a toasty cheese joint like Melt can be struggling so significantly, the brand is far from giving up hope. At its height in 2017, the chain had ten locations before going down to four, and then finally, one. Matt Fish, the restaurant's owner, originally intended to expand throughout the region and possibly even move throughout the country, but (say it with us) the pandemic changed everything. After filing for bankruptcy earlier in 2024, a few months later, Fish reopened one location in Lakewood, Ohio, and poured all of his focus into that one spot. This, once-chain-turned-one-location establishment, is recovering from its bankruptcy where it all began. Some may say that losing the whole chain may feel like a loss, but Fish seems perfectly happy to return to his comfort zone and be creative within the space of one restaurant.

We love a good chicken chain, and if Sticky's Finger Joint's focus on gourmet chicken fingers, featuring a slew of dipping sauces, is any indication, Sticky's is one chain that has greater appeal outside of its limited run in New York and New Jersey. However, the chain is facing a few troubles in the wake of its bankruptcy filing.

If customer retention and growth is a major goal, as it is with so many of these chains and their recovery, upping prices isn't going to help, and that's one of the ways Sticky's is trying to recover. Like Rōti, Sticky's suffered a great deal from loss of traffic in busy city spaces, due to fewer office workers day in and day out. Even still, the CEO, Jamie Greer, intends to continue operations while keeping an eye to the future.

While many businesses that file for bankruptcy are able to make enough significant changes to bounce back, not all experience the same happily ever after. Boxer (known once as Boxer Ramen) is one such small chain that enjoyed 11 years in business, but couldn't overcome all of its challenges, so it ended up closing all of its remaining locations.

Boxer's bankruptcy was a short one. It filed in February 2024 before shuttering the last of its four restaurants in late April 2024. This final closure came only a few months after Boxer opened up a new location in December 2023. On the chain's social media and website, it states that it faced challenges during the pandemic. In addition to the rising cost of goods, the Oregon chain endured too much to continue. With the rising tide of ramen in the area, Boxer also faced a fairly saturated market. Stiff competition, expensive food costs, and fewer customers won't bode well for any restaurant, let alone one moving through bankruptcy.