Restaurant Chains That Closed The Most Locations In 2024

It goes without saying, but 2024 has been a tough year for restaurants. As the costs of food and labor increase, customers are paying the price, with some totally changing their dining habits as a result, as well. Unsurprisingly, as paying customers flock elsewhere, several chains have been left with no choice but to close up shop.

The good news is that there have been some signs of recovery. Since September, traffic has slowly but surely started increasing for many chains. But for those that have experienced the hardest hits in 2024, the damage may already be done. Restaurant bankruptcies have gone up a lot this year, while some chains have already shuttered a huge chunk of their locations or introduced plans to carry out mass closures well into next year. From fast food to casual dining, these are the restaurant chains that have downsized the most locations in 2024.

Wendy's may be one of the top fast food chains in the U.S., but it still felt the pinch in 2024. During its third-quarter financial results in November, the burger joint revealed a 13.4% year-on-year decline in income, per Wendy's. At the same time, Wendy's president and CEO Kirk Tanner dropped the bombshell that the chain was axing over 100 underperforming, "outdated" restaurants by the end of 2024 (via Motley Fool).

As per Tanner, the decision was made after a "robust review of individual restaurants to ensure they meet our expectations for sales." While he didn't clarify how many met this requirement, the chain's CFO, Gunther Plosch, later confirmed that the number sat at around 140 Wendy's locations. Tanner did promise that these shuttered restaurants would eventually be offset by newer, more technologically impressive stores in "better locations," so we'll have to wait and see how this plays out in 2025.

The outlook has been bleak for TGI Fridays for a while now. It's near-impossible to look past today's veneer of chicken wings and obnoxiously colorful cocktails and see the once genuinely cool singles bar that launched the chain into the stratosphere back in the 1960s, but plenty of us probably won't have the opportunity to even try it considering how many restaurants it closed in 2024.

Nearly 50 TGI Fridays locations closed in October, following the closure of 36 underperforming restaurants in January. The latest round of closures left the chain with just 163 restaurants in the U.S., compared to its portfolio of 270 at the beginning of the year. In November, the chain — which only owns and operates 39 of these restaurants, with TGI Fridays Franchisor franchising the rest – filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Things aren't much better abroad, with the franchisee behind TGI Fridays in the U.K., Hostmore PLC. (which at one point nearly bought out TGI's U.S. operations), also sliding into administration in October. While 51 of its British restaurants were ultimately saved in a takeover deal, 36 stores closed immediately.

Denny's might call itself "America's Diner," but Americans don't seem to reciprocate the enthusiasm. The chain has reported a decline in sales, having struggled to win back foot traffic since the pandemic. According to CEO Kelli Verde on Restaurant Business, family dining has plummeted by roughly 20% in the wake of COVID-19, leaving Denny's scrambling to make up the difference. As you can imagine, this involves closing restaurants.

In October 2024, Denny's confirmed plans to axe 150 underperforming locations. Half of these closures are expected to be completed by the end of the year, while the other half will occur in 2025. This followed the revelation that it was already down 53 franchised restaurants compared to 2023. The plan is to modernize its remaining restaurants over the coming years in a renovation plan the chain has dubbed Diner 2.0. While part of the appeal of Denny's is tucking into a Grand Slam in a nostalgically kitsch setting, we'll admit that this may be a necessary evil to pull the chain out of its modern-day slump.

We like to think of Subway as the fast food equivalent of the moon, by which we mean that no matter where you are in the world, you can easily find it and take comfort in the same sights as home. Okay, maybe that's a slight exaggeration, but the point we're trying to make here is that there a lot of Subways on this planet (nearly 37,000, to be precise).

But that number is dropping. Subway closed over 400 restaurants in 2023, bringing its total count in the U.S. to its lowest since 2005. That trend has continued in 2024. In January, 18 Subway restaurants operated by Delight Foods Inc. closed without warning in Northern California, while in August, 23 stores were lost in Washington and Oregon when Subway terminated a franchisee. While Subway has teased ambitious expansion plans that will see it add a whopping 10,000 restaurants to its portfolio, a vast majority of these are set for international markets such as Mongolia, Paraguay, France, and El Salvador.

Irresistible though KFC's iconic 11 herbs and spices are, the chain has been on the losing side of the chicken wars for a while now. In 2014, Chick-fil-A officially overtook KFC as America's favorite fast food chicken chain (by sales, at least), while Popeyes knocked it down to third place in 2023. KFC itself has complained about declining sales throughout 2024, with the third quarter marking a drop of 5%. While the chain has a track record of performing better outside the U.S. lately, it still admitted that closures "temporarily increased" over the past year, (via Nation's Restaurant News).

While there's no specific number for how many KFC restaurants bid adieu overall in 2024, we do know a franchisee unexpectedly closed 25 stores in Illinois, Indiana, and Wisconsin in August. Three other restaurants closed in Illinois in February, while two restaurants closed in California in January. Despite its international success (most of which is concentrated in China), a significant number of KFC restaurants have also closed in Indonesia and Malaysia due to boycotts related to the ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestine.

Like a lot of fast food chains, Popeyes recorded slow sales and a string of restaurant closures in 2024. While its year started out strong, same-store sales dropped by 3.8%, per Restaurant Business, and systemwide sales declined by 0.8% in the third quarter, per the Q3 2024 earnings call. Josh Kobza — CEO of its parent company, Restaurant Brands International — blamed its lack of focus on value, claiming that more promotions like its three-piece chicken for $5 deal were the key to drumming up more business.

May saw the most Popeyes closures, with over a dozen locations axed in Georgia. This followed a botched buyout between two franchisees that eventually sparked a lawsuit after original owners Sailormen, Inc. claimed the buyer, Tar Heels Spice Inc., neglected to cover rent for months as per the terms of their deal. Earlier in the year, three other underperforming franchised stores closed elsewhere in Georgia months after their owner filed for bankruptcy.

MOD Pizza is a fast-casual chain specializing in (you guessed it) pizza. Its nationwide restaurant total has plummeted over the course of 2024, with 492 locations as of November after a bumpy year that saw the introduction of a new CEO and Elite Restaurant Group purchasing the company just weeks after it was rumored to be close to filing for bankruptcy.

The closures came thick and fast. MOD Pizza's website listed over 512 restaurants in July, 527 in April, and 553 at the beginning of the year. While a huge chunk of these closures occurred in California, where a new minimum wage came into play for fast food workers in April, MOD Pizza insisted that this wasn't a factor. "Despite the best efforts of the squads and managers of those restaurants, they had not performed well for some time, and that's just part of the business," spokesperson Rick Van Warner told Restaurant Business. "Sometimes you have to evaluate the performance of your assets."

The Outback Steakhouse empire spans over 1,000 restaurants. This empire has shrunk significantly in recent years, with previous attempts to expand into the likes of the U.K. and UAE axed, and a significant number of U.S. restaurants closed in 2024.

Outback Steakhouse's parent company, Bloomin' Brands, announced plans to close 41 restaurants across its portfolio (which also includes Bonefish Grill, Carrabba's Italian Grill, and Fleming's Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar) in February. While it didn't clarify how many were Outback Steakhouses, it did say the chain would be hit the hardest and explained that it was closing locations that were underperforming and would be too costly to bring up to scratch.

Bloomin' Brands closed 33 of the restaurants that same week, with the rest following soon after. It was later reported that the mass closures affected eight states and officially made Outback Steakhouse extinct in Hawaii. In August, Outback Steakhouse also announced the sudden closure of nine of its Hong Kong locations, nearly halving its total of restaurants in the market.

Anyone looking for their Hardee's biscuits fix has faced a greater challenge in 2024 as the chain scales back on stores nationwide. While 2023 was already rough on the burger joint's restaurant numbers — with 39 closed in total across eight states — this year has seen even more locations erased from its lineup.

While the company underwent a leadership restructure behind the scenes, more restaurants were closed in both central and southern Illinois early in 2024. An additional restaurant shut its doors for good in Spring Hill, Tennessee, in February, while the Hardee's location in Joplin, Missouri, also suddenly shuttered in April. The chain hasn't announced a wider plan to reduce its store count, but its former CEO, Andy Puzder, has predicted a bleak few years for the fast food industry in general. "There will be a lot of restaurants underperforming," said Puzder (via Fox Business). "Middle-performing restaurants are going to go away. Very good-performing restaurants will become midland or low-performing restaurants." Should that be the case, expect to see more Hardee's closures on the horizon through 2025 and beyond.

Known for its appetizers and affordable cocktails (Dollarita, anyone?), Applebee's has been an American institution for over 40 years. Its portfolio has slimmed down considerably in recent times, however, with 100 restaurants closed in 2017 alone. The years since haven't proved much kinder to the casual restaurant chain. In May, Applebee's president Tony Moralejo revealed plans to close between 25 and 35 restaurants in 2024.

"I'll add that these closures, these closures aren't a sign of struggling franchisees," Moralejo explained, (via TODAY). "They're offering a sign of struggling trade areas." While the chain didn't provide a list of the affected restaurants, a separate round of eight locations closed in Kansas City in October after Applebee's franchisee Apple Central KC LLC filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Not only did the move reportedly blindside employees, but it also seems to have left Applebee's in the lurch. The chain subsequently filed a lawsuit seeking $4,476,000 for future losses after closing the restaurants without its consent.

The financial situation at Hooters isn't great right now. For decades, the sports bar chain has made its mark with a combo of wings, beers, and "Hooters Girls" — the term given to its female servers — but this formula seems to have lost its edge in recent years.

In June 2024, Hooters shuttered 40 restaurants across Florida, Kentucky, Rhode Island, Texas, and Virginia. A spokesperson pinned the closures on "current market conditions," (via New York Post), while also insisting that "this brand of 41 years remains highly resilient and relevant." We're not sure how many relevant restaurants have to explicitly clarify themselves as such or adopt the same measures taken by Hooters since June. The chain has branched out into frozen appetizers and snacks, and, in September, it was reported that it was meeting with lenders and advisers to map out its next steps while shouldering the weight of its $300 million debt.

Like a lot of restaurants, the post COVID-19 years have proven difficult for Bucca di Beppo. Its sales decreased 14% between 2021 and 2024, with the first five months of 2024 alone bringing a revenue drop of 10% compared to 2023. With $10 million in debt — including $1.36 million in unredeemed gift cards — the casual Italian chain conceded defeat and filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in August.

While Bucca di Beppo has been gradually closing restaurants since 2019, this bankruptcy declaration led to a much more rapid decline in numbers. A total of 18 locations were closed across 14 states, including two each in both Michigan and Utah and three in Pennsylvania. That leaves just 44 operating restaurants, with the chain also planning to open an additional outlet at an as-yet-unannounced location. "By restructuring with the continued support of our lenders, we are paving the way toward a reinvigorated future," vowed the company's president, Rich Saultz, (via CBS News).

Boston Market hasn't just scaled back slightly in recent years — it's shut down nearly all of its restaurants. The casual restaurant chain is currently saddled with multiple legal cases over its unpaid bills, having been sued at least 150 times by its creditors since it was purchased by Jay Pandya in 2020. As Boston Market struggled to find the cash, multiple locations were shuttered after landlord intervention, with several more crumbling throughout 2023 and 2024.

In fact, it's thought that Boston Market has closed over 90% of its restaurants in the past two years combined. It started 2023 with 300 restaurants and was down to a measly 27 by March 2024, when it was widely acknowledged that the chain was in its final days. Even more restaurants have closed in the months since, leaving the current total somewhat of a question mark. One thing's for sure – the era of Boston Market's rotisserie chicken supremacy has officially come to an end.

Tijuana Flats was one of multiple restaurants to file for bankruptcy in 2024. Its filing came in April when it declared Chapter 11 bankruptcy and revealed that it was now owned by Flatheads, LLC. In this triple whammy of an announcement, it also confirmed that it had closed 11 of its Tex-Mex restaurants that week, joining the 39 locations already closed since January.

For once, it wasn't necessarily a drop in sales that led to Tijuana Flats shuttering restaurants. It generated nearly $170 million in sales in 2023, with a 3.8% increase in unit volumes. However, it only averaged 0.1% in growth over the past five years, which is significantly lower than the 10.5% average of the fast-casual Mexican industry in general. It also faced a string of hefty bills and payments, such as an interest reserve to its lender, as well as trying to tackle rising food and labor costs and the knock-on effect of a failed attempt to expand its menu in 2021.

If Red Lobster's Endless Shrimp promotion in 2023 seemed too good to be true, that's because it kind of was. The deal reportedly lost the seafood chain a significant amount of money, and while it wasn't mentioned by name when Red Lobster ultimately filed for bankruptcy and announced restaurant closures in May 2024, it definitely falls under the "failed or ill-advised strategic initiatives" of the legal document, (via NPR).

Upon announcing its bankruptcy proceedings, Red Lobster abruptly closed 99 locations nationwide. Equipment from the kitchens was auctioned off online as the company tried to pull together enough money to compensate for the many operational obstacles (shrimp giveaways included) it had faced over the past few years. Foot traffic had dropped by 30% compared to 2019, with losses exceeding $22 million in 2023.

Fortunately, it seems like Red Lobster is on the rebound. The company was acquired by RL Investor Holdings LLC and exited bankruptcy in September, just four months after its initial declaration. This announcement came one month after Red Lobster initiated one final wave of closures, having axed an additional 23 restaurants in August.

BurgerFi's woes are endlessly frustrating because if we had to rank burger chains based solely on quality, it would be up there with the best. Sadly, all the tastiness in the world doesn't trump cash. BurgerFi has admitted to a series of operational missteps that have led to the restaurant's current position, claiming that it was "not due to any one major misstep, but rather a collection of smaller issues that have impacted us over time," (via Restaurant Business). In May 2023, CEO Carl Bachmann was brought in from Smashburger, where he'd managed to accelerate the company's growth. In an effort to replicate the same success, he soon got to work closing 14 underperforming BurgerFi restaurants in 2023, and continued the same pattern in 2024.

Eight restaurants were closed in the first quarter of 2024, but BurgerFi didn't stop there. In September, it closed yet another 10 restaurants while filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. It also shuttered nine Anthony's Coal Fired Pizza & Wings locations, which it acquired in 2021. Having appointed a chief restructuring officer a month prior, the chain stressed that it was on a mission to stabilize the business ASAP while tackling the ongoing challenges of soaring labor and food costs, plus inflation and the decline in customer spending in the wake of the pandemic. In other words, all of the typical obstacles facing restaurants right now.