Italian restaurant Buca di Beppo shutters underperforming stores

U.S.-based family-style Italian restaurant chain Buca di Beppo says it has made the difficult decision to close down at least 13 of its underperforming locations, blaming economic pressures.

The restaurant chain said in a statement to Scripps News those stores "were unable to recover from the damage caused by the pandemic and other market pressures."

According to its website's location map, Buca di Beppo had around 50 locations across the U.S. — with many along the West Coast, in Texas, Florida and the Midwest. They offered dine in and take away options for customers with online ordering available.

By Tuesday the chain's Salt Lake City and Midvale, Utah locations were listed as closed on Google, Scripps News Salt Lake City reported .

Buca di Beppo — which the company says "roughly translates as 'Joe's small place' in Italian" — first opened in 1993 in the basement of a Minneapolis apartment building.

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The closures come amid modest increases in restaurant sales nationwide.

In a July report, the National Restaurant Association said total sales for eating and drinking places in June — on a seasonally adjusted basis — were up 0.3% from May, representing the third consecutive monthly sales gain.

The association said the trendline for sales during the first half of 2024 "was only modestly positive."