Only Red Lobster in Yuma Has Closed

The final Red Lobster in Yuma has closed.Photo byNoppon MeenuchonUnsplash

Once upon a time, Red Lobster was the go-to destination for when you craved seafood. It was a national brand you knew served up a decent product at an affordable price. It also sold some of the best-tasting cheese biscuits prior to the meal coming out. However, massive restaurant chains have struggled of late, with many filing for bankruptcy. Red Lobster joined the ranks, and in an attempt to shed dead weight, it began closing restaurants around the country. While a number of Red Lobsters around Arizona have closed over the last several months, there was never a guarantee the closures would stop. Now, the brand has turned its eyes on Yuma and closed the one remaining location in town. 

At the beginning of the week, Red Lobster announced it would close another 23 restaurants around the country. While the initial lineup of closures were either underperforming or were in areas where multiple locations were still open, the latest batch of closures includes restaurants in smaller markets that simply have a defined peak of profitability. They were seen as less valuable than other locations. Unfortunately, one of the 23 closures included the Red Lobster at 1522 South Yuma Palms Parkway.

The Yuma Red Lobster officially closed its doors on Sunday. Unfortunately, there are no other Red Lobster restaurants in the area. Yuma has very little in the way of seafood and lobster restaurants now. The nearest remaining Red Lobster locations are found in either Phoenix to the east or Palm Springs to the west. Beyond this, there’s not much people holding gift cards can do, other than hold onto their cards for whenever they might go on vacation and happen onto a remaining restaurant. Of course, even that might not work out as when Red Lobster is sold off, there’s no guaranteeing the old gift cards will function. 

While there is no end in sight as to when the closures of Red Lobster might stop, it is the end of Red Lobster in its present form. While fans of the restaurant might be able to stop by one of the remaining Arizonan locations, for Yuma residents, there is no telling if, or when, the brand might return. 

For the last six months, there had been the lingering possibility of the restaurant officially closing down in Yuma. If there is any kind of silver lining here, it’s that at least there’s no more waiting on pins and needls.