Hooters has abruptly shuttered 40 locations - as restaurant crisis deepens

Hooters - known for its scantily-clad waitresses - is the latest restaurant chain to abruptly shutters locations.

Like other struggling chains such as Red Lobster, Hooters is blaming the rising cost of rent and food.

A raft of closures happened over the weekend, while others were in recent weeks. They include locations in Florida , Kentucky , Rhode Island , Texas and Virginia .

The company is not thought to be in as dire financial situation as Red Lobster, which has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

In fact, bosses said the 41-year-old brand 'remains highly resilient and relevant,' and highlighted a new range of Hooters frozen food which is being sold in supermarkets across America.

'Like many restaurants under pressure from current market conditions, Hooters has made the difficult decision to close a select number of underperforming stores,' a spokesperson told DailyMail.com.

'We look forward to continuing to serve our guests at home, on the go and at our restaurants here in the US and around the globe.'

Hooters will have about 300 restaurants globally after the closures. That is down from 333 in 2018, according to Techonomic.

Rivals Dave & Buster's, Miller's Ale House and Twin Peaks all have more restaurants.

Restaurants have been putting up prices over the past two years - as they pass on higher costs to customers. But these price hikes have led to a fall in visitors.

Bigger chains like Applebee's, TGI Fridays and  Boston Market have have all recently shuttered restaurants, as have smaller chains like BurgerFi.

Chains have been worst hit in California where the minimum wage for fast food restaurants jumped to $20-an-hour from April 1. Mexican chain Rubio's shut 48 locations in the state.

Hooters, as well as being known for scantily clad waitresses, also calls itself 'the original American wing joint', and celebrated its 40th birthday in 2023.

Only last May, i t was opening restaurants - three in Las Vegas and three in Florida.

The first Hooters opened in Clearwater, Florida in 1983.