Another Popular Restaurant Chain is Closing Locations Across the Country

First Red Lobster made some abrupt closures, then Pizza Hut did the same. Now, Hooters has announced that several of its "underperforming" restaurants will close their doors permanently.

A "select number" of restaurants will shut down due to "pressure from current market conditions," the chain said in a statement to USA TODAY.

This isn't good!

What We Know About the Closures

"Ensuring the well-being of our staff is our priority in these rare instances," the statement reads. "This brand of 41 years remains highly resilient and relevant. We look forward to continuing to serve our guests at home, on the go and at our restaurants here in the U.S. and around the globe."

Related: Popular Restaurant Chain Closing Locations Across America and No One Saw It Coming

The company did not clarify which locations will close, nor did they share a timeline for the closures. However, USA TODAY found dozens of Hooters restaurants shuttered on Monday, including some in Florida, Texas, Kentucky, and Indiana.

The chain said they are continuing to open new locations while launching Hooters frozen products at grocery stores. Hooters had 293 restaurants by the end of 2023, a 1.3% decrease from 2022, Nations Restaurant News reported.

The company has experienced a 12% decline since the end of 2018, when there were 333 Hooters locations, per NRN.

Other Major Closures

This announcement comes as other restaurant chains face mass closures.

According to bankruptcy documents , Red Lobster failed to renegotiate 228 of their leases. This filing came after the company's website listed 99 closures across 28 states in May.

Some Red Lobster locations had their equipment auctioned off online with a restaurant liquidator, and an additional 129 restaurants at risk of shutting down.

Rubio’s Coastal Grill also closed 48 "underperforming" Mexican grill restaurants across California this month. By the end of 2023, about 33% of chain restaurants had less locations than they started the year with, USA TODAY reports.

And just last week, Pizza Hut abruptly shuttered 15 locations in the Midwest with more than 120 others at risk of closing down after the chain found itself in the middle of a bitter legal dispute with a franchisee.

EYM Group, which owns and operates 142 Pizza Hut locations in Illinois, Indiana, Georgia, South Carolina, and Wisconsin, was accused of defaulting on millions of dollars in payments that were owed to Pizza Hut by a June deadline that the company gave the group.

It's sad to see so many chains having financial troubles, but it's also not completely surprising. We hope that they can all turn things around!

For more Delishably updates, be sure to follow us on Google News !