Famous Restaurant Chains That Are Surprisingly Failing Today

Casual dining, which once was a robust and profitable industry, has been on the decline for some time now. That means that many of those ubiquitous restaurant chains you'd find in every shopping and strip mall are no longer feeding throngs of hungry shoppers like they used to. So which chains have fared the worst in an industry that's exceedingly cutthroat? And what efforts are these chains making to get diners back on their barstools? Here's a list of famous restaurant chains that, surprisingly, are struggling to hold on in a new dining landscape.  

Fewer foods are more iconically American than chicken wings, but that's not providing much solace for Buffalo Wild Wings, whose stock numbers have been disappointing as of late, especially when compared to fast-casual powerhouse Panera. According to former CEO Sally Smith, the chain is feeling the pinch due to what else: Millennials. Business Insider reported that in a letter to shareholders, she wrote, "Millennial consumers are more attracted than their elders to cooking at home, ordering delivery from restaurants, and eating quickly, in fast-casual or quick-serve restaurants." Because of their declining numbers, there's been a bit of a kerfuffle among board members, who have clashed regarding how to steer the company moving forward. Most intriguing, however, was the announcement that Arby's was purchasing Buffalo Wild Wings for $2.9 billion, so who knows what's coming next.

Applebee's, like Buffalo Wild Wings, blames a significant amount of its failure on millennials. Although the company fought valiantly to attract customers born between 1980 and 2005 with extensive renovations and redesigns, they've since announced that they're giving up on the battle. In a 2017 call with investors, Brand President John Cywinski said, "In my perspective, this pursuit led to decisions that created confusion among core guests, as Applebee's intentionally drifted from what I'll call its 'Middle America' roots and its abundant value position. While we certainly hope to extend our reach, we can't alienate Boomers or Gen-Xers in the process," according to Business Insider. They closed 46 restaurants in 2016, 99 in 2017, and have announced they'll close another 60-80 in 2018.

Plenty of people look forward to Fridays, but maybe not in the way that TGI Friday's would want. Sales for the chain dropped 1.1 percent in 2015, and 2.7 percent in 2016, showing that they too are not immune to the threat of fast-casual and the decline of shopping malls. In order to stay afloat and ideally become more profitable, the company is trying to rebrand itself as a trendy gastropub; they're redesigning to make the bar more prominent, focusing on urban markets (as opposed to suburban markets), and of course, offering endless appetizers on a permanent basis. They hope that can make them stand out from the crowd.  

Sister restaurants Souplantation and Sweet Tomatoes sold all of their assets to a private investment firm at the beginning of 2017. The move came as part of a bankruptcy restructuring program, as the soup and salad purveyor filed for bankruptcy protection in 2016. They now operate less than 100 stores, as they have closed 20-30 restaurants including those in Kansas, Utah, Illinois, and Dallas. The company cited higher minimum wage requirements, employee benefit costs, declining sales, and rent and cost increases as their major fiscal challenges. In spite of their failure on a national level, though, their Southern California locations — where they started business back in 1978 — will likely continue operating.

Buffet-style dining is not unpopular in the the United States. But that trend could be shifting, as Ovation Brands, the company that owns HomeTown Buffet, Old Country Buffet, Ryan's, and Fire Mountain abruptly closed more than half of it's restaurants in 2016 and filed for bankruptcy. According to workers, they showed up to work only to find out that they no longer had jobs, and were given no notice of the closures. Recent trends toward healthier eating (and smaller portions) could be one major reason for the floundering buffet business. 

With an extensive selection of pasta-based dishes like barbecue pork mac, spicy Korean beef noodles, and spaghetti and meatballs, this Colorado-based fast-casual chain caters to pretty much every palate. The company was conceived by a marketing director in 1995 and spread throughout the country, operating 60 locations in its home state of Colorado alone.

Thanks to additional offerings like salads and soups and an average check coming in at an affordable $8 a person, the franchise has the perfect recipe for lunch crowd success. Or so it would seem.

Recent years have not been kind to the franchise and in 2017 it closed at least 39 restaurants out of 55 proposed closures, while opening 14 to 17 locations. They also had plans to sell off several corporate-owned locations to franchisees. The company reported a net loss of $71.7 million in 2016, including $10.6 million loss for claims related to a data breach.

In an effort to boost sales, the company did roll out a "NoodlesREWARDS" customer loyalty incentive in an effort to keep customers from straying in favor of other fast-casual dining options. Currently, just one new location opening in California is on the books. 

It's always unfortunate when restaurant workers learn they'll be soon be out of a job. In most cases, they're at least given a heads up, but that wasn't what happened with Joe's Crab Shack locations around the country.

The employees of the seafood franchise reportedly showed up for work only to find that the doors were locked and that their services were no longer needed. "It feels like you've been punched in the gut, said former employee Valerie Schwartz.

In August 2017, the chain abruptly closed 41 of its 112 locations after the restaurant's parent company, Ignite Restaurant Group, filed for bankruptcy that June. The restaurant was quickly purchased by mega hospitality brand Landry's Inc. (Bubba Gump Shrimp Co., Morton's The Steakhouse, Rainforest Cafe, etc.) for $57 million in a bankruptcy auction. Oddly enough, Joe's is now back in the hands of one of its earliest owners.

Landry's CEO Tilman Fertitta bought a single Joe's Crab Shack back in 1994 and grew the chain before selling it in 2006. The future of the crab shack remains uncertain, however, Fertitia said that more closures could be in the future until the chain is brought down to a more profitable number of locations. "We will be shrinking the concept down tremendously," said Fertitia. Currently the franchise sits at 60 locations

Sometimes it can be difficult to get others to join the fiesta, even when you know you have a good thing going. That couldn't be more true than it is for Caribbean fast food chain Pollo Tropical. The Miami-based chain has been serving up fried plantains and mojo pork since 1988, but has struggled to get folks in outside markets to jump on its conga line of Latin flavors.

Owned by Fiesta Restaurant Group Inc., the chain expanded into New York, Georgia, Texas, and Tennessee, but in 2016 things started to slip. In November the company announced it had a quarterly loss of $4.5 million and in 2017 it began pulling out of certain markets. The company closed all of its locations in Austin and the Dallas/Fort Worth area, leaving just six locations in the Lone Star State open — although those eventually closed, too. At the same time, the company closed all of its locations in Tennessee, but opted to keep its 13 locations in the greater Atlanta area open.

"While the decision to close restaurants is never easy, we believe it is vital to focus the company's resources and efforts on markets and locations that have proven successful for our brands," read a statement by CEO Richard Stockinger.

For now, the company still operates 140 US locations, but they're limited to Florida and the greater Atlanta area.