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These 8 restaurant chains have filed for bankruptcy in 2020 in the wake of the pandemic. See the full list.

<ul class="summary-list"><li>All 97 locations of <keyword id="9189585" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="souplantation">Souplantation</keyword> and Sweet Tomatoes are permanently closing amid the <keyword id="1754604" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="coronavirus">coronavirus</keyword> pandemic. </li><li>The number of buffets in the US has <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/coronavirus-pandemic-may-spell-death-for-buffet-restaurants-2020-5">plummeted in recent years,</a> as customers' tastes have changed. </li><li>The coronavirus is expected to be a<a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/coronavirus-pandemic-may-spell-death-for-buffet-restaurants-2020-5"> final blow</a> for many buffets and salad bars, as new safety standards roll out across the US, and restaurants increasingly rely on to-go sales to survive. </li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/?hprecirc-bullet">Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories</a>.</li></ul>Garden Fresh — the parent company of regional salad bar chains Souplantation and Sweet Tomatoes — is permanently closing all locations, as the coronavirus pandemic makes it increasingly difficult for buffet-centric restaurants to survive. All 97 locations of Souplantation and Sweet Tomatoes will close permanently, Garden Fresh CEO John Haywood told media outlets on Thursday. The restaurants last served customers in March, when they closed due to the coronavirus pandemic.Haywood <a href="https://www.restaurantbusinessonline.com/financing/owner-souplantation-sweet-tomatoes-plans-declare-bankruptcy?utm_source=Marketo&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=NL_RB_Alert_05-07-20&amp;LID=7016083&amp;mkt_tok=eyJpIjoiWTJReU56RmtNRGsyWlRBeCIsInQiOiI4OUxKdUJpZ0hxRDlRVkxsd29nelVlU3FGZWNsXC9FVEJYUXFNSFREcVwvNTRreTh4cUJ5SDFycHNlWHZVOWxqREowQjJhcHRmYjhjSDdxTElNSWRiRFFNakRyVXlmdkFqWkU4Y1JcL2tNN3NqZkRUWkxnbGNrclN0UWV4MjF3eGpLMCJ9UWV4MjF3eGpLMCJ9">told Restaurant Business</a> that Garden Fresh plans to file for federal bankruptcy protection, telling the publication that the company did not "see a viable way to reopen." <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/coronavirus-pandemic-may-spell-death-for-buffet-restaurants-2020-5">Business Insider's Irene Jiang recently reported</a> that the coronavirus pandemic might be the final blow for many buffets.The number of buffet restaurants decreased by 26% from 1998 to 2017, even as the overall number of restaurants in the US grew by 22%, according to The NPD Group. A number of buffet chains have filed for bankruptcy over the last decades as customers' tastes change. With the coronavirus pandemic, the bulk of restaurant sales are now to-go orders — something that is incompatible with the buffet model. "One theme that restaurant owners and analysts have repeated to Business Insider throughout this crisis is that the pandemic is speeding up trends that were already starting to take hold slowly," Jiang reports. "These trends — towards increased online ordering, food delivery, cashless payments, off-premise dining — largely leave the buffet format in the dust." Haywood told the <a href="https://www.latimes.com/business/story/2020-05-07/souplantations-buffet-restaurants-closing-coronvirus">Los Angeles Times</a> that recommendations from the FDA, such as discontinuing self-serve stations, made it impossible for Souplantation and Sweet Tomatoes to survive. "The regulations are understandable, but unfortunately, it makes it very difficult to reopen," Haywood said. "And I'm not sure the health departments are ever going to allow it."Souplantation and the two private equity firms that acquired Garden Fresh out of bankruptcy in 2017 — Perpetual Capital Partners and CR3 Capital LLC — did not respond to Business Insider's request for comment. On social media, many mourned the loss of the iconic salad bar chains. "We have hundreds of dollars in untouched gift cards that we purchased in December," one person <a href="https://www.facebook.com/Souplantation/posts/10158237627623829:0?__cft__[0]=AZWw95kV3TO7K1w2XqUJrhpaC9ICpcUDLHOheIM8u9cbB4VoWWHftVmBkFngKnDjGjTgnJugS8TdKy4XB674XUc7txCpeXE7it-ewcbK5Dse4JYGuRTV8zliaHBwFSGOa692VEJlLT9UPKbEhOb2ctEEwJ6HYAGzDuXg_rkssj4l6w&amp;__tn__=%2CO%2CP-RCP-R">commented on Souplantation's Facebook page.</a> "At a loss... we love Souplantation and also do not wish to lose all this money. Heartbroken!"Read the original article on <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/souplantation-to-declare-bankruptcy-close-locations-amid-coronavirus-2020-5">Business Insider</a>

Souplantation and Sweet Tomatoes are closing all locations, as the coronavirus pandemic threatens to destroy buffets and salad bars' already shaky future

<ul class="summary-list"><li>All-you-can-eat buffets are back after closing dining rooms or going bankrupt during the pandemic.</li><li>Golden Corral, Cicis, and Pizza Ranch are welcoming more customers, <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2023/05/05/business/golden-corral-cicis-buffets/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">CNN reported.</a></li></ul>All-you-can eat buffets are returning three years after the pandemic slowed down sales for some and put others out of business.Foot traffic at Golden Corral, Cicis, and Pizza Ranch, the US's top three buffet chains, rose 125% in March compared to January 2021, according to data from <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2023/05/05/business/golden-corral-cicis-buffets/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Placer.ai reported by CNN.</a>Many buffets had to close or reduce capacity during the early months of the pandemic. Now, they're becoming destinations again, with society mostly open and inflation forcing consumers to stretch the money that they spend on eating out.Golden Corral, which has roughly 400 locations in the US, grew its 2022 sales 14% over 2019, the company <a href="https://www.nrn.com/operations/golden-corral-proving-why-buffet-isn-t-dead-post-pandemic-world" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told Nation's Restaurant News in April.</a> The <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/golden-corrals-to-go-buffet-was-busy-but-felt-risky-2021-8">chain started offering take-out </a>meals and digital ordering in 2020 as many consumers stayed home.But CEO Lance Trenary told NRN that when it asked customers about their interest in the in-person, all-you-can-eat option, "it was just overwhelming that people wanted the buffet back."Now, with restaurant prices rising fast thanks to inflation, all-you-can-eat buffets are attracting diners looking for a good deal. "People are always telling us, 'We appreciate your value,' and we kept the lid on pricing and worked hard to maintain that value without cutting quality or variety of buffet options," Trenary said. Golden Corral is one of the buffet chains that survived the pandemic. Some, like the company behind Furr's Fresh Buffet and Old Country Buffet, filed for bankruptcy and permanently closed locations.But others are making a comeback. Salad buffet chain Sweet Tomatoes, which also operated restaurants under the Souplantation name, filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy and closed all of its locations in 2020 as visits cratered. But at least one Sweet Tomatoes location appears to be reopening in Tuscon, Arizona, <a href="https://www.restaurantbusinessonline.com/operations/pandemic-victim-sweet-tomatoes-planning-comeback#" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Restaurant Business reported in March.</a>And Texas-based Cicis, which filed for bankruptcy in 2021, grew sales by 10.4% in 2022 over 2019, President Jeff Hetsel <a href="https://www.franchisetimes.com/franchise_news/comeback-for-cicis-pizza-after-two-years-under-new-owners/article_1eb5a524-a1b8-11ed-8cab-fb3c83c07c8b.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told Franchise Times in January.</a> The chain is also adding bigger game rooms to its restaurants as patrons come back in-person, he said.Buffets are back, but whether or not to <a href="https://www.distractify.com/p/woman-says-to-tip-buffet-servers" target="_blank" rel="noopener">tip the staff at these restaurants is up for debate. </a>Do you work at a buffet and have a story to share? Please contact Alex Bitter at <a href="mailto:abitter@insider.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">abitter@insider.com</a> or via text/encrypted messaging app Signal at (808) 854-4501.

The buffet is back. Thank you, inflation.

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Casual dining chain <keyword id="129057" type="COMPANY" weightage="60" keywordseo="sizzler">Sizzler</keyword> filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Monday. </li><li>"Our current financial state is a direct consequence of the pandemic's economic impact due to long-term indoor dining closures and landlords' refusal to provide necessary rent abatements," Sizzler President Chris Perkins said. </li><li>Other restaurant chains to file for bankruptcy during the pandemic include Maison Kayser, Souplantation, and California Pizza Kitchen. </li></ul>Sizzler is the latest restaurant chain to file for bankruptcy amid the coronavirus pandemic — filing for Chapter 11 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of California on Monday.The company said in a filing that its goal is to keep restaurants open throughout the bankruptcy process, which will involve renegotiating leases for 14 company-owned locations. "Many restaurant brands across the country have suffered because of COVID-19 and Sizzler USA is no exception," Sizzler President Chris Perkins said in a statement. "Our current financial state is a direct consequence of the pandemic's economic impact due to long-term indoor dining closures and landlords' refusal to provide necessary rent abatements." Sizzler said it aims to complete the Chapter 11 process within roughly 120 days. Franchisees — who own and operate the vast majority of locations — will not be impacted by the filing. Business Insider's Irene Jiang reported that chain restaurants have permanently closed <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/chain-restaurants-permanently-closing-600-locations-due-to-pandemic-2020-5">more than 1,500 locations</a> since the pandemic began. While some chains are simply shuttering underperforming locations, others are restructuring more seriously. The companies behind chains like Maison Kayser, Souplantation, and California Pizza Kitchen <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/8-restaurant-chains-that-have-filed-for-bankruptcy-during-pandemic-2020-9#maison-kayser-8">have all filed for bankruptcy in recent months.</a>A recent survey from the National Restaurant Association found that nearly 100,000 restaurants have closed across the US since the pandemic began. Experts say that restaurants' struggles are unlikely to cease in the coming months, as the loss of extra unemployment benefits and the arrival of cold weather will keep customers from outdoor dining. "It's very clear now that it's not a 2020 problem," Oliver Wright, the global head of Accenture's consumer goods and services practice, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/restaurants-face-another-sales-drag-the-2020-election-2020-9">told Business Insider.</a>According to Wright, it is unlikely that disposable income levels will return to 2019 figures until early to mid-2022."The next 15 months, at a minimum, and probably next 18 months are going to be extremely challenging," for restaurants, Wright said.

Sizzler files for bankruptcy as the pandemic demolishes sales at casual-dining restaurants

<ul class="summary-list"><li>As <keyword id="1780654" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Ruby-Tuesday">Ruby Tuesday</keyword> continues to silently shed restaurants, recent activity shows the pandemic may be the death of the iconic restaurant chain.</li><li>Since January 23, Ruby Tuesday has closed 169 locations, leaving a total of 298 restaurants worldwide, according to data provided by AggData.</li><li>The chain has leaned into its salad bar in recent years — a format that's especially incompatible with pandemic-era business, as evidenced by the bankruptcy of salad bar buffet-chains Souplantation and Sweet Tomatoes.</li><li>Ruby Tuesday has gone through five CEOs in the last five years, and has been without a CEO for the last two.</li></ul>The pandemic may be the death of Ruby Tuesday.The casual dining chain, which <a href="https://www.restaurantbusinessonline.com/financing/tgi-fridays-ruby-tuesday-among-chains-received-ppp-funds">received</a> between $5 million and $10 million in paycheck protection program small business loans, keeps on hemorrhaging restaurants — as quietly as possible. Since January 23, Ruby Tuesday has closed 169 restaurants, according to location data compiled by AggData, and only 298 Ruby Tuesdays still remain open worldwide.The casual-dining chain was already struggling before the pandemic. But the coronavirus has highlighted concerns about the company's future, as it also copes with an an aging customer base.Ruby Tuesday did not respond to Business Insider's request for comment on its restaurant closures.Formerly a bar and grill brand, Ruby Tuesday has since leaned into expanding its buffet-style salad bar — a format that has had trouble attracting younger customers and is particularly <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/coronavirus-pandemic-may-spell-death-for-buffet-restaurants-2020-5">ill-equipped</a> to survive the pandemic. As an example, Garden Fresh, the parent company of salad buffet-chains Souplantation and Sweet Tomatoes, filed for <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/souplantation-to-declare-bankruptcy-close-locations-amid-coronavirus-2020-5">bankruptcy</a> in May.Four Ruby Tuesday employees emailed Business Insider to express concern over the chain's decline.A Missouri-based Ruby Tuesday employee, who requested to remain anonymous for job security reasons, said via telephone that they felt the company had taken a turn for the worse."I'm literally embarrassed to tell people I work there," the 16-year Ruby Tuesday employee told Business Insider. "I used to love my job but now, it's just a joke."The employee said that they'd felt the chain had struggled to regain its footing following the 2008 recession, trying several times to rebrand before failing each time. They were also disheartened by rapid, and often confusing, changes in its executive leadership.Ruby Tuesday has gone through five CEOs in the last five years: JJ Buettgen, Lane Cardwell, Jim Hyatt, Aziz Hashim, and most recently Ray Blanchette – who left the company in 2018 after <a href="https://www.restaurantbusinessonline.com/leadership/ray-blanchette-has-another-new-job-time-tgi-fridays-ceo">just nine months</a> for TGI Friday's. Most set out with the goal of turning the struggling chain around before vacating the position months later.Currently, Ruby Tuesday still does not have an acting CEO.The Missouri Ruby Tuesday employee said that they have reluctantly started looking for a new job. "You don't work someplace 16 years without feeling a strong sense of loyalty. But man, that loyalty is quickly being eroded."Are you a current or former Ruby Tuesday employee? We'd love to hear your story. Please reach out to the reporter at ijiang@businessinsider.com

Ruby Tuesday has shut down more than one-third of its restaurants this year as the chain buckles under pandemic pressures and an aging customer base

DoorDashDoorDash delivery.Struggling restaurant chains are turning to a new strategy to try and appeal to customers: delivery. In the era of GrubHub and Seamless, convenience is increasingly important in the restaurant business.Americans order 1.7 billion meals online every year and one-fourth of people claim to have ordered a meal via delivery in the past three months, according to the NPD Group. Meanwhile, restaurants are struggling to convince customers to eat out. In the first quarter of 2017, industry-wide same-store sales dropped 1.1%, while traffic fell 3.4%, according to <a href="http://www.nrn.com/sales-trends/q1-restaurant-sales-performance-disappoints-despite-march-improvements">Nation's Restaurant News.</a> In the last year, companies operating chains such as Logan's Roadhouse and Souplantation have filed for bankruptcy. <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-05-04/joe-s-crab-shack-owner-said-to-be-preparing-bankruptcy-filing">Bloomberg reported Thursday </a>that Ignite Restaurant Group - which runs Joe's Crab Shack and Brick House Tavern - could do the same as early as next week.As traffic drops, restaurant chains are increasingly looking to delivery as a solution. McDonald's is testing delivery through UberEats in multiple cities across the US, with the most recent trial run in Pittsburgh <a href="http://www.wtae.com/article/uber-eats-food-delivery-app-launches-today-in-pittsburgh/9601571">announced last week.</a> On Monday, Wendy's launched delivery at <a href="http://www.daytondailynews.com/business/wendy-testing-out-home-delivery-concept-ohio/FWLbCg3IG5i8Rmlvki1BhP/">135 locations in Ohio.</a> And, Panera Bread is rolling out delivery at 35 to 40% of its locations this year, the company announced in January. Delivery is especially crucial for casual dining, or sit-down, restaurant chains, which have been <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/can-chains-survive-death-of-casual-dining-2017-2">hit hardest</a> by the restaurant recession.APSay good bye to the supremacy of sit-down service."The only part of casual dining that's growing right now is the off premise side," said Bonnie Riggs, foodservice industry analyst for NPD, <a href="http://www.nrn.com/casual-dining/casual-dining-finds-ray-light-takeout">recently told Nation's Restaurant News. </a>Cheesecake Factory <a href="http://foodondemandnews.com/panera-cheesecake-factory-target-delivery-growth-in-2017/">announced earlier this year</a> it is expanding delivery to half of its 194 US locations through DoorDash, a third party delivery service. T.G.I. Fridays, Chili's, and Maggiano's are all now on Grubhub, and Buffalo Wild Wings and Red Robin are <a href="http://www.cnbc.com/2017/05/01/cramer-taps-into-how-grubhub-is-changing-the-game-for-food-chains.html">testing the service.</a> Outback Steakhouse is using both third-party services and<a href="https://seekingalpha.com/article/4065649-bloomin-brands-blmn-ceo-liz-smith-q1-2017-results-earnings-call-transcript?part=single"> building its own delivery service.</a>While delivery is clearly a compelling option to offer, it isn't a simple service for restaurants to add. Customers often <a href="http://www.cnbc.com/2017/05/01/cramer-taps-into-how-grubhub-is-changing-the-game-for-food-chains.html">spend less when ordering delivery,</a> especially at casual dining chains that rely on alcohol orders to drive sales. In-house delivery means added complexities, paying drivers, and additional insurance costs. Using a third-party means losing control over the food's quality.Taco Bell's CEO Brian Niccol<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/taco-bell-continues-delivery-experiments-2017-4"> told Business Insider</a> that delivery is customers' No. 1 demand at the chain. Despite several tests, the Mexican fast-food chain hasn't figured out a way to make the service work. "The third party folks, the aggregators - they're just not fast enough," Niccol said. However, as customers' demand for convenience grows, chains are increasingly going to have to invest in delivery - or be beaten by restaurants that have. <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/starbucks-unicorn-frappuccino-changes-color-flavor-2017-4">We tried Starbucks' new color-changing Unicorn Frappuccino that's taking over Instagram</a></h3> Please enable Javascript to watch this video

Chains are banking on this new strategy to combat the restaurant apocalypse

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/inparistexas/7117312527">Amy Claxton/Flickr</a>The chain restaurant industry hasn't experienced same-store sales growth in more than a year - and it doesn't look like things are going to change any time soon. In the first quarter of 2017, same-store sales fell 1.1% across the chain restaurant industry, with same-store traffic dropping 3.4%, according to data from TDn2K's Restaurant Industry Snapshot.In the last year, the companies operating chains such as Logan's Roadhouse and Souplantation have filed for bankruptcy. <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-05-04/joe-s-crab-shack-owner-said-to-be-preparing-bankruptcy-filing">Bloomberg reported </a>last week that Ignite Restaurant Group - which runs Joe's Crab Shack and Brick House Tavern - is considering doing the same.The industry's slumping sales at first seems befuddling. Consumer confidence has <a href="https://www.conference-board.org/data/consumerconfidence.cfm">generally increased in recent months, </a>which typically means people are willing to spend more. So, why are restaurants struggling to attract customers? The problem, according to experts, is that the US is over-packed with options. <a href="http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tgif-nyc.jpg">Wikimedia Commons</a>"We believe there is an over-supply of restaurants out there," Victor Fernandez, TDn2K's executive director of insights, told Business Insider.Since 2008, same-store traffic across chain restaurants has dropped 14.8%, according to TDn2K's data. Now, that's impacting sales. In the first quarter of 2017, only one third of chains posted comparable sales growth, according to Fernandez. In the first quarter of last year, half of chains reported growth.Concerns that there are simply too many places to eat out for chain restaurants to succeed have swept the industry. Executives at both <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/why-chain-restaurants-are-struggling-2016-10">Starbucks and Darden, Olive Garden's parent company, </a>have said that the US is "over-retailed."Yet, chains "keep on adding restaurants," Fernandez says. Even though McDonald's traffic dropped in 2016, the largest chain in the country opened <a href="http://corporate.mcdonalds.com/content/dam/AboutMcDonalds/Investors/2016%20Annual%20Report.pdf">more than 350 net new restaurants</a> in the US last year. Starbucks' US store count increased by <a href="http://investor.starbucks.com/financial-information/annual-reports/default.aspx">321</a> in 2016, despite the CEO's concerns that there were too many retail and restaurant locations opened in the US. Even Chipotle, struggling to recover following an E. coli scandal in late 2015, opened 240 new restaurants last year. Restaurants are also facing external competition, with increasing food delivery options, the popularity of meal kits like Blue Apron, and independent restaurant growth, which is outpacing that of chain restaurants. Grocery chains are increasingly competing with restaurants, thanks to lower prices and perks such as pick-up and delivery, new technology, and trendy features like wine bars and to-go meals. MuncheryMeal kit services like Blue Apron and Munchery are cutting into restaurant sales."It used to just be the chain restaurant," that was the sole option when Americans wanted to eat out, Fernandez said. "Now, there's many, many options that people are replacing chains with." What's the solution? Basically, something has got to give - and restaurants are going to close. "Some restaurants have unfortunately closed down because they don't have the numbers they need," Fernandez said. "And we're facing more of that going forward." Retailers like Sears and Macy's are currently dealing with an oversaturation of brick-and-mortar stores. More than 3,200 store closures have been announced by retail chains so far in 2017. <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/warren-buffett-just-confirmed-the-death-of-retail-as-we-know-it-2017-5">Credit Suisse analysts </a>predict that number will increase to more than 8,600 by the end of the year. The restaurant industry is unlikely to face such an explosive apocalypse. Fernandez predicts that this year will be an improvement for restaurants over 2016, which was <a href="https://www.qsrmagazine.com/news/2016-was-worst-restaurant-year-recession">the worst year for the industry since the recession. </a>However, as competition to win over customers increases, both from other restaurants and from a growing number of external threats, chains need to make some major changes to grow sales - and not every restaurant chain is going to survive. <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/brand-logos-real-dopplegangers-design-starbucks-starpreya-airbnb-medium-ford-carrier-2017-5">Starbucks or Starpreya? Here are real logos that look eerily similar</a></h3> Please enable Javascript to watch this video

You Searched For "souplantation" and got 7 results

These 8 restaurant chains have filed for bankruptcy in 2020 in the wake of the pandemic. See the full list.

Irene Jiang

Souplantation and Sweet Tomatoes are closing all locations, as the coronavirus pandemic threatens to destroy buffets and salad bars' already shaky future

Kate Taylor

The buffet is back. Thank you, inflation.

Alex Bitter

Sizzler files for bankruptcy as the pandemic demolishes sales at casual-dining restaurants

Kate Taylor

Ruby Tuesday has shut down more than one-third of its restaurants this year as the chain buckles under pandemic pressures and an aging customer base

Irene Jiang

Chains are banking on this new strategy to combat the restaurant apocalypse

Kate Taylor

The restaurant industry is in the depths of a recession - and chains are only making the problem worse

Kate Taylor

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