2025 restaurant closures: Starbucks, Wendy’s shutter locations

As the restaurant industry endures another difficult year, many chains have opted to close underperforming restaurants while trying to recover their business.

Consumers fed up with inflation have pulled back on restaurant spending, opting to dine at home or seek out deals when they go out to eat. While some restaurants have attracted reluctant customers, the industry has largely struggled with a decline in sales. Traffic to restaurants open at least a year has fallen every month in 2025, except for July, according to Black Box Intelligence.

In recent years, restaurant closures have been more concentrated at casual dining chains, which have lost customers to fast-casual competitors. chipotle. However, this year, chains in the industry have announced plans to close at least hundreds of locations.

In such a difficult environment, some restaurant companies even applied for bankruptcy protection. Hooters, Pinstripes and On the Border were some of the notable names that hit bankruptcy court this year.

Here are the chains that announced that they will close in 2025:

The coffee giant made an announcement in September. $1 billion restructuring plan that includes closing approximately 500 North American locations. The closures extended to the closure of the company’s upscale Reserve Roastery cafe in its hometown of Seattle.

in November, Wendy’s announced that it would undergo a strategic review of its restaurant footprint and begin closing underperforming locations in that quarter. While the company hasn’t announced a specific number of closures, interim CEO and CFO Ken Cook told analysts the company could close a “mid-single-digit percentage” of its restaurants in the U.S., which would mean hundreds of burger chain locations.

In February, Denny’s It plans to close 70 to 90 restaurants by 2025, it said. The restaurant chain’s sales have fallen in recent months as customers prefer to visit cheaper fast-food restaurants for breakfast. The change in behavior led the company to close underperforming locations and attempt to improve the rest of the restaurant’s footprint.

in November, chain explained had sold itself to Yadav Enterprises, TriArtisan Capital Advisors and Treville Capital Group for $620 million. The deal is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2026, pending regulatory approval.

in April, Jack in the Box It said it would close 150 to 200 restaurants as part of its “Jack on Track” strategy to improve its financial performance. As of fiscal 2025 end on Sept. 28, the chain had permanently closed 86 restaurants.

Bahama Breeze parent company in May Darden Restaurants It closed 15 locations of the chain, representing roughly a third of its total footprint.

Dozens of Hardee’s locations will close by the end of the year franchisor filed a lawsuit ARC Burger is one of the largest franchisees. Hardee’s claims the operator is behind on payments such as royalties, rent and taxes.

ARC, owned by private equity firm High Bluff Capital Partners, operated 77 Hardee’s restaurants before the legal battle began. Its footprint spans eight states, including Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Missouri, Montana, South Carolina and Wyoming, according to legal records.

In the first three quarters of 2025 Papa John’s According to company filings, 173 restaurants were closed worldwide. Most of the closures affected international locations, but 62 of the pizza chain’s U.S. locations also closed.

At the end of October, Noodles and Co.. Managers, who closed 29 company-owned restaurants this year, said they plan to close two to five more underperforming restaurants by the end of 2025.

Restaurant company in October Blooming Brands It closed 21 locations across the company. The closures affected the jewel of its portfolio, Outback Steakhouse, as well as Bonefish Grill and Carrabba’s Italian Grill.