Casual restaurant chains continue battling industry headwinds, such as declining foot traffic, increased lease rates, and other rising costs, that are forcing companies to close dozens of underperforming locations.
Red Robin Gourmet Burgers Inc. said it plans to close 20 restaurants in 2026 as leases expire after closing 23 locations in 2025. The Ruby Tuesday restaurant chain has been downsizing its chain for almost 20 years, as its locations have declined from 945 locations in 2007 to about 174 today.
Bravo Italian Kitchen closed locations in Ohio and Iowa in September 2026.TennesseePhotographer / Getty Images Bravo Italian Kitchen closes locations
Bravo Italian Kitchen has continued closing locations since filing for bankruptcy in August 2025, as it has abruptly closed its restaurant at the Dayton Mall in Miami Township in Ohio, a WDTN-TV report said on Sept. 8.
The chain also shuttered its location at the Jordan Creek Town Center in Des Moines, Iowa, the Des Moines Register reported on Sept. 4.
The Italian restaurant chain’s sister establishment Brio Italian Grille has closed locations in 2026, shuttering its Cherry Hill, N.J., unit in June, according to NJ.com; a Marlton, N.J., location in May, a Freehold Raceway Mall restaurant in Freehold, N.J., in February, and one at the Mall at Millenia in Orlando, Fla., also in February, Orlando Business Journal reported.
Brio Italian Grille also closes units
The restaurant chain owner has closed 9 Bravo Italian Kitchen locations in the last year and currently operates a total of 14. It also closed 9 Brio Italian Grille locations since it filed for bankruptcy in August 2025, and now operates 16 locations.
Bravo Brio Restaurants LLC, which was owned by Planet Hollywood owner Earl Enterprises, and four affiliates filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection for a second time on Aug. 18, 2025, to reorganize its business and restructure debt, as it operated 25 Brio Italian Grille in 12 states and 23 Bravo Italian Kitchen locations also in 12 states at the time.
Bravo Brio said the Chapter 11 filing would allow it to close underperforming locations, restructure its debt, and cut costs. The debtor blamed the economy for its economic distress.
“In addition, ongoing inflationary pressure, rising food and labor costs and a softening in discretionary consumer spending have contributed to underperformance, especially in shopping centers with high vacancies and declining foot traffic,” the company said as Restaurant Business reported.
“These pressures have proved insurmountable to numerous other legacy casual-dining restaurant brands, many of whom have also turned to bankruptcy as a tool for restructuring,” the company said.
Declining mall traffic problem
A chronic brick-and-mortar problem with declining foot traffic had a significant impact on the Bravo Brio Restaurants chains as they had heavy exposure in malls, Restaurant Dive reported.
“The chains have had difficulty with restaurants located in shopping centers that have high vacancies and low foot traffic, problems which have only worsened with discretionary consumer spending softening,” according to Restaurant Dive.
“Ongoing inflationary pressures and increased food and labor costs contributed to the company’s deteriorating financial condition,” the report said.
Debtor found a buyer
R&R Brands, a multi-concept hospitality and entertainment company, purchased the chains out of bankruptcy on Oct. 6, 2025, according to Restaurant Dive.
The restaurant chain‘s previous owner, Food First Global Restaurants, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in April 2020, suffering from the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Bravo Italian Kitchen opened in 1992 in Columbus, Ohio, and along with Brio Italian Grille, the two restaurant chains grew to a combined 130 locations at their peak. The chains had downsized to 118 operating restaurants by early 2017, according to its annual financial results for 2016.
Related: 49-year-old beloved pizza dining chain quietly closes locations
This story was originally published by TheStreet on Sep 9, 2026, where it first appeared in the Restaurants section. Add TheStreet as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
