TGI Fridays has quietly shuttered multiple locations across three states as the struggling restaurant chain navigates Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
Local reports found closures at four Las Vegas locations, two Long Island outposts, and several Pennsylvania storefronts.
The company has not publicly commented on the latest round of shutdowns and did not respond to a request for comment from DailyMail.com.
Fridays fans still have several options to purchase the restaurant’s iconic ribs, burgers, and signature cocktails.
In Pennsylvania, restaurants in Williamsport, Wilkes-Barre, Scranton, Gettysburg, Bethlehem, and Quakertown are still open. Long Island retains its Central Islip and Valley Stream locations, while one storefront on Boulder Highway in Las Vegas remains active, according to Google listings.
But the slate of closures is yet another contraction for the once-dominant chain. The brand declared Chapter 11 bankruptcy in November 2024.
As the company restructures its debt, dozens of stores have shut down in rapid succession. The week before its bankruptcy announcement, Fridays shuttered 50 locations.
Founded in 1965, TGI Fridays sales and store locations peaked in 2008 with 601 U.S. restaurants and $2 billion in net revenue. At its height, the brand also boasted 300 international locations.
The chain of casual restaurants has shuttered more locations in early 2025
But the latest closures continue a years-long decline for the casual dining chain.
The downturn started in 2009 when the U.S. entered a recession, leading to a sharp 24 percent drop in sales to $1.5 billion.
At the time, the company’s restaurant count also fell, shrinking to 480 locations across the country.
Declines accelerated during the COVID-19 lockdowns in 2020. The restaurant reported further difficulties in 2021 with inflation squeezing the chain as food-away-from-home prices surged, according to the Consumer Price Index.
‘The primary driver of our financial challenges resulted from COVID-19 and our capital structure,’ Fridays’ executive chairman, Rohit Manocha, said in a statement following the bankruptcy.
In October 2024, the brand reported 164 open storefronts across the U.S., per Nation’s Restaurant News. Now, the brand’s website states it has 125 locations nationwide, slashing the restaurant headcount by one-fifth from 2008.
Revenue has also plummeted. The company reported $728 million in sales in 2023, marking a 63 percent decline from its peak.
Despite the downturn, the brand still has dedicated supporters.
Ray Blanchette, the company’s CEO between 2018 and 2023, has continued to purchase Fridays franchises across the U.S.
TGI Fridays locations have become more sparse across the US
TGI Fridays, famous for its signature burgers and drinks, reported sales declines since 2008
Several Fridays locations have shuttered (left) as its former CEO Ray Blanchette has made bids to purchase restaurants from the corporation
Speaking to the Wall Street Journal, Blanchette framed the company’s potential revival in simple terms.
‘This isn’t rocket science,’ he told the publication. ‘You have to sell people a good time. We sell experiences, not groceries.’
Blanchette submitted a bid worth $30.5 million to buy nine corporate-owned restaurants in Maryland and Texas with his franchise company, Sugarloaf Hospitality.
As part of the agreement, Blanchette is hoping to maintain Fridays’ branding and menu.
Blanchette already operates eight other Fridays locations in the U.S.
The new bid amounts to $3.4 million per restaurant. TGI Fridays reported a gross sales number of $2.6 million pre corporate-owned location in 2023.
But Blanchette said told the Wall Street Journal he wants to model a revival for the nostalgic brand.
‘I’ve spent the vast majority of my career here,’ he told the publication. ‘It’s an entire body of work. I don’t want to see the brand go away.’
Fridays is far from the only chain casual restaurant struggling with sales in the post-pandemic lockdown era.
Several other national chains, including Red Lobster, World of Beer Bar & Kitchen, and BurgerFi also filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2024 as customers, rocked by inflationary pressures, flocked to incentive-laden meal deals.
In dozens of Reddit threads, customers have complained about the price of seated meals and explained how they’ve adjusted their spending habits.
‘Besides cooking at home I am eating at more strip malls and street food,’ one restaurant-goer said. ‘It’s actually a good value in terms of things I can’t make at home.’
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