The Declining Casual Restaurant Chain Boomers Remember Fondly

It's not always easy being a baby boomer. Sure, they're the wealthiest and most prosperous generation in human history, with said prosperity often coming at the direct and indirect expense of younger generations. But sometimes, their favorite restaurants close, and they get sad about it — and you know what, that's something every generation can commiserate over, from Gen X lovers of the disappearing Rainforest Cafe to boomer fans of the declining chain restaurant, Houlihan's, which now has just 21 locations across the country.

Houlihan's started in 1961, when two Kansas City restaurateurs named Paul Robinson and Joe Gilbert decided to collaborate and start a new venture. Robinson and Gilbert were looking to open a restaurant in an empty space once occupied by a store called Tom Houlihan's, which sold men's clothes. (The two got their blessing from Houlihan to use his name, although he never visited the restaurant, despite a standing offer to eat for free.) 

Houlihan's was an early example of the kind of fast casual restaurant chain that proliferated in the latter half of the 20th century: TGI Friday's, Ruby Tuesdays, Chili's, so on and so forth. Boomers can often be found fondly recalling the restaurant on social media, including Reddit. "[It] had great nachos," wrote one Redditor. "It was a perfect place to watch football with friends in the late 70s and early 80s." Another posted Houlihan's brunch menu from 1985 on the subreddit r/RetroMenus and noted, "I [looked] forward to enjoying omelettes and quiche. Before I was ordered to take tons of medications for life, I would've definitely enjoyed a screwdriver drink — always more orange juice and less vodka... otherwise, zzzzzzz." Ah, boomers.

So why, exactly, has Houlihan's faded from relevance in recent years? It's not as though Americans stopped eating burgers and wings, and Houlihan's menu has a few other specialties to call its own (most notably its fried mushroom appetizer). Well, we did mention that boomers like it, right? That's certainly not a bad thing, but it does mean it can be a bit old-fashioned. "Houlihan's is unexciting but solid and predictable," noted an article in the Tampa Bay Times all the way back in 1998, and while a rebrand was attempted in 2006, it didn't quite do enough to keep things fresh. 

Between 2019 and 2024, more than half of all Houlihan's locations closed, and today, only 21 remain. When it filed for bankruptcy in 2019, a few different reasons were cited, including troublesome leases, an unsettled labor market, and the rise of delivery apps like Uber Eats and Postmates. And bear in mind, this was before the pandemic hit in 2020. 

Six years later (has it really been that long?), those problems have gotten much worse. The job market is brutal, leases are as much of a headache as ever, and delivery apps continue to eat into the dining market (despite often ripping you off even more than you knew). Houlihan's has since been bought by Landry's, the restaurant group owned by Houston Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta, so it remains to be seen whether or not it can turn things around. But if it doesn't, well, it wouldn't be the only once-popular restaurant chain that now barely exists.