13 Chain Restaurants We Can't Believe Shut Down So Many Locations In 2026 Already

Chain restaurants come and go, but some feel like they've been around forever. However, just because everyone knows your name, that doesn't mean you're doing financially well, or that you're ready to expand your footprint even further.

That's not something that chain restaurants like to advertise, though. They'd rather woo you with their seasonal specials, celebrity-inspired fast-food meals, larger-than-life cocktails, or influencer collabs. Don't look behind the curtain, folks. You may just find some scary trends that could leave you concerned that your local outpost may very well be on its last leg.

So, which of your favorite chain haunts do you need to potentially worry about losing this summer? There are a handful of brands that are shutting down locations left and right. Is yours next? These are the 13 chain restaurants we can't believe shut down so many locations in 2026 already, from the regional classics to the national household name brands (now might just be a good time to stock up on your favorite copy-cat recipes).

If you were asked to name the "big" burger chains, you might envision the ones that you can find in just about any town in America, the ones whose lights shine bright down many an interstate offramp: McDonald's, Burger King, and Wendy's. One of these three, though, has made our list of chain restaurants shutting down a surprising number of locations in 2026.

To anyone who's been following Wendy's financial news for the last few years (you mean that's not what you like to read over your morning coffee?), this should come as no surprise. In 2024, Wendy's closed 240 of its U.S. restaurants. At the time, the brand blamed outdated storefronts. 

Things did look like they might improve in early 2025, as the brand opened more than a hundred new global restaurants in the first half of the year. However, by the end of the year, it was found that, over Q4, global sales fell by 10% (at locations that had been open at least 12 months). Sales at U.S. stores specifically were even worse. During that quarter, Wendy's closed 28 restaurants. That brings us to 2026, with Wendy's expected to pull the plug on 300–360 stores across the country between January and July.

That's not to say that Wendy's is giving up the ghost just yet. In October 2025, it announced a new initiative: Project Fresh, through which it hopes to take strategic steps to strengthen the brand and increase profitability.

Currently, nearly a hundred Starbucks locations are on their way out, across 23 states. The (somewhat?) good news? If you like to grab your pumpkin spice latte and chill for a bit at your local Starbucks, maybe check your email or meet up with a friend, your spot is safe. The closures specifically target pick-up-only and mobile-only locations. While some will be gone for good, others could be converted into true Starbucks locales.

The closures are seemingly part of the Back to Starbucks initiative, introduced in 2024. The move more or less aims to bring back the "good ol' days" of Starbucks, improving the in-store experience. As part of Back to Starbucks, the chain brought back condiment bars and handwritten notes on cups, and ditched extra charges for your almond or oat milk. It also streamlined its menu and brought free refills and ceramic mugs to the cafes. Unfortunately, per Reddit, some baristas aren't quite keen on the changes, saying that those features of the Starbucks experience were axed for a reason; for example, writing notes on cups takes more time.

Noodles & Company may not boast quite as much brand recognition as Starbucks or Wendy's, but it's still a fan-favorite fast-casual chain, and, if you've never visited, you could probably guess what it serves.

At the end of 2025, Noodles & Company was comprised of 340 corporate-owned locations and 83 franchises. The brand's number of restaurants, though, has been whittled away over the last year and a half. In 2025, the company closed 42 locations. In 2026, it plans to close as many as 35. That results in a nearly 20% decrease in locations since 2024.

The move isn't one made out of desperation or overall poor performance, though. Instead, Noodles & Company is taking a strategic approach, focusing on its best-performing locations and doing away with those that are falling behind. In short, if you love your local Noodles & Company and want it to stick around, you'd best pay the location a visit (or two) to boost its sales.

In 2025, Red Robin closed 23 restaurants, and it plans to close an additional 20 restaurants in 2026. That will bring Red Robin's total number of locations throughout the United States to 455. Last year, the chain was already on the decline, with 2025 sales decreasing by 0.7% and traffic decreasing by 3.8%. However, Red Robin has a plan and it feels that that plan is working.

In mid-2025, Red Robin launched a new initiative that would hopefully save some of its restaurants. You may've seen part of that initiative at work in person, if you've glanced the chain's Big Yummm value meals. Promising the best value on the menu and starting at $9.99, the meals allow you to choose between options such as burgers, chicken wraps, pizza, or a chicken sandwich, alongside bottomless fries and drinks. Additionally, as of January 2026, Red Robin began offering drink deals every day. In Q4 2025, those Big Yummm meals made up nearly 10% of Red Robin's sales.

For some chains, if they close a few dozen locations, or, like Wendy's, even a few hundred, over the course of a few months or year, it's really not going to be super-noticeable to many consumers, nationwide. Most people will still have at least one location within driving distance. However, some chains' 2026 closures are a bit more dramatically obvious. Such is the case with Bahama Breeze Island Grille, which is closing all of its 28 locations across the country.

Bahama Breeze Island Grille is owned by Darden Restaurants, and the company reported that it would cease use of 14 of its locations completely, while repurposing the other 14 locations for one of its other brands. That conversion process, it said, would take at least year.

So, if you had a Bahama Breeze Island Grille in your backyard that's shut down this spring, or that is in the process of shutting down (while an April final closure date was set, some report that the transitioning restaurants are remaining open longer), what might you expect it to change into? Well, Darden Restaurants owns quite a number of other brands, including: Olive Garden, LongHorn Steakhouse, Yard House, Ruth's Chris Steak House, Cheddar's Scratch Kitchen, The Capital Grille, Chuy's, Seasons 52, and Eddie V's. According to theorizers on Reddit, they've heard news that their locations are being rebranded as Yard House.

Like some other chains on this list, Jack in the Box is not going easy on its underperforming locations, shuttering the runts of the litter. The process started in 2025, when Jack in the Box announced it would be closing up to 120 restaurants by the end of the year. Now, the brand plans to close another 50–100 restaurants in 2026, closing 12 of those in Q1. Franchise locations are most likely to be on the chopping block. Jack in the Box also sold Del Taco in December 2025.

However, as is the case with some of these brands that are closing restaurants left and right, Jack in the Box's moves are strategic. While it is planning to close 50–100 restaurants in 2026, it also plans to open 20 new restaurants. Likewise, it's investing in existing restaurants with cosmetic upgrades, at a cost of $10,000–$20,000 per spot. As of the end of Q1 2026, Jack in the Box encompassed 2,128 total restaurants.

Starting in 2025, continuing on into this year and the years ahead, Outback is closing roughly 40 locations. Twenty-one locations closed in late 2025, and the remaining restaurants are closing over the next few years, as their leases are not renewed. Regardless, Outback parent company Bloomin' seems to be excited about the year ahead, with plans to invest $50 million in a revitalization of the brand. Attention will be paid to food quality, with more invested on steak and cooking equipment, as well as customer experience. It plans to reduce the table-server ratio during peak hours, and also greatly remodel its existing restaurants.

Not all is looking bright for Outback, though. As of June, a lawsuit against Outback Steakhouse has made its way into federal courts, with a 56-year-old woman suing for $1.5 million. The woman claims that she slipped on some mashed potatoes on her walk to the bathroom. The hefty amount the lawsuit is requesting is to make up for the medical costs and pain that the woman incurred, as well as her lost wages, as the accident impeded her ability to work.

Over the next year and a half, by the end of 2027, Papa Johns plans to close 300 stores throughout the country, with 200 of those closures occurring in 2026. The locations are mostly franchises that have been targeted for lack of financial improvement and age. At the start of the year, the brand had just over 3,500 U.S. locations, making this number of closures not insignificant.

In 2025, North American Papa Johns locations overall saw a 2% year-over-year revenue decrease. Company-owned restaurants saw a larger decrease than franchises. However, sales increased by 1% globally. Meanwhile, Papa Johns reduced its corporate workforce by 7%. Papa Johns also chose to discontinue some menu items in mid-2026, including Papa Bites and Papadias; while these items were found to increase sales, the brand decided they had to go due to productivity and operational complexity issues. Nixing these items, the brand hopes, will allow team members to focus on doing what Papa Johns has built its business around: Make pizza.

Papa Johns isn't the only pizza brand with locations in hot water. Pizza Hut likewise is planning to shut down stores — to the tune of about 4% of its U.S. locations, or 250 restaurants. As of April 2026, about 50 of those closures had already occurred, with a goal of completing all closures by July 1. 

Pizza Hut's sales in the United States fell by 5% last year, and things are looking so grim that its parent company, Yum, is considering selling the brand. In fact, media reports indicate that LongRange Capital has begun negotiations with Yum to obtain Pizza Hut in the early summer. Yum also owns KFC, Taco Bell, and Habit Burger and Grill, and you'll notice that none of those other brands are on this list. With Taco Bell and KFC showing strong performance in 2026 thus far (Taco Bell's sales are up 10% in Q1, for example), it's no wonder that Pizza Hut is looking a little lackluster.

However, things do look a little more positive if you go beyond Pizza Huts within the United States. The brand seems to be doing well internationally, as Pizza Hut opened more than a thousand stores outside the U.S. in 2025.

With Jack in the Box selling Del Taco for $115 million in late 2025, one might hope that the brand was moving on to greener pastures, with new owner Yadav Enterprises, which also owns Taco Cabana and Nick the Greek. However, at first glance, it seems that the streak of bad luck that was plaguing Del Taco over the last few years continues on.

When Jack in the Box acquired Del Taco, it had about 600 stores. At the time of last year's sale, it had around 550. Now, in 2026, it's lost even more locations. In February, all the Del Taco locations in Georgia closed, due to a franchisee's bankruptcy. 

Luckily, the new owners have a plan in place, so hopefully this is the last of the closures you see. A campaign dubbed "Project Sunrise" is focusing on the heart of just why fans around the country have historically loved Del Taco. For example, the chain is reversing course and returning to previously used product names, and prior recipes. The Combo Beef and Bean is back as the Del Combo Burrito, the Grilled Chicken is back as the Del Classic Chicken Burrito, the Jack'd Up menu is making a return — and that's just for starters.

In April, Smokey Bones closed all of its locations, all across the country. The rapid closures shocked communities, with many customers only finding out that their local barbecue chain had closed up shop due to simple printed messages taped to store doors. The employees had it worse, though, with some reporting that they had minimal, if any, notice.

Smokey Bones was owned by FAT Brands Inc., as part of its subsidiary Twin Hospitality Group. FAT Brands and Twin Hospitality Group both filed for bankruptcy in early 2026, though, so while the nationwide closure of Smokey Bones seemed sudden, maybe we shouldn't have been as shocked as we were. Time will tell what will happen to FAT Brands' and Twin Hospitality Group's other restaurant chains, which include Twin Peaks, Johnny Rockets, Fazoli's, Fatburger, and more. Already, Twin Hospitality has repurposed some of the Smokey Bones locations into new Twin Peaks eateries.

Earlier this year, a large Popeyes franchisee filed for bankruptcy and ended up shutting down at least 20 of its 136 restaurants in Florida and Georgia. As of March, reports were not certain what would happen to the other 100+ restaurants under the franchisee's purview. However, it wouldn't be all that surprising if we saw more locations — regardless of franchisee — closing further on into this year. Popeyes kicked off 2026 with its worst quarterly performance in 19 years, as same-store sales dropped by 6.5%. Meanwhile, competition is fierce, as more and more chains introduce chicken to their menu, and with chicken chain locations rising by nearly 50% over the last 10 years.

Popeyes is owned by Restaurant Brands International, which also operates Tim Hortons, Burger King, and Firehouse Subs. The executives there, though, said in May 2026 that they basically have a plan for Popeyes: Improve service, streamline the menu, and become more consistent. This translates to increasing training and focusing on staple menu items rather than a steady stream of special, limited-time items.

For many of a certain age, Joe's Crab Shack is synonymous with a beach vacation. At one time, any big beach destination you visited, chances were likely that you could spot a Joe's Crab Shack in the beach's vicinity. However, that's becoming a thing of the past. While, in 2006, Joe's Crab Shack could boast 120 locations across the country, by late 2025, the chain only had 18 and, as of mid-2026, it only has 14.

Joe's Crab Shack is owned by Landry's Restaurant Group, and the company hasn't only been closing down Joe's. It's also been slowly reducing some of its other brands, too, such as McCormick & Schmick's. In some cases, the company is converting those restaurants to another concept, as has happened with Joe's locations that have become Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. outposts. Joe's Crab Shack's struggle has been blamed on numerous things — the price volatility of seafood, tariffs, increased competition and market saturation. Whatever the case may be, though, some day soon, Joe's Crab Shack may be a thing of the past.