This Popular Restaurant Is Planning to Make a Huge Change—Here's What to Know
- Bahama Breeze, a Caribbean-inspired seafood chain, plans to sell or convert its remaining 28 locations due to a strategic decision by parent company Darden.
This Popular Restaurant Is Planning to Make a Huge Change—Here's What to Know originally appeared on Parade .
It's long been said that about 90 percent of independently owned and operated restaurants fail within their first year of opening—but what if I told you that wasn't actually true? Sure, the restaurant business can be relatively demanding, and maintaining a thriving French-Thai fusion gastropub isn't easy by any means, but the truth is, most food businesses don't actually go under until almost year five. To put that into perspective, the actual number is between 17 and 30 percent. Not stellar, but certainly not dire either.
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Of course, economic uncertainty, global catastrophes, and widespread civic unrest tend to have a significant impact on even the strongest of businesses—and if you couldn't already tell, we're living in pretty unprecedented times. Outside of everything happening globally, the food industry has been having its own reckoning of sorts, with numerous reports of legacy chains and fan-favorite institutions shuttering their doors for good.
Related: Olive Garden Turns Up the Heat with a Spicy Summer Menu Update
Everyone from Red Lobster to Hooters has filed for bankruptcy, and pivot seems to be the of the moment corporate jargon. Suffice it to say, the service industry is in dire straits—and it's probably only going to get worse. The latest brand to feel the heat of the rapidly changing economic landscape is none other than the Caribbean-inspired seafood chain, Bahama Breeze, which, after closing 15 locations earlier this year, just announced that they have plans to sell or convert the remaining 28 locations.
During a recent earnings call, Darden President and CEO Rick Cardenas said, "We have made the difficult decision that these remaining locations and the Bahama Breeze brand are not a strategic priority for us." The Olive Garden parent company conducted a five-year plan for all Darden brands and concluded that another owner would better serve the Bahama Breeze brand.
While the company is keeping its options open regarding the future of the breezy, tropical-themed restaurant, it underscored that the sale or conversion of the brand would have little impact on the company's financial results. Only time will tell what the future looks like for Darden and its other brands, but one thing we can guarantee is that we won't have a dull news cycle anytime soon.
This Popular Restaurant Is Planning to Make a Huge Change—Here's What to Know first appeared on Parade on Jun 23, 2025
This story was originally reported by Parade on Jun 23, 2025, where it first appeared.
