Owners of the Bahama Breeze restaurant chain signaled this week that the brand is no longer a priority, and they are considering selling the Caribbean-inspired chain a little over a month after shuttering over a dozen locations.
Darden Restaurants CEO Ricardo Cardenas said in an earnings call on Friday, June 20 that they “will be considering strategic alternatives” for Bahama Breeze, such as selling the brand to a new owner or “converting restaurants to other Darden brands.”
The company’s portfolio incudes Olive Garden, LongHorn Steakhouse, Ruth’s Chris Steak House and Yard House, among others.
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“After further review, we have made the difficult decision that these remaining locations and the Bahama Breeze brand are not a strategic priority for us,” Cardenas said in the call.
The company abruptly closed down 15 restaurant locations in mid-May, leaving what they call their 28 “highest performing” restaurants currently in operation. The company has not issued a projected timeline of either a sale or restaurant conversions and has not disclosed if there is an interested buyer.
Cardenas said the company does not expect a potential sale to have a “material impact” on their financial results.
The restaurants first opened in the 90’s in Florida, where half of their remaining locations remain. Georgia, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Virginia all have two locations, according to the chain’s website, while the states of Delaware, Michigan, New Jersey, South Carolina and Washington have one location.
Which Bahama Breeze locations have closed?
The following restaurants have closed, as confirmed by a Darden Restaurants spokesperson to USA TODAY:
3989 Plaza Blvd, Gainesville, Florida 32608
2088 9th St N, Naples, Florida 34102
1786 W International Speedway Blvd, Daytona Beach, Florida 32114
2750 Sawgrass Mills Cir, Sunrise, Florida 33323
3339 N Federal Hwy, Oakland Park, Florida 33306
406 E Golf Rd, Schaumburg, Illinois 60173
413 Middlesex Rd, Tyngsborough, Massachusetts 01879
539 E Big Beaver Rd, Troy, Michigan 48083
375 Hughes Center Dr, Las Vegas, Nevada 89169
520 Woodbridge Center Dr, Woodbridge, New Jersey 07095
1201 Hooper Ave, Toms River, New Jersey 08753
101 NJ-23, Wayne, New Jersey 07470
1600 Bergen Town Center, Paramus, New Jersey 07652
612 Smith Haven Mall, Lake Grove, New York 11755
2830 N Germantown Pkwy, Memphis, Tennessee 38133
Contributing: Fernando Cervantes Jr., USA TODAY.
Kathryn Palmer is a national trending news reporter for USA TODAY. You can reach her at kapalmer@usatoday.com and on X @KathrynPlmr.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Bahama Breeze owners Darden Restaurant want to sell or convert chain
