Restaurant chain operator FAT Brands Inc. is closing several popular brand locations.
For those of you who may be loyal customers, you may be wondering which chains have taken a big hit.
The parent company permanently closed 32 company-owned locations under Smokey Bones, Johnny Rockets and YallaMediterranean and filed a motion to deny all its leases, according to court documents.
FAT Brands filed a motion in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas on Jan. 27 authorizing the debtor to deny leases to 23 Smokey Bones, seven Yalla Mediterranean stores and two Johnny Rockets stores nationwide.
FAT Brands operated more than 150 company-owned restaurants at the time the petition was filed.
If the court grants the Beverly Hills, Calif.-based restaurant chain operator’s motion to deny leases for 32 restaurants, it will reduce rent by more than $492,000 per month, according to court documents.
The restaurant operator had closed 32 locations before filing for bankruptcy protection.
The company, which has 2,200 restaurants open or under construction, filed for Chapter 11 protection on Jan. 26, listing more than $582 million in assets and more than $95 million in debt.
“The Chapter 11 process will provide us with the opportunity to strengthen our capital structure to support our ideas and ensure they remain at the forefront of the industry,” FAT Brands CEO Andy Wiederhorn said in a statement.
“We plan to use this process to engage with key stakeholders around value maximization initiatives and will proceed with caution and firmly safeguard and protect the interests of our stakeholders,” Wiederhorn said.
The company’s financial problems worsened after it defaulted on $1.3 billion in debt after failing to make a quarterly payment to its indenture trustee, UMB Bank NA, on Oct. 27, TheStreet reported.
FAT Brands noted in a Securities and Exchange Commission Form 8-K filed in November that it did not have sufficient funds to make the payment. In addition, acceleration or any subsequent foreclosures could have a negative impact on the business, which could force the company and its subsidiaries to file for bankruptcy protection.
In addition to the Smokey Bones, Johnny Rockets and YallaMediterranean chains, FAT Brands operates 15 other restaurant brands, including Fatburger, Marble Slab Creamery, Round Table Pizza, Twin Peaks and others.
Read the original article at pennlive.com.
