These Adored Buffet Restaurants Are Now Closed for Good, 9 Restaurant Chains That Closed Hundreds of Locations This Summer. However, in recent years, the company had been struggling financially and had been forced to close down several locations. Unfortunately, despite the national spotlight, the franchise has continued to close up shops. In June 2020, FMP Management ceased operations, entering bankruptcy itself. All-you-can-eat buffets have also come under fire for being wasteful and contributing to rising obesity rates. More and more Americans are watching their waistlines, and buffets are often seen as an indulgence that is best avoided. var xhr = new XMLHttpRequest(); Members help make our journalism possible. At the beginning of October, news surfaced that Metro Corral Partners, which owns over 24 locations of the iconic buffet and grill Golden Corral, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The latest from Restaurant Business, sent straight to your inbox. The company plansto reopen as many Furrs as possible, contingent upon pandemic restrictions and landlord negotiations, she said. Home Town Buffet was a subsidiary of VitaNova Brands. Pizza Huts dine-in restaurants, most of which feature menu service and an all-you-can eat buffet, used to be the cornerstone of the chain, but theyre quickly fading into oblivion. When states shut dining rooms, it shifted to takeout only. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, all of the buffet-style restaurants closed in March 2020. Although locations in Florida and Georgia are closing, there are plans to keep over 20 locations open. As of early 2020, there are only six Hometown Buffet locations still in business. Still, it couldnt escape market forces, and Gattis parent company filed for bankruptcy in early 2019, a decision that spurred an undisclosed number of closings. Hometown Buffet is a chain of buffet-style restaurants founded in 1983 in Downey, California. View the Hometown Buffet menu, read Hometown Buffet reviews, and get Hometown Buffet hours and directions. Find a Hometown Buffet near you or see all Hometown Buffet locations. The locations are permanently closed as of Oct. 9. This once-ubiquitous buffet was among the chains that shuttered as a result of parent company Fresh Acquisitions bankruptcy in 2021. Although Hometown Buffets closure will be a setback for the 1,800 employees who will be losing their jobs, it is not expected to have a significant impact on the overall restaurant industry. For example, more expensive protein items like fish or beef are available in smaller portion sizes and further down the line, after they give us access to huge, heaping portions of the cheap stuff like rice and potatoes. Four locations of these buffet restaurants in three states are officially closed. The leaders of Golden Corral are clearly very loyal to the brand. You know how sometimes there are so many choices of shows and movies to watch now, that you can't even make a decision and end up not watching anything? Bidding at the website Auction Nation closed at noon Monday, Dec. 14, on restaurants in Lakewood, Loma Linda, and Torrance. In 2017, Hometown Buffetufffds parent company, Downey Financial Corp., filed for bankruptcy. The restaurant also has a take-out option. single However, one thing is clear: the days of the all-you-can-eat buffet may be numbered. How Golden Corral is bucking the buffet collapse - Restaurant Business Chain Restaurants That Are Closing Locations, this old Old Country Buffet training video, Local Burger Chains the Rest of the Country Needs, Age Pays: 130+ Senior Discounts (Some Starting at Age 50! Buffets, Inc. which includes the chains Old Country Buffet, Hometown Buffet and Ryans is also looking at new ways of operating, and may move towards one-on-one service, according to a spokesperson from Buffets parent company, Food Management Partners. "Recovery has been steady, but slow, and some franchisees will not be able to continue to operate without additional financial relief.". Hometown Buffet has been unable to keep up with these changes and will likely continue to decline until it is eventually forced to close its doors for good. Theres a lot happening in the world. Even if Old Country Buffet did start partnering with Uber Eats, it seems like something that wouldn't work well. HOMETOWN BUFFET, Springfield - 3000 Gateway St - Restaurant Reviews Not to mention all those serving utensils that have touched about 100 hands before yours and the fact that they probably fell into that casserole just before you got in line. With the need for 75% capacity required to begin to turn a profit in the all-you-can-eat category, the short-term future of the buffet concept is heavily predicated on reopening restrictions easing further and consumers' appetite to return to large, shared spaces, the VitaNova spokeswoman said, /sites/all/themes/penton_subtheme_nrn/images/logos/footer.png, Plans call for focus on Tahoe Joes, Furrs AYCE Marketplace concepts, 2023 Informa USA, Inc., All rights reserved. They're like the Kardashian/Jenner family of buffets. day, 2022 Galvanized Media. Marketplace is a division of MPR's 501 (c)(3). Hometown Buffet permanently closes Downey location Like many of the chains on this list, it was in steady decline before the pandemic, its restaurants dwindlingto 75 by 2019 from more than 300, according to Vox. All Rights Reserved. New service models have been developed to comply with variations in local guidelines and provide our guests an enjoyable Golden Corral experience. Pizza Inn late last month instituted what it called a contactless buffet to-gooption, offering a combination of pizzas, appetizers and desserts at three price points. MoviePass is coming back, but are moviegoers? In addition, many consumers are now more health conscious and are looking for healthier menu options when they go out to eat. California alone has 23. Theres nobody else in Columbus like us, she said. Become a Restaurant Business member today and unlock exclusive benefits, including unlimited access to all of our content. Updated Oct 12, 2020, 12:13pm CDT. Before COVID, the companies . You can buy the iconic soup bowl on Amazon. This shift in consumer behavior has had a negative impact on Hometown Buffets business, and the company has struggled to keep up with its competition. Hometown Buffet offers a variety of food and drink options, including a salad bar, hot entrees, and a dessert bar. We are working with the Metro Corral leadership team and anticipate that they will continue to operate 24 of their 33 Golden Corral franchised locations in Georgia and Florida. VitaNova Brands, which manages Fresh Acquisitions restaurants through an agreement with the company, is providing a debtor-in-possession loan of $3.5 million, and said it would focus on operating the Tahoe Joes and Furrs AYCE Marketplace banners going forward. The company also has TogoKitchens.com, Zio's Italian Kitchen, Sushi Zushi, Tahoe Joe's, Don Pablo's Cantina, Hometown AYCE Marketplace, Old Country AYCE Marketplace, Furr's AYCE Marketplace, and Ryan's AYCE Marketplace in their restaurant lineup. As with almost every one of our peers, buffet restaurants took the brunt of the loss of sales during the pandemic and as such, the path to success requires hard choices to be made, including the rationalization of our overall footprint, said Jason Kemp, co-founder and CEO of VitaNova Brands, in a statement this week. The buffet style allows customers to choose from a wide variety of food, which is served by waiters and waitresses. That makes Golden Corrals performance fairly impressive. Buffets, like many other businesses throughout the U.S., have closed out of safety precautions, and may not be able to return once the COVID-19 crisis is over. Two of the largest Golden Corral franchisees filed for bankruptcy since the pandemic began, and one of them shut down 16 locations permanently. if( navigator.sendBeacon ) { However, the chain has been struggling in recent years. Through it all, Marketplace is here for you. The company was founded in 1984 in Downey, California, and currently has more than 200 locations. The endless scroll struggle is real. The Hometown Buffet closure is just the latest in a string of buffet-style restaurant closures. 6 Hometown Buffet Locations in Connecticut (CT, US) Enfield Hometown Buffet Manchester Hometown Buffet Milford Hometown Buffet Furrs, which began as a cafeteria in the 40s, was owned by another ill-fated chain, Kmart, in the 1980s. According to Gallup polling, the 42 percent of adults polled said they attended church in 2008. The company closed 30 locations in 2019, and more closures are expected in 2020. From the kitchens, items include ice machines, deep fryers and dented serving pans. Gage's salmonella poisoning was particularly severe because of a pre-existing health condition. There have only been three CEOs in the entire history of the chain, which was founded in 1973 in North Carolina. The typical limited-service buffet concept saw unit count decline 10.3% last year, according to, Golden Corral added safeguards to its buffets, its company stores were closed altogether, Bojangles makes no bones about its future, Pollo Tropical starts the year off with more customers and better profits, For Wendy's, keeping pace with competitors is harder than it looks, Jack in the Box reaches a 'turning point' in its bid for growth, Chevys Fresh Mex owner adds 2 more brands to portfolio. Hometown Buffet is a chain of restaurants that offers a buffet-style meal including all-you-can-eat food and drink. to reopen as many Furrs as possible, contingent upon pandemic restrictions and landlord negotiations, she said. By 2017, another poll indicated that the rate of weekly church attendance was down to 38 percent. HOME TOWN BUFFET, Beaverton - Menu, Prices & Restaurant Reviews Hometown Buffet has been a staple in the community for over 30 years, but its recently closed its doors. I act like Im OK, but deep down, I miss HomeTown Buffet, another Twitter user wrote in May 2021. Hometown Buffet is an American buffet restaurant chain down to its last six locations as of early 2020. While the American institution known as The Buffet may be on the decline, Golden Corral continues to ball out of control. The first Hometown Buffet opened in 1984 in San Bernardino, California. The social distancing as it relates to buffets is a challenge, said Roslyn Stone, chief operating officer for Zero Hour Health, which helps restaurant operators with food safety and health issues. The state of Georgia has also asked restaurants that are reopening to do so. VitaNova said it manages all store-level and corporate operations for ToGoKitchens.com, Zios Italian Kitchen, Sushi Zushi, the Tahoe Joes steakhouse brand, and Furrs AYCE Marketplace. The judge granted the Gages $11.37 million when lawyers failed to respond in timely manner. ToGoKitchens.com, which offers brands owned by VitaNova. About See all 4221 South H Street Bakersfield, CA 93304 For customers hungry for a more authentic dining experience, HomeTown Buffet invites you to come as you are and experience a unique restaurant concept See more "High quality food at affordable prices in a family atmosphere. HomeTown Buffet in Redding suddenly closes after 25 years Another fond memory: her grandma taking out some paper napkins and wrapping up a few dinner rolls to go. Try our delicious grill. HomeTown Buffet in Loma Linda - Restaurant menu and reviews xhr.send(payload); FMP expanded the chain to over 200 locations by 2000. If Old Country Buffet wants to start offering exotic grain bowls, baby kale salad, and artisanal ice cream with savory flavors, maybe it can stand a chance. Lines and paragraphs break automatically. This is a complete list of all HomeTown Buffet locations, along with their geographic coordinates. Eater reported that Bacchanal Buffet at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas (which cost $100 million to design) is allocating $2.4 million to remodel the area, with changes that will affect food counters and service equipment. 3790 SW Hall Blvd, Beaverton, OR 97005-2050 +1 503-627-0336 Website Menu. By Jonathan Maze on May 14, 2020. Hometown Buffet is a buffet-style restaurant chain downey with locations across the United States. The CEO of Global Franchise Group, Round Table Pizzas parent company, told Marketplace that Round Table may discontinue its salad bar and pizza buffet permanently. More people are choosing farm to table (or farm to fork) restaurants because it's arguably better for the planet. The company also lists multiple disputed breach of lease claims totaling more than $2 million, as well as several other rent and sales tax debts. Editor's note: A previous version of this story said Golden Corral filed for bankruptcy, but to clarify, it was a franchise company that did so. The . We've already established that Old Country Buffet isn't a great choice for anyone who's watching their diet, but the chain has a reputation for being unhealthy in a whole other way, too. The Food and Drug Administration has released a series of best practices for restaurants, which include discontinuing self-serving stations that require customers to use common utensils or dispensers, like salad bars and buffets. Yes, Sizzler is still around, and the pandemic hasn't made it any easier for this throwback of a steakhouse and buffet chain to hold on. Several of Fresh Acquisitions affiliates, including Buffets LLC, also filed bankruptcy at the same time. } else { The buffet restaurant format was very popular in the 1980s, but as Americans tastes changed, the demand for all-you-can-eat restaurants waned. Although the restaurant has been temporarily closed since March due to COVID-19, the permanent closure is a result of its expiring lease and inability to negotiate a favorable extension, company officials said. The decline of the buffet is due to a variety of factors, including the rise of health consciousness and the popularity of healthy eating, the rise of food delivery and takeaway options, and the increasing cost of food. But now the pandemic is forcing them to shift away from the buffet into a service model. Heres another familiar name gone down the drain in the Fresh Acquisitions bankruptcy. Buffets, Inc. -- Company History This Is Why You Don't See Many Old Country Buffets Anymore, merged with Ryan's Restaurant Group in 2006, According to a neurologist that testified at the August 2014 court hearing, lawyers failed to respond in timely manner, delivery apps are making dining at restaurants, including Old Country Buffet, seem obsolete. Anthony Wedo, the CEO of Old Country Buffet's parent company, Buffets Inc., was even on the CBS hit show Undercover Boss in 2013 in an effort to reinvigorate the company's name after it fell on hard times. Darren Tristano, the CEO and founder of Food Service Results, said buffet restaurants had already been in decline for 20 years, driven by consumers change in taste for healthier options. HomeTown Buffet - Home - Facebook All restaurants burn through cash when they are closed. Sign up here. I dont know if anything will ever go back to what the norm was before, Buenrostro said. Those concepts might have an easier adjustment to the new reality. The chains website shows 11 open locations, a stark decline from the 28 that K&W hadbefore the pandemic. HomeTown Buffet, affiliated dining chains file for bankruptcy Ovation Brands, which used to operate Old Country Buffet and Hometown Buffet, filed for bankruptcy three times between 2008 and 2016. All four haven't seen a customer since. This closure signals a shift in the restaurant industry, as more and more people are choosing to dine at home or cook their own meals. She said her family, including her grandparents, would pack themselves into a minivan and head off to a buffet together. Hometown Buffet was not able to keep up with these changing trends, and as a result, they are no longer in business. The way buffets operate may change permanently because of the COVID-19 crisis. Anya Torres from Des Moines, Iowa, said some of the reasons shes such a big fan of buffets are the price, variety and convenience. Old Country Buffet simply can't compete with the modern vibes and fresh fare that fast casual restaurants like Qdoba and Sweetgreen deliver so effortlessly. The company will operate normally during the Chapter 11 process and it believes that a "number of the brands - including Furr's Buffet and Tahoe Joe's - can take advantage of the expected. But in the 21st century, despite the promise of delicious cheese biscuits awaiting you behind those ubiquitous red letters, Old Country Buffet has definitely had some setbacks. "The pandemic's business impact on our segment has been significant," said Golden Corral Corporation CEO Lance Trenary. It is unclear if the chain will be able to survive in the long term. There are also 16 Old Country Buffets locations in 10 states. Brands says more closings are likely in the future, too. Related:Local Burger Chains the Rest of the Country Needs. Since the crisis began, Buenrostro said that sales have declined about 75%. Visitors don't highly appreciate ice cream and chocolate frappe at HomeTown Buffet. Now the world (and its many cuisines) is at your lazy fingertips. CT Hometown Buffet Locations Near Me - Menuism Two HomeTown Buffets, one Ryan's, and one Old Country Buffet are now buffets closed for good. Tristano noted that many buffet chains have tried to expand their business in the past by introducing takeout models, but experienced limited success. Can you believe there was a time when you donned your Sunday best to go to Old Country Buffet? It is unclear if Hometown Buffet will be able to make a comeback or if it will eventually go out of business completely. I dont know how long we will last because were very small, she said. It opened seven new locations in 2017,and sales rose 3.7 percent. The company is privately owned, byInvestors Management Corp., a company chaired by the same man who opened the first location. Even if the closed restaurant locations could be reopened immediately, the debtors believe that the short-term costs of maintaining the leases would outweigh any potential long-term benefits from operating the restaurants therein, the filing stated. Hometown Buffet Locations Near Me + Reviews & Menu