NEW YORK (CNN) — Bahama Breeze, the Caribbean-themed dining chain, is shutting down after a 30-year stint in the business. Including locations in Tampa, Brandon, Lutz, and Orlando.
Darden Restaurants, which also owns Olive Garden and LongHorn Steakhouse, announced Tuesday that it’s closing the remaining 28 locations in the coming months, with half of them shutting down completely and half being converted into other chains that its parent company owns.
The closure comes nearly a year after Bahama Breeze abruptly shut one-third of its locations and Darden announcing it was considering strategic alternatives for the brand, including a possible sale.
The final day of operations for Bahama Breeze will be April 5, with locations closing in Delaware, Georgia, Michigan, New Jersey, North Carolina, Virginia, and Washington, as well as two in Pennsylvania and five in Florida.
Darden is converting the remaining 14 locations, including 10 around Orlando, Florida, to other brands over the next 12 to 18 months, but hasn’t revealed which specific chain it will change to. A full list is available here and they will operate as a Bahama Breeze until then.
“The company believes the conversion locations are great sites that will benefit several of the brands in its portfolio,” it said in a press release. “Going forward, the primary focus will continue to be on supporting team members, including placing as many as possible in roles within the Darden portfolio.”
Some restaurant chains that cater to lower- and middle-income families have been struggling over the past few years because diners are abandoning them as their disposable income shrinks because of inflation. Consumer confidence is also slumping.
Closing restaurant locations:
500 Center Blvd., Newark, DE
3590 Breckenridge Blvd., Duluth, GA
12395 SW 88th St., Miami, FL
10205 Rivercoast Drive, Jacksonville, FL
1251 West Osceola Pkwy., Kissimmee, FL
11000 Pines Blvd., Pembroke Pines, FL
1540 Rinehart Road, Sanford, FL
19600 Haggerty Road, Livonia, MI
2000 Route 38, Cherry Hill, NJ
3309 Wake Forest Drive, Raleigh, NC
320 Goddard Blvd., King of Prussia, PA
6100 Robinson Center Drive, Pittsburgh, PA
2714 Potomac Mills Circle, Woodbridge, VA
7811 Rivers Ave., Charleston, SC
Conversion restaurant locations:
499 E Altamonte Drive, Altamonte Springs, FL
805 Brandon Town Center Drive, Brandon, FL
14701 S Tamiami Trail, Ft. Myers, FL
8160 Irlo Bronson Memorial Hwy., Kissimmee, FL
25830 Sierra Center Blvd., Lutz, FL
5620 W. Oak Ridge Road, Orlando, FL
8849 International Drive, Orlando, FL
8735 Vineland Ave., Orlando, FL
1200 N Alafaya Drive, Orlando, FL
3045 N Rocky Point Drive East, Tampa, FL
755 Earnest W Barrett Pkwy NW, Kennesaw, GA
570 Cross Creek Mall, Fayetteville, NC
15700 Southcenter Pkwy., Tukwila, WA
4554 Virginia Beach Blvd., Virginia Beach, VA
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