Bob Evan’s, Old Country Buffet, Cosi, Ruby Tuesday, Logan’s Roadhouse: these are just a few of the large restaurant chains that have closed locations and/or filed for bankruptcy protection in 2016 alone. These eateries generally have two factors working in their favor: name recognition and stores in high-traffic areas. So why are they doing so poorly? [More]
old country buffet
Old Country Buffet Heads Back For Another Helping Of Abrupt Restaurant Closures
By 6.15.16
While former employees of buffet restaurants owned by Ovation Brands, including the brands Old Country Buffet, HomeTown Buffet, Fire Mountain, and Ryan’s, are suing the company in federal court for eliminating their jobs with no advance notice, the company went ahead and closed another round of restaurants with no advance notice. [More]
Former Old Country Buffet Employees Sue Company After Abrupt Closures
By 6.7.16
Earlier this year, the owner of Hometown Buffet, Ryan’s Buffet, Fire Mountain, and Old Country Buffet abruptly closed ore than 160 restaurants without giving any advance notice to employees and then filed for bankruptcy — but not before hiring auctioneers to sell anything in the restaurants that wasn’t leased or nailed down. Now, a group of former employees have filed a lawsuit seeking class-action status against Food Management Partners, the company that once ran the buffet restaurants, for not giving them a heads up as required by federal law. [More]
5 Strange Things We Learned About Sudden Closures Of Old Country And HomeTown Buffets
By 3.15.16
Earlier this month, buffet restauranteur Ovation Brands filed for bankruptcy and abruptly shut down many of its restaurants — like Old Country Buffet, HomeTown Buffet, Fire Mountain, and Ryan’s Steakhouse — without even a heads-up to its employees. Curious about what drove Ovation into this bankruptcy — the company’s third since 2008 — we took a closer look at some of the court filings, which raised more questions than they did answers. [More]
Ovation Brands Is Already Selling The Contents Of Buffets Closed On Sunday
By 3.8.16
On Monday, we shared the news that the parent company of Old Country Buffet, HomeTown Buffet, Fire Mountain, Ryan’s Steakhouse, and other centers of face-stuffing abruptly shut down restaurants on Sunday. Today, an auction company announced a nationwide restaurant equipment sale in multiple states. Yes, some of the very same ones closed for inventory on Sunday. The “inventory” thing wasn’t a ruse: on Wednesday, they’ll be selling everything that isn’t nailed down. [More]
Owner Of Old Country, HomeTown Buffets Closes Restaurants, Files For Bankruptcy
By 3.7.16
Last month, we shared the news that Ovation Brands abruptly closed 74 restaurants, including the brands Hometown Buffet, Ryan’s Buffet, Fire Mountain, and Old Country Buffet. Yesterday, the chain closed the remainder of their restaurants during peak brunch buffet time, again without giving any advance notice to employees. Today, the chain filed for bankruptcy. [More]
There Are Suddenly A Lot Of Closed Old Country Buffet, Ryan’s & HomeTown Buffet Restaurants
By 2.5.16
Sometimes you just don’t know what you want for dinner. For that reason, we have buffets. But there will be a fewer options for some diners, as Ovation Brands, the operator of restaurants like Hometown Buffet, Ryan’s, Fire Mountain, and Old Country Buffet, announced the closure of 74 underperforming locations. [More]
It Is Beyond Rude To Drink A Beverage Of Your Body’s Own Making At A Restaurant
By 4.29.14
Listen — your beverage of choice is exactly that, and you can put into your body whatever that may be. But if you choose to drink your own urine, it is totally impolite to ah, pour yourself a drink at a restaurant in front of other unsuspecting diners. [More]
