The string of bankruptcies continues for the restaurant industry in 2024, as the Southern California-based salad and bowls concept, Tender Greens, and its parent company, One Table Restaurant Brands (also parent company to fast-casual Mexican chain, Tocaya), filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on July 17 and July 18, respectively.
Together, Tender Greens and Tocaya operate around 40 locations, mostly in California. According to bankruptcy documents, the Los Angeles-based One Table Restaurant Brands has an estimated $10 million to $50 million of liabilities, with under $50,000 of assets, and is considering a sale in the form of an auction or stalking horse bidder.
In a separate bankruptcy document filed by the same ownership, BLT Steak LA LLC — the West Hollywood location of New York City-based BLT Steak, which closed in 2013 and was replaced by a Tocaya location — also filed for Chapter 11 protection.
Each of these bankruptcy documents were filed on July 17 and July 18 by Harald Herrman, the former Darden Restaurants Inc. executive and Mendocino Farms CEO, who formed One Table Restaurant Brands in August 2021, following the merger of the two Los Angeles-based fast-casual brands. The newly formed company was backed by both Alliance Consumer Growth and Union Square Hospitality Group, the latter of which had taken a significant minority stake in Tender Greens in 2015. One Table Restaurant Brands is owned TYP Restaurant Group (47.5%), New Tocaya Holdings, LLC (47.5%) and Big Table Brands Management, LLC (the remaining 5%).
The debtors are aiming to consolidate each of these bankruptcy filings under one Chapter 11 case, and are asking for emergency funding to be able to run their businesses during the bankruptcy process.
One Table Restaurant Brands follows many other restaurant companies that have declared bankruptcy in 2024, most notably, Red Lobster, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in May, Rubio’s, and Tijuana Flats. Other smaller concepts and franchisees that filed for bankruptcy in the first half of 2024 include Party Fowl, Boxer Ramen, Sticky Fingers, Oberweis Dairy, Foxtrot/Dom’s Kitchen, Melt Bar & Grilled, Kuma’s Corner, Subway’s River Sub LLC and Arby’s Miracle Restaurant Group.
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