This week on Nation's Restaurant News the top story was Menu Tracker: New items from McDonald’s, Arby’s, and Taco Bell. Halloween has come and gone, but it happening on a Thursday no-doubt meant there was plenty of residual celebration over the weekend. So there are a couple of appropriately themed, like the Haunted Harvest that’s Velvet Taco’s Weekly Taco Feature, although really it’s just the name that’s Halloweenish. Otherwise it’s a pumpkin-spice affair.
In other news, TGI Fridays filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy early on Saturday morning just days after shuttering nearly 50 restaurants. Added to the list of closures in January, when the struggling casual-dining chain closed another 36 underperforming restaurants, TGI Fridays now has 39 domestic company-owned restaurants remaining, in addition to franchised stores owned by 56 franchisees globally, down from 233 restaurants at the end of 2023, according to Technomic data.
Also, Eight Applebee’s locations in and around Kansas City, Kan., have closed, leaving just two left in the market. According to the Kansas City Star, the locations were shuttered abruptly in Kansas City, Kan., Mission, Kan., Overland Park, Kan., Raytown, Mo., Olathe, Kan., Lee’s Summit, Mo., and Leavenworth, Kan. All are operated by the same franchisee, Apple Central KC LLC, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the District of Kansas last week.
See what else was trending on NRN.com this week.
