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Chili’s Grill & Bar, Maggiano’s Little Italy reopen more dining roomsChili’s Grill & Bar, Maggiano’s Little Italy reopen more dining rooms

Parent Brinker International update reports 82% of domestic restaurants offering dine-in, same-store sales down 25.6%

Ron Ruggless, Senior Editor

June 9, 2020

2 Min Read
Chili Briinker Maggiano Update
Chili's has retained about 70% of its off-premise sales volume compared to week ended April 29, parent Brinker International says in business update.Brinker International Inc.

Brinker International Inc., parent to the Chili’s Grill & Bar and Maggiano’s Little Italy brands, has reopened about 82% of its domestic restaurants to dine-in customers as coronavirus restrictions ease, the company said Tuesday.

The Dallas-based casual-dining company said 873 Chili’s restaurants were offering dine-in capacity as of June 8 and same-store sales for those locations were down about 11% for the week ended June 3 compared to the same period last year.

For its combined company-owned Chili’s-Maggiano’s system, same-store sales were down 25.6% in the June 3-ended week, the company said. At 2 p.m. EDT Tuesday, Brinker’s stock was trading down about 1.6%, at $29.42 a share, from Monday’s market close of $29.85 a share.

“As we reopen our dining rooms across the country, our commitment is to do so safely, including training for team members and physical changes in our restaurants,” said Wyman Roberts, Brinker CEO, in a statement. “With hospitality in our DNA, we're glad to be together again, but at a safe distance.”

Brinker said its Chili’s division had retained more than 70% of its off-premise sales after dining rooms reopened as of the week ending June 3, compared to the week ending April 29.

The company said it was generating positive operating cash flow, utilizing it to pay down outstanding debt, and it was “substantially current with all rent obligations.”

Related:Chili’s parent Brinker claws back to 57% of last year’s weekly sales

As of June 3, Brinker’s cash on hand was about $113 million and its revolver availability was $429 million, “resulting in available liquidity of $542 million.”

Same-store sales for comparisons restaurants, or those open more than 18 months, for the company-owned Chili’s brand were down 18.9% systemwide (including both those with opened dining rooms and others) in the week ended June 3 and down 69.9% for Maggiano’s.

As of March 25, Brinker owned, operated or franchised 1,675 restaurants, including 1,622 Chili’s and 53 Maggiano's.

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Contact Ron Ruggless at [email protected]

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About the Author

Ron Ruggless

Senior Editor, Nation’s Restaurant News / Restaurant Hospitality

Ron Ruggless serves as a senior editor for Informa Connect’s Nation’s Restaurant News (NRN.com) and Restaurant Hospitality (Restaurant-Hospitality.com) online and print platforms. He joined NRN in 1992 after working 10 years in various roles at the Dallas Times Herald newspaper, including restaurant critic, assistant business editor, food editor and lifestyle editor. He also edited several printings of the Zagat Dining Guide for Dallas-Fort Worth, and his articles and photographs have appeared in Food & Wine, Food Network and Self magazines. 

Ron Ruggless’ areas of expertise include foodservice mergers, acquisitions, operations, supply chain, research and development and marketing. 

Ron Ruggless is a frequent moderator and panelist at industry events ranging from the Multi-Unit Foodservice Operators (MUFSO) conference to RestaurantSpaces, the Council of Hospitality and Restaurant Trainers, the National Restaurant Association’s Marketing Executives Group, local restaurant associations and the Horeca Professional Expo in Madrid, Spain.

Ron Ruggless’ experience:

Regional and Senior Editor, Informa Connect’s Nation’s Restaurant News and Restaurant Hospitality (1992 to present)

Features Editor – Dallas Times Herald (1989-1991)

Restaurant Critic and Food Editor – Dallas Times Herald (1987-1988)

Editing Roles – Dallas Times Herald (1982-1987)

Editing Roles – Charlotte (N.C.) Observer (1980-1982)

Editing Roles – Omaha (Neb.) World-Herald (1978-1980)

Email: [email protected]

Social media:

Twitter@RonRuggless

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/ronruggless

Instagram: @RonRuggless

TikTok: @RonRuggless

 

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