DALLAS, TX — TGI Fridays Inc., the American casual dining restaurant chain, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Saturday.

The company said in a statement that the fallout from the Covid-19 pandemic has been the “primary driver of our financial challenges” and that it will use the Chapter 11 process to “explore strategic alternatives to ensure the long-term viability of the brand” .

“The next steps announced today are difficult but necessary actions to protect the best interests of our stakeholders, including our domestic and international franchisees and valued team members around the world,” said Rohit Manocha, president executive of TGI Fridays, in a press release.

The bankruptcy affects TGI Fridays’ parent company, which operates 39 restaurants, not the franchisees who control the remaining locations. The company secured financing so all restaurants can operate as usual while it goes through the bankruptcy process.

TGI Fridays has “stopped this month’s rent payments to landlords and other sellers, giving them room to restructure,” John Bringardner, head of Debtwire, told CNN. He added that the parent company “will likely have to close or sell unprofitable sites as part of the restructuring.”

TGI Fridays began in 1965 in Manhattan as a meeting place for singles and was one of the first major chains to popularize the concept of “happy hour.” The menu offers a wide range of American comfort food, including chicken wings, potato skins and burgers.

Diners instantly recognize its kitschy interior with its Tiffany-style lamps and large red booths, as well as a large bar that is usually the focal point of TGI Fridays. Additionally, its service personnel wore “flair,” or pins and other decorative pieces on their uniforms, which became a joke in the 1999 film “Office Space.”

TGI Fridays never fully recovered from the pandemic, which shut down indoor dining at restaurants for several months. That, coupled with inflationary pressures on its middle-class customers, created a financial disaster for the nearly six-decade-old chain.

In January 2024, TGI Fridays abruptly closed dozens of locations across the United States and continued to quietly close restaurants. Last week, the company closed 50 locations, bringing its number down to 163. Before this wave of closures this year, TGI Fridays had about 270 locations in the United States.

TGI Fridays is owned by TriArtisan Capital Advisors, a private equity firm, so financial results are not published. However, the company said last year that its total sales are expected to reach $1.6 billion in 2022, with U.S. same-store sales growth of 8% from 2019.

It also changed its menu to follow that of its competitors, including Applebee’s and Chili’s, by adding sushi, refreshing its cocktail menu and revamping its appetizer selection.

In September, TGI Fridays’ UK operations also struggled. A proposed acquisition by its British franchisee failed and the company went bankrupt. He is closing dozens of restaurants in the region and causing 1,000 job losses.

Join TGI Fridays Red lobster and Buca di Beppo, both of which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in recent months. However, the latter emerged from bankruptcy and brought in an executive from PF Chang to turn around the company.

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