2025 restaurant closures: Starbucks, Wendy’s shutter locations

As the restaurant industry endured another difficult year, many chains opted to close underperforming locations as they try to turn around their businesses.

Inflation-weary consumers have pulled back their restaurant spending, choosing to eat at home or chasing deals when they go out for a meal. While some restaurants have won over reluctant diners, the industry has largely struggled with the sales slump. Traffic to restaurants open at least a year fell every month in 2025, excluding only July, according to Black Box Intelligence.

In years past, restaurant closures have been more concentrated across casual-dining chains, which lost customers to fast-casual competitors like Chipotle. But this year, chains across the industry announced plans to shutter at least hundreds of locations.

In such a tough environment, some restaurant companies even filed for bankruptcy protection. Hooters, Pinstripes and On the Border were some of the notable names that landed in bankruptcy court this year.

Here are the chains that announced closures in 2025:

In September, the coffee giant announced a $1 billion restructuring plan that included closing roughly 500 of its North American locations. The closures even extended to shuttering its upscale Reserve Roastery cafe in Seattle, the company’s hometown.

Starbucks’ announcement followed CEO Brian Niccol’s one-year anniversary at the helm of the company. Under his leadership, Starbucks is trying to reverse a sales slump in the U.S., its biggest market.

Executives plan to share more details about the turnaround at the company’s upcoming investor day in late January in New York City.

In November, Wendy’s announced that it would undergo a strategic review of its restaurant footprint and begin closing underperforming locations that quarter. While the company did not announce a specific number of closures, interim CEO and CFO Ken Cook told analysts that the company could shutter a “mid-single digit percentage” of its U.S. restaurants shuttering, which would mean hundreds of the burger chain’s locations.

The closures are one phase of Wendy’s “Project Fresh” turnaround plan. The company has reported same-store sales declines even as rivals McDonald’s and Burger King see higher demand for their Big Macs and Whoppers.

In 2024, Wendy’s shuttered about 140 locations.

In February, Denny’s said it planned to close between 70 and 90 restaurants in 2025. In recent months, the diner chain’s sales sunk as customers opted to visit cheaper fast-food restaurants for breakfast. The shift in behavior led the company to shutter underperforming…