Just days after several Buca Di Beppo locations abruptly closed, including two in Utah, the national Italian restaurant chain filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy.
Court documents filed just before midnight on August 4, 2024, reveal the Orlando-based company holds $0 to $50,000 in assets. It owes at least $15 million to $50 million to at least 30 creditors.
The bankruptcy filing follows the abrupt closure of 13 underperforming stores.
Buca di Beppo has about 44 locations across 14 states and 2 international locations. The filing shows a significant drop in sales, rising food and labor costs, staffing challenges, and changes in customer preferences hit the company hard.
Currently, there's no indication in the court documents that any other locations will close besides those that closed last week.
The closed locations have leases the company seeks to reject.
Buca di Beppo joins several restaurants that have abruptly closed locations nationwide. Many restaurants face financial struggles as inflation rises and a major staffing shortage impacts the industry.
Rebounding after the COVID-19 pandemic remains difficult. Many companies continue to struggle with decreased customer demand.