The Death Knell Is Tolling For Family Sit-Down Restaurants: What's The Future For All Their Empty Husks? Eighties and nineties nostalgia was dealt a gut punch earlier this month when nearly 100 Red Lobster locations abruptly went dark amid the company’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing. Restaurants that took the U.S. by storm 30 to 40 years ago are beginning to drop like flies after a whirlwind past few years that forced rapid innovation in response to evolving consumer demands. At least 12 of the nation’s biggest casual chains plan to scale back their portfolios this year, and while reasons behind the reductions vary, the potential real estate impacts grow more layered as closures bloom. The turnover of space is expected to create opportunities in retail markets where rapid population growth has led to historically low levels of vacancy. But in less desirable markets, the empty carcasses of once-beloved chain restaurants will be harder to reckon with. 
“There might be restaurant chains that are willing to come in and maybe take over a lease or a location,” Placer.ai Head Of Analytical Research R.J. Hottovy said. “But it’s also possible, at least in the near term, that there might be a lot of dark restaurants.” Fans of Cheddar Bay… Read the full story here. | 
