The parent company of Bravo! Italian Kitchen and Brio Italian Grille has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. According to a court filing, it’s the company’s second bankruptcy in five years.
Bravo Brio Restaurants LLC, which includes 25 Brio Italian Grille restaurants and 23 Bravo Italian Kitchen restaurants, had closed seven restaurants before filing in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Middle District of Florida on Aug. 18. The company cited “the acute financial distress” across the restaurant industry, it stated in the filing.
Through the bankruptcy proceedings, Bravo Brio Restaurants seeks “to improve its financial position as it brings on a new investor,” the company said in a news release. “The Chapter 11 process will allow the Company to quickly and efficiently reorganize its business for a sustainable and successful future, including closing underperforming locations, restructuring debt, and streamlining and reducing operational expenses.”
A spokesperson told Today.com there are no current plans to close any locations. But according to several local news reports, restaurants in Virginia and Missouri were closed earlier in the year. A Brio restaurant in Beavercreek, Ohio, closed the same day as the filing, according to WHIO. Another location in Delaware closed concurrently with the bankruptcy filing, reported Delaware Online.
“The Debtors have worked diligently to weather the storm, but earnings and cash flow remain strained by several above-market leases and underperforming locations,” the filing stated.
The company noted in the press release that current restaurants will continue operating during the bankruptcy process.
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Dining and Cooking