It’s been a rough two years for American restaurant chains – and now a mall staple is the latest to feel the heat.
Noodles & Company has said it will close another 30 to 35 restaurants in 2026, on top of more shutdowns than initially planned last year.
Updating Wall Street on its situation this month, the Colorado-based chain said it ended 2025 with 340 company-owned restaurants and 83 franchise locations.
In total, it closed 42 restaurants last year- after initially saying it would only shut half that amount.
If it follows through on plans to shut another 30 to 35 sites, Noodles’ total restaurant count will have fallen by more than 100 since early 2024 – meaning the chain will have shrunk by more than 18 percent in just two years.
Company executives say the cuts are deliberate — a way to keep the strongest restaurants open and stop bleeding cash at weaker locations.
In fact, sales at remaining restaurants have improved, with comparable sales jumping more than 7 percent in the most recent quarter.
Noodles is a fast-casual chain built around an unusual mix: Italian-style pasta dishes and Asian-inspired noodle bowls under the same roof. Its menu jumps from mac and cheese and spaghetti to ramen and stir-fried noodles.
Noodles is a fast-casual chain built around an unusual mix: Italian-style pasta dishes and Asian-inspired noodle bowls under the same roof (pictured: a family dining at Noodles)
Noodles & Company has said it will close another 30 to 35 restaurants in 2026, on top of more shutdowns than initially planned last year
Noodles is a fast-casual chain built around an unusual mix: Italian-style pasta dishes and Asian-inspired noodle bowls under the same roof
Bosses say its recent sales boost has been driven largely by a new value menu, called Delicious Duos, which launched in July and offers a small entrée with a side starting at $9.95.
The chain has also leaned on menu updates, including a new chile-garlic ramen dish introduced late last year that sold for $8.95.
‘Decisions like this are made thoughtfully and with a long-term view of the business,’ Joe Christina, CEO and president of Noodles & Company, said earlier this month when the company outlined its earnings for the October to December quarter.
‘Our fourth quarter results reinforce that when we concentrate on restaurants with the strongest opportunity to perform, Noodles can drive meaningful top-line growth.’
She said ‘that performance gives us added confidence’ for 2026.
But the company has seen its share price and value slump in recent years. The stock is now down 98 percent from it first listed in 2014, with the company worth under $33 million.
In fact, the chain narrowly avoided being delisted from the Nasdaq in 2025 after the stock price slump meant is shares were under a dollar for several months. Major exchanges insist they are above that.
They recovered but have now been under $1 again for the past six months, meaning the threat looms again.
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Noodles’ total restaurant count will have fallen by more than 100 since early 2024 – meaning the chain will have shrunk by more than 18 percent in just two years
The chain has also leaned on menu updates, including a new chile-garlic ramen dish introduced late last year that sold for $8.95
Bosses say its recent sales boost has been driven largely by a new value menu, called Delicious Duos
Noodles’ menu jumps from mac and cheese and spaghetti to ramen and stir-fried noodles
At the same time, an activist investor that owns just over 6 percent of the company has been pushing Noodles to sell off as many as 200 restaurants, arguing the chain would be stronger if it were much smaller.
In response, Noodles hired an investment bank last fall to explore its options, including a possible sale of the company.
Executives have also floated a reverse stock split — a technical move that combines multiple shares into one to push the share price higher without changing the company’s overall value. Shareholders are set to vote on that plan on February 4.
There have been fears Noodles & Company will end up following in the footsteps of a string of other restaurant chains that have struggled over the past two years.
The highest profile was Red Lobster, which filed for bankruptcy in May 2025 but emerged as a going concern after shuttering almost 100 restaurants.
BurgerFi, Buca di Beppo and TGI Fridays also shuttered restaurants and filed for bankruptcy.
In fact, at least 22 restaurant chains filed for bankruptcy in 2025 – the highest number since 2020, according to BankruptcyData.
Industry experts blame the current woes for restaurants on stubborn inflation, higher wages, and consumers tightening their belts when it comes to eating out.
Dining and Cooking