- Bahama Breeze is a Caribbean-inspired restaurant that was founded in 1996 by Darden Restaurants.
- Darden said it will permanently close 14 Bahama Breeze locations by April 5.
- The other 14 locations will be converted into another Darden-brand restaurant.
Bahama Breeze, the Caribbean-themed chain known for its “island escape” fare for suburban diners, is closing or converting its remaining 28 locations.
Parent company Darden Restaurants, which also owns Olive Garden and LongHorn Steakhouse, said on Tuesday that it will permanently close 14 Bahama Breeze locations by April 5. The other 14 locations will be converted into “another Darden brand” in the next 12-18 months, the parent company said in a press release.
Darden said it would not be disclosing which brands the locations will be converted to.
A spokesperson for Darden Restaurants did not immediately return a request for comment.
Bahama Breeze was founded in 1996, with its first location in Orlando. The restaurant’s Caribbean-inspired theme offered a casual, getaway dining experience near home. Its motto: “Your island escape starts here.”
At the time, Darden Restaurants was exploring alternative concepts beyond the company’s main profit drivers, Red Lobster and Olive Garden. Darden sold Red Lobster to Golden Gate Capital, a private equity firm, in 2014.
Bahama Breeze at its peak had more than 40 locations throughout the East Coast, SEC filings showed, but began to contract its footprint last year.
In May of last year, Darden closed down 15 locations. By June, Darden CEO Ricardo Cardenas announced during an earnings call that the company would consider “strategic alternatives” for the Bahama Breeze chain.
“We have made the difficult decision that these remaining locations and the Bahama Breeze brand are not a strategic priority for us,” Cardenas said during the call.
Permanent closing locations:
- 500 Center Blvd, Newark, DE
- 3590 Breckinridge Blvd, Duluth, GA
- 12395 SW 88th St, Miami, FL
- 10205 Rivercoast Drive, Jacksonville, FL
- 1251 West Osceola Parkway, Kissimmee, FL
- 11000 Pines Blvd, Pembroke Pines, FL
- 1540 Rinehart Road, Sanford, FL
- 19600 Haggerty Road, Livonia, MI
- 2000 Route 38, Cherry Hill, NJ
- 3309 Wake Forest Drive, Raleigh, NC
- 320 Goddard Blvd, King of Prussia, PA
- 6100 Robinson Center Drive, Pittsburgh, PA
- 2714 Potomac Mills Circle, Woodbridge, VA
- 15700 Southcenter Parkway, Tukwila, WA
Converted locations:
- 499 E Altamonte Drive, Altamonte Springs, FL
- 805 Brandon Town Center Drive, Brandon, FL
- 14701 S Tamiami Trail, Fort Myers, FL
- 8160 Irlo Bronson Memorial Highway, Kissimmee, FL
- 25830 Sierra Center Blvd, Lutz, FL
- 5620 W Oak Ridge Road, Orlando, FL
- 8849 International Drive, Orlando, FL
- 8735 Vineland Ave, Orlando, FL
- 1200 N Alafaya Drive, Orlando, FL
- 3045 N Rocky Point Drive East, Tampa, FL
- 755 Ernest W Barrett Parkway NW, Kennesaw, GA
- 570 Cross Creek Mall, Fayetteville, NC
- 7811 Rivers Ave, Charleston, SC
- 4554 Virginia Beach Blvd, Virginia Beach, VA
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