Bahama Breeze Closures: 15 Restaurants Shut Down
In a stunning move, Darden Restaurants shuttered 15 Bahama Breeze locations in May, significantly impacting the Caribbean-themed chain. These restaurant closures, spanning eight states, including Florida and New Jersey, reflect a strategic shift to bolster performance.The difficult decision to close these Bahama Breeze restaurants aims to refocus efforts on top-performing locations, according to reports. News Directory 3 highlights the closures, noting that affected employees are being supported with new roles or severance packages. The restaurant closures also included additional Darden brands across the US. discover what’s next for the chain and its future plans.
bahama Breeze Restaurant Closures Hit One-Third of Locations
Updated June 01, 2025
Darden Restaurants recently announced the closure of 15 of its 43 Bahama Breeze restaurants, a move impacting the Caribbean-themed chain significantly. The restaurant closures, wich occurred in May, affect locations across eight states.
The majority of the Bahama Breeze closures were concentrated in Florida and New Jersey, but also included restaurants in tennessee, Nevada, Illinois, Massachusetts, Michigan, and New York. According to NJ Biz, New Jersey saw the closure of nearly all its locations, save for one in Cherry Hill. A state filing indicated that 327 New Jersey workers were laid off as of May 15.
While some florida locations were spared, including those in Tampa, Brandon, and Lutz, several others were shuttered. The closed Florida Bahama Breeze locations include:
- 3989 Plaza Blvd, Gainesville
- 2088 9th St N, Naples
- 1786 W International Speedway Blvd, Daytona Beach
- 2750 Sawgrass Mills cir, Sunrise
- 3339 N federal Hwy, Oakland Park
Along with the Bahama Breeze restaurant closures, darden also closed an Eddie V’s location in Boston and Seasons 52 units in Sacramento, california, and the Kansas city area.
A Darden Restaurants spokesperson told the Naples Daily News that these closures will allow the company to sharpen its focus on top-performing restaurants and improve overall brand performance.
Closing these restaurants is a arduous business decision, and one that we made carefully and thoughtfully, especially because it impacts our team members and guests.
Darden is reportedly working to place affected employees in other company-owned restaurants or provide severance packages.
CNN reported that Bahama Breeze’s U.S.sales totaled $246.7 million last year, a 7.7% decrease from 2023.
What’s next
Darden restaurants aims to rebound from the Bahama Breeze restaurant closures by focusing on strengthening its remaining locations and optimizing brand performance across its portfolio.