ORLANDO, Fla., May 5 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Darden Restaurants, Inc. today announced the closure of 56 Smokey Bones Barbeque & Grill restaurants. Darden will offer the remaining 73 restaurants for sale - all located primarily in the eastern half of the United States.
(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20050203/FLTH026LOGO)
The action comes as part of an overall effort by the company to better position Darden for future growth. Smokey Bones has lagged the performance of Darden's other brands as the barbecue concept's core guests chose to dine at Smokey Bones with less frequency.
The company had been testing the possibility of converting some units to a new format called Rocky River Grillhouse. That longer-term test featuring fire-grilled foods was predicated on Smokey Bones' ability to stabilize its business. Long-term performance declines, however, continued and recently accelerated, making that test not viable.
"This action in no way reflects adversely on the hard work of people associated with Smokey Bones and we will take care of every employee affected by this action," said Darden Chairman and CEO Clarence Otis. "The remaining Smokey Bones restaurants are a viable business, but one that is not consistent with Darden's vision for a national restaurant concept."
Remaining Smokey Bones restaurants are located primarily in the South, Mid-Atlantic, Midwest and New England.
The decision to sell Smokey Bones allows Darden to better focus its efforts on more productive businesses that will provide stronger opportunities for employees, said Drew Madsen, Darden's president and chief operating officer. The company will carefully evaluate each closing restaurant to determine whether it is suitable for use by one of Darden's other restaurant brands, and will begin marketing the remainder immediately.
"Many of these closed restaurants are valuable locations," Madsen said. "They just didn't work as barbecue restaurants. We expect these properties to serve the public again as vibrant restaurants and retail businesses."
Darden will give 4,000 employees who worked at closed Smokey Bones restaurants opportunities to transfer to other Darden locations. And for those who leave the company, Darden will provide support to help their transition.
"Darden is doing the difficult things required to grow," Otis said. "The company's long-term growth goals remain unchanged."
Darden, headquartered in Orlando, FL, owns and operates about 1,400 Red Lobster, Olive Garden, Bahama Breeze, Smokey Bones, and Seasons 52(R) restaurants. The company is the 25th largest employer in the United States with 160,000 employees. It is also the world's largest casual dining company with $5.7 billion in annual sales.
Smokey Bones and Rocky River Grillhouse Closed Restaurants
(Listed alphabetically by state)
State Market Address Location
1. AL MONTGOMERY, AL 2465 EASTERN BLVD. Across from Colonial
Promenade Shopping
Ctr.
2. AL MOBILE, AL 4011 AIRPORT BLVD Corner of Airport
Blvd. and Azalea Rd.
3. AR FAYETTEVILLE, AR 643 E. VAN ASCHE DR Just south of
Arkansas Mall
4. FL TALLAHASSEE, FL 3131 CAPITAL CIRCLE, NE At Exit 199, I-10
and Capital Circle NE
5. FL PENSACOLA, FL 4952 BAYOU BLVD At Bayou Blvd.
entrance of Cordova
Mall
6. FL FT. WALTON BEACH 321 MARY ESTHER Across from the
FL BLVD. Santa Rosa Mall
7. GA DUNWOODY, GA 4764 ASHFORD At Ashford Place
DUNWOODY RD
8. GA DULUTH, GA 1555 PLEASANT HILL At Sweetwater
ROAD Blvd. and Pleasant
Hill Road
9. GA ALPHARETTA,GA 7900 NORTH POINT Corner of North
PARKWAY Pointe Pkwy. and
Mansell
10. GA DOUGLASVILLE, GA 6855 DOUGLAS BLVD Across from Arbor P
Place Mall
11. GA GAINESVILLE, GA 1701 BROWNS BRIDGE ROAD Across from
Gallery Furniture
12. GA MORROW (SOUTHLAKE) 1971 MT. ZION ROAD Approximately 1
mile east of
Southlake Mall
13. IL AURORA, IL 4435 FOX VALLEY CENTER East Side of Fox
DRIVE Valley Mall
14. IL SCHAUMBURG, IL 680 N. MALL DRIVE South of Woodfield
Mall
15. IL CHAMPAIGN, IL 1910 N. NEIL ST Neil St. and
Convenience Center
16. IN EVANSVILLE, IN 6636 E. LLOYD EXPRESSWAY At Lloyd Crossing
Shopping Center
17. IN MERRILLVILLE,IN 740 E. 81ST AVE At Star Plaza
18. IN CASTLETON, IN 5910 E. 82ND STREET At main entrance of
(Rocky River Castleton Square Mall
Grillhouse)
19. IN AVON, IN 10143 U.S. HWY 36 In the Target
Shopping Center
20. IN MISHAWAKA, IN 4010 NORTH MAIN STREET Corner of Main
Street and Day Road
21. IN INDIANAPOLIS 201 S. MERIDIAN ST At the corner of
(Downtown), IN Georgia and Meridian
downtown
22. IN BLOOMINGTON, IN 2980 W.WHITEHALL At Whitehall
CROSSING BLVD Crossing
23. LA BATON ROUGE, LA 6330 SIEGEN LANE Quarter Mile East
of I-10
24. LA SHREVEPORT, LA 7231 YOUREE DRIVE South on Youree Dr.
before 70th St.
25. ME BANGOR, ME 605 HOGAN ROAD Across from the
Bangor Mall
26. MO FENTON, MO (Rocky 140 GRAVOIS BLUFF In Gravois Bluffs
River Grillhouse) CIRCLE Plaza
27. MO SPRINGFIELD, MO 2040 E. INDEPENDENCE Hwy 65 and 60
AVE
28. MO CHESTERFIELD,MO 17000 CHESTERFIELD RD In Chesterfield
AIRPORT Commons
29. MS SOUTHAVEN, MS 6575 AIRWAYS BLVD On Airways 1/2 Mile
South of Goodman Rd.
30. NC WILMINGTON, NC 1055 INTERNATIONAL DRIVE At Mayfaire Town
Center
31. NH NEWINGTON, NH 5 PISCATAQUA DRIVE Across from Fox
Run Mall
32. NH CONCORD, NH 317 LOUDON ROAD One light north of
Steeplegate Mall
33. NY AMHERST, NY 4120 MAPLE ROAD Half-mile north of
Niagara Falls Blvd.
on Maple Rd.
34. OH DAYTON, OH 1060 MIAMISBURG 1 1/2 miles east
CENTERVILLE RD of Dayton Mall on SR
725
35. OH CLEVELAND/ELYRIA, 1585 WEST RIVER RD Across from Midway
Mall
36. OH TOLEDO, OH 4155 TALMADGE ROAD Across from the
Westfield Mall
37. OH AKRON, OH (Rocky 283 HOWE AVENUE On Howe Ave.
River Grillhouse)
38. OK OKLAHOMA CITY, OK 2521 W. MEMORIAL ROAD In front of Quail
Springs Mall on
Memorial
39. OK TULSA, OK 9111 E. 71ST STREET On 71st Between Mingo
and Memorial
40. PA SCRANTON/DICKSON 4005 COMMERCE BLVD Near Viewmont Mall
CITY PA
41. PA LANGHORNE, PA 2250 EAST LINCOLN HWY Next to Oxford
Valley Mall
42. PA PHILADELPHIA, PA 9495 EAST ROOSEVELT BLVD At the corner of
Grant and Roosevelt
Blvd.
43. RI PROVIDENCE, RI 134 PROVIDENCE PLACE MALL In Providence
Place Mall
44. SC COLUMBIA, SC 410 COLUMBIANA DRIVE Near Columbiana
Centre
45. SC MYRTLE BEACH, SC 1218 NORTH RETAIL COURT At Coastal Grand
Mall
46. TN MEMPHIS, TN 6980 WINCHESTER ROAD Intersection of
Winchester &
Riverdale roads.
47. TN BRENTWOOD/COOL 1634 SERVICE MERCHANDISE I-65 & Moores Lane
RD Exit
48. TN BARTLETT, TN 8324 HWY 64 Across from Wolf
Chase Mall
49. TX HOUSTON/ 7465 WEST GREENS ROAD 249/Tomball Parkway,
WILLOWBROOK, TX exit at Greens Road
50. TX WACO, TX 4719 S. JACK KULTGEN In Central Texas
FREEWAY Marketplace
51. TX SOUTH AUSTIN, TX 901 C LITTLE TEXAS LANE Next to
Metropolitan Movie
Theatre
52. TX HUMBLE, TX 20502 HIGHWAY 59 Hwy 59 (Townsend
Exit), East of
Deerbrook Mall
53. TX SAN ANTONIO, TX 14402 NORTH US HWY 281 US HWY 281
NORTH just north of Bitters
Rd.
54. WI MADISON, WI 418 S. GAMMON ROAD Near West Towne
Mall
55. WI ASHWAUBENON, WI 2475 S. ONEIDA STREET Located at Bay
Park Square Mall
56. WV CHARLESTON, WV 121 CROSS TERRACE BLVD In South Ridge
Center
AP Archive: http://photoarchive.ap.org/
PRN Photo Desk,
