Buca di Beppo, the popular Italian-American restaurant chain best known for its family-style dining and eclectic ambiance, has permanently closed several restaurants in the last week.
The closures included 13 underperforming locations in Sacramento, California; Salt Lake City and Midvale, Utah; Livonia and Utica, Michigan; Springs Township, Pennsylvania; and Colonie, New York. Buca di Beppo now has 44 restaurant locations operating nationwide.
Parent company Earl Enterprises said in a statement that the underperforming locations struggled to recover from the pandemic and other market pressures — including rampant food inflation and a decrease in consumer demand. Amid the pandemic, many Buca di Beppo locations transformed into “ghost kitchens” selling delivery-only virtual brands like Virtual Dining Concepts, Pardon My Cheesesteak and other digital restaurant initiatives.
Buca di Beppo joins a list of casual dining chains that abruptly closed their doors due to rising costs. They include Hooters, TGI Fridays, O’Charley’s and Red Lobster.
At its peak, Buca di Beppo touted 95 operating restaurants across the country in 2013. According to data from Technomic, systemwide sales declined 4.7% last year.
On Aug. 4, the restaurant company officially filed for bankruptcy in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Texas. It cited a decrease in sales, staffing challenges, changes in consumer demands and rising food and labor costs.
Buca di Beppo was founded in Minneapolis in 1993. Many celebrities previously collaborated with the restaurant for a variety of causes and promotional events. In 2009, Sylvester Stallone famously purchased a California restaurant location. In 2013, “Modern Family” star Sofia Vergara partnered with Bucca di Beppo restaurants to raise funds and awareness for St Jude Children's Research Hospital. In 2020, Dorit Kemsley of Bravo's "The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills" helped remodel a room at the Encino location of the chain, supposedly inspired by the aesthetics of Capri.
