Wendy’s announces closure of approximately 300 stores nationwide
Fast food chain Wendy’s plans to close hundreds more just a year after closing 140 stores.
Just over two weeks into the new year, multiple fast-food and fast-casual chain restaurants across the country have announced plans to downsize, with some saying they intend to focus resources on their top-performing locations.
Restaurants that have announced closures include Noodles & Co., Red Robin and Wendy’s.
Noodles & Company confirmed in a January 12 news release that it will close 33 company-owned restaurants and nine franchised restaurants in 2025. An additional 30 to 35 stores are likely to close next year, the company said.
Noodles & Company CEO and President Joe Christina said the company’s restaurant sales were up more than 7% in the fourth quarter, and the decision to close some locations was made with caution. He added that closing some restaurants will help strengthen the brand and its finances.
“Our fourth-quarter results confirm that Noodles can drive significant sales growth by focusing resources on restaurants with the greatest opportunity to improve performance,” Christina said in a news release. “This performance gives us further confidence as we continue to refine our portfolio for 2026.”
USA TODAY reached out to Noodles & Company for a complete list of closures, but has not yet received a response.
Here are other restaurants that have recently announced closures and what we know so far.
Wendy’s considers closing unprofitable restaurants
Back in November, Wendy’s interim CEO Ken Cook told investors on a quarterly earnings call that the company planned to close a “mid-single-digit percentage” of stores. At that time, Wendy’s had about 6,000 stores nationwide, and the closures could range from about 240 to 360 stores.
Cook said part of the plan includes improving technology and equipment at some locations and transferring underperforming locations to new operators or closing locations. He said closures are expected to begin during the fourth quarter of this year.
When contacted by email in early January, Wendy’s declined to share a complete list of closings. But the company said it is working to ensure “restaurant scale that continues to provide a great experience for our customers and benefits our franchisees.”
Wendy’s said in a statement that underperforming restaurants may close as part of this strategy.
Stores that closed in late December include Wendy’s stores in Levittown, Pennsylvania, West Lafayette, Indiana, and Stockton, California, according to the Bucks County Courier Times, Lafayette Journal & Courier, and Stockton Record, all members of the USA TODAY Network.
Red Robin may not close as many stores as previously planned
In February 2025, Red Robin announced plans to close about 70 unprofitable stores to pay off debt. Later that year, the burger restaurant said on an earnings call that its attempts to improve performance at some locations had been so successful that it didn’t have to close as many locations.
When asked for updated store closure numbers and a list of locations on Jan. 15, Red Robin provided USA TODAY with an update on the company’s second quarter and pointed out areas for improvement.
“Building on this momentum, Red Robin delivered strong financial results in the third quarter of 2025, including stronger than expected comparable restaurant revenue, restaurant-level profitability, and customer traffic,” the company said in a Jan. 15 statement. “Red Robin plans to report its fourth quarter and full year 2025 results in the first quarter of 2026.”
Starbucks: “There are no plans for large-scale closures in 2026”
Starbucks recently made headlines for potentially closing its doors at the end of 2025, but the company acknowledged in a statement to USA TODAY on Jan. 16 that previous reports that the coffee company would close 400 stores were “misrepresented.”
Starbucks said it will close 400 stores in the fall of 2025.
“As part of our normal operations, we regularly evaluate our coffeehouses to determine how best to meet the needs of our customers, but we have no plans for any major closures in 2026,” Starbucks said in a statement.
In late September 2025, Starbucks CEO Brian Nicol announced that the company was reviewing its U.S. portfolio and would close stores that did not provide the environment and financial benefits the company desired.
“Each year, we open and close coffeehouses for a variety of reasons, from business performance to lease expirations,” Nicol said, adding that Starbucks plans to end fiscal year 2025 with 18,300 company-operated and licensed stores in the U.S. and Canada.
“In 2026, we will continue to invest in our business and increase the number of coffee houses we operate,” Nikkor continued. “Over the next 12 months, we will renovate more than 1,000 locations to introduce greater texture, warmth and layered design.”
Contributors: Jonathan Limehouse, Mary Walrath-Holdridge, USA TODAY. JD Mullane, Bucks County Courier Times. Gillian Ellison, Lafayette Journal & Courier, & Angelidet Rocha, Stockton Records
Saleen Martin is a reporter for USA TODAY’s NOW team. She is from Norfolk, Virginia (757). Email sdmartin@usatoday.com.
