2 weeks Ago By [email protected] (Bobby Lewis)
Despite the versatility of a good burger, its reliable popularity is not enough to save some burger chains from financial trouble. Unfortunately, the number of places you can get a decent burger is going down a bit in 2025, with several notable chains announcing significant store closures. These include Wahlburgers, TGI Fridays, and Almost Famous.
In some cases, these closures have already hit. These restaurants are joining the ranks of some fast food giants that have also struggled with sales. Wendy's is facing several signs of trouble , including 140 impending store closures.
But while sometimes the explanation is as straightforward as poor sales, business realignments like these may not necessarily be bad news for the company as a whole. One affected burger brand, for instance, is using this opportunity to pivot back to its strengths. And in an inspiring example, another influential burger chain that folded under intense economic pressure was rapidly revived — albeit with a smaller footprint.
Wahlburgers Wahlburgers, the Massachusetts-born burger chain founded by executive chef Paul Wahlberg and his celebrity brothers Mark and Donnie, is closing 79 locations in 2025, the vast majority of its over 100 stores. All of the Wahlburgers locations to be closed are located inside of Hy-Vee grocery stores, a midwestern chain that is replacing the burger joints with its own restaurant concept. Despite the closure of a massive number of its own locations, which leaves Wahlburgers with approximately 40 restaurants, the brand is happy to focus on its growth.
"We're not going to be in the grocery business," said CEO Randy Sharpe (via Restaurant Business Online ), dismissing concerns about the core business. "It's best that everyone stay in what their skill sets are and move on." Reflecting this refocused growth, Sharpe said that Wahlburgers is also expecting to open 15 new locations in 2025.
Coincidentally, Wahlburgers will also be expanding operations into the Mall of America store, taking over from Hy-Vee. TGI Fridays Mired in years of financial difficulties, the once-popular fast casual restaurant chain TGI Fridays has closed even more stores, further whittling down its footprint amid bankruptcy. Already in 2025, TGI Fridays closed 30 locations, scattered throughout the northeast U.
S. as well as Ohio and Maryland. TGI Fridays has faced catastrophic business losses since the late 2000s.
According to Technomic data reported by Restaurant Business Online , from 2008 to 2023, Fridays saw a 63% drop in sales and closed 55% of all U.S. locations.
After such consistent losses, Fridays filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in November, which accelerated store closures. Including these new losses, TGI Fridays is down to 133 U.S.
locations — a significant drop from the beginning of 2024, when it had 270 American stores. Almost Famous It's not just American burger restaurants struggling in 2025. Almost Famous, a renowned English burger chain, announced early in the year that it would be closing all of its locations.
Since its first store opened in Manchester, U.K. in 2012, Almost Famous enjoyed rave reviews from restaurant critics and food influencers, and it helped establish Manchester's trend of so-called dirty burgers – any large burger dripping with toppings and grease, similar to a perfectly juicy Five Guys burger .
In an emotional statement ( via the BBC ), Almost Famous' founder Beau Myers said that ongoing financial strain related to high business costs and the COVID-19 pandemic proved too much pressure to sustain operations in Manchester, Liverpool, and Leeds. This was even despite the strong reviews and busy stores. However, for fans of Almost Famous, all may not be lost: A new owner recently reopened two Almost Famous locations, one each in Liverpool and the brand's hometown of Manchester.
The original owner is also still in business at Super Awesome Deluxe, a smash burger restaurant..
