A popular US restaurant chain has confirmed a series of country-wide closures as part of a major restructuring drive. Smokey Bones, a casual dining BBQ restaurant, shuttered several sites in New York, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Illinois and Rhode Island on April 28, according to reports.
The company, which was launched in 1999, initially as a sports bar before growing into a dining chain, is owned by Fat Brands Inc, which filed for bankruptcy earlier this year.
Employees in the affected restaurants told US media that they found out they had lost their jobs on the morning of the widespread closures, which marked a further downsizing of brand’s once expansive portfolio of 120 sites across the country. A previous round of closures and conversions saw that number dwindle to around 31 in early 2026, with this month’s shut-downs spelling an increasingly uncertain future.
Among the closures enforced on April 28 were Smokey Bones’ branches in Mentor, Ohio, and Warwick, Rhode Island.
A sign pasted in the window of the Warwick restaurant read: “We regret to announce that this location has permanently closed its doors as of Tuesday, April 28th.”
Employees at the chain’s sites in Colonie, New York, Michigan and Pennsylvania also told local media that they learned of the closure plans on Tuesday morning.
While the company has not issued a formal statement on the closures, all Smokey Bones restaurants are listed as closed every day of the week on its website.
Fat Brands Inc filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on January 26, 2026, according to a filing seen by People.com.
The court-supervised process allows the multi-brand restaurant and sports bar operator to keep its sites open while restructuring debt and negotiating with creditors.
Court filings showed that the group had estimated assets and liabilities of between $1 billion (£740 million) to $10 billion (£7.4 billion).
