[Rocketfan]

Customers showing up for lunch at Bennigan's restaurants in Chicago and across the country found quite a surprise Tuesday morning, when all the corporate-owned locations had signs on display reading "closed for business."

Bennigan's Grill and Tavern closed all of its corporate-owned locations nationwide after filing for bankruptcy. That amounts to 160 locations, and about 10,000 employees are out of work. Independent franchises remain open for business as usual.

Chicago and the suburbs will be hit hard. Fifteen Bennigan's in the area did not open for business for Tuesday, now that the company is being liquidated in bankruptcy court.


http://cbs2chicago.com/local/bennigans. ... 82428.html

[Cider Jim]

I had many good times at Bennigan's in Chattanooga.

[Sly Fox]

I noticed the one by our house our closed this past weekend.

[qkslvrsrfrboy]

My parents Loved Bennigans, we just ate there last week, and it didnt seem like they were shutting down any time soon.

[Sly Fox]

The Monte Cristo may be a heart attack on a plate ... but it is also unbelievably awesome.

[qkslvrsrfrboy]

The Monte Cristo may be a heart attack on a plate ... but it is also unbelievably awesome.

agreed, it has to be more unhealthy than a cheesy from the T-room

[PAmedic]

approx 1 month before we graduated the Academy- they closed the one right down the street from us in Allentown.

it came as a suprise then, too- one day open, the next day closed down. We assumed it was a local thing, just the one place.

Evidently not.

I guess the market is pretty much saturated with that type of establishment (Fridays, Applebees, Ruby Tuesdays, Bennigans, etc)

[RubberMallet]

that place was terrible anyways...

[rogers3]

As some kind of an insider, I wouldn't be surprised to see a couple of other similar restaurant chains close or significantly downsize.

[RubberMallet]

please be tgif's and chili's please please please

[DasBeast]

please be tgif's and chili's please please please

TGIF = CLOSE IT NOW. I was forced, due to a late flight, to eat at one in January (on
my birthday, no less), and I got such a case of food poisoning, I had to see a doctor the next
day. I half expected an alien to come popping out of my stomach.

Chili's = Live forever. I could live off Shanghai Chicken Tenders. Plus, out of all the burger/appetizer places
around (save for a Buffalo Wild Wings, which the closest one to me is Delaware), Chili's is tops.

[givemethemic]

I llllllloooooovvvvveeee Chili's!!!!! maybe a little overboard but you get the point..I think this topic of wanting to see Chili's close might just bring FSN32 out of the land of non-posters:)... TGIF can close tomorrow and I could care less.. crapy food at a crappy price... kinda like Ledo's with the crappy food but they don't have crappy prices:)

[thesportscritic]

Chili's is awesome! they need to bring one to the burg.

[RagingTireFire]

I have never been to a Bennigan's. I was tempted to after seeing 'Office Space' but my wife shot it down. Something about the experience being much funnier for me than for everyone else.

[Sly Fox]

Technically Office Space wasn't shot in a Bennigans (it was some no name local place a block from my apartment at the time) but I get the drift. I always felt it was more of a satire of Fridays. Bennigans like to push its pub atmosphere more than its flare.

I was never a huge Bennigans fan but other than typically bad service no matter I entered one, the food was generally up to par especially late in the evening when the other options started closing.

And for the record, some other national chain needs to start serving up the Monte Cristo. There is a market for guys who want to eat something that immediately clogs arteries.

[LUconn]

<------ Has never seen or heard of Bennigans.

[BJWilliams]

I went a couple times to Bennigan's in my neck of the woods and thoroughly enjoyed it. Sad to see it go frankly

[newandimproved]

I thought this place went out of business a while ago because I never see them anymore

[WinthropEagleFan]

Bennigan's?? Oh, boy, you mean it??

[RagingTireFire]

Bennigan's?? Oh, boy, you mean it??

[RubberMallet]

its gotten to the point that with all of these places whenever i happen to have to go there i get a burger....the list includes

applebees, chili's, tgif's, bennigans, o charlies, ruby tuesdays, all of them....and their burgers suck just as bad as the rest of the menu..... some of the most boring bland food i've ever tasted...

don't even get me started on having to listen to the guy at work talk about how the applebees steaks are the best steaks ever...

[Sly Fox]

don't even get me started on having to listen to the guy at work talk about how the applebees steaks are the best steaks ever...

[FlamingChick]

And for the record, some other national chain needs to start serving up the Monte Cristo. There is a market for guys who want to eat something that immediately clogs arteries.

I LOVE the Monte Cristo!! I used to get it at Bennigans from time to time. The Cheesecake Factory has a good one too!