Hooters abruptly closes dozens of locations across US, including these in Florida

C. A. Bridges, USA TODAY NETWORK - Florida
Updated ·3 min read
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Floridians rocked from abruptly losing their Red Lobsters last month must now deal with the latest chain to close locations: Hooters.

“Like many restaurants under pressure from current market conditions, Hooters has made the difficult decision to close a select number of underperforming stores,” the Atlanta-based sports bar chain said in a statement to Nation’s Restaurant News.

A list of closed locations has not been provided by local media outlets have found about 40 Hooters restaurants closed around the country, including at least four in Florida and six in Texas. One of them, in Lakeland, Florida, is said by locals to be the second Hooters ever opened, in 1984.

Over four decades since they opened the first one in Clearwater, Hooters has more than 420 Hooters in 29 countries, according to the company website. Some Hooters locations, including 15 in South Florida, are operated by LTP Management, a Franchisee of Hooters of America, according to spokesperson Ilona Wolpin, and are not subject to these shutdowns.

Which Hooters locations closed in Florida?

Comparing last year's list of Hooters locations in Florida vs. the current one, and checking Google listings, these Hooters are no longer open.

Where is Hooters still open in Florida?

A group of Hooters Girls gather at the bar to perform a short song for a patron's birthday.
A group of Hooters Girls gather at the bar to perform a short song for a patron's birthday.

What is Hooters?

The first Hooters opened in Clearwater in 1983, the brainchild of six businessmen and the largest chain in the "brestaurant" genre of restaurants that advertise attractive waitresses in tight shirts and shorts.

"Hooters Girls" wear white tank tops with the "Hootie the Owl" logo and short orange shorts, plus tan pantyhose and reflect what an old version of the employees' handbook (published by the Smoking Gun) called "the look of the 'All American Cheerleader, Surfer, Girl Next Door."

Hooters of Sarasota recently celebrated their 35th anniversary and received a $7,500 gift from Sarasota nonprofit Local 7433 for their fundraising campaign for the Kelly Jo Dowd Breast Cancer Research Fund. In addition to the Dowd Fund, Hooters assists several organizations, including the Sarasota Fire Department, Hope Family Services, Special Olympics Florida, Girl Scouts of Gulfcoast Florida, and Suncoast Charities for Children.

Hooters is known for wings, sandwiches, burgers, seafood, and beer, the annual Hooters Girls calendar, the Miss Hooters Pageant, and for sponsoring NASCAR drivers. This year, Hooters is sponsoring Chase Elliott of Hendrick Motorsports. The company also often supports local charities, sponsors marathons and contributes to local services.

It's also famous for multiple lawsuits over discriminatory hiring practices and for going through a long list of owners. Most recently, in 2019, Hooters was sold to Nord Bay Capital and TriArtisan Capital Advisors.

Contributing: Wade Tatangelo, Sarasota Herald-Tribune/USA TODAY Network-Florida

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Hooters closing locations 'underperforming' in Florida, US