One of the Red Lobster locations in Columbus has closed. Is it temporary or permanent? By Sundi Rose August 12, 2026 12:50 PM Gift Article According to the restaurant chain's website, the Red Lobster on 13th Street in Columbus is now listed as closed every day, confirming foodie tips about the 50-plus-year-old location going dark. A written statement from Red Lobster confirms the closure, effective Aug. 7. The statement goes on to say: "As part of our normal course of business, Red Lobster continuously evaluates individual restaurant performance and lease terms and may, from time to time, choose to close select restaurants. This closure reflected specific decisions tied to the unique operating conditions at this restaurant. We remain committed to making thoughtful decisions that position Red Lobster for long-term success, stability and growth." Mixed messages online. The "closed" status for dine-in and to-go was still in effect as of this week, yet the listing on Yelp says, "Red Lobster is temporarily closed. Scheduled to reopen on August 8, 2027." Despite this notice, the last review of the 13th Street location was posted on June 8, 2026, in which the diner said her party initially "wanted to go to 13th Street," weren't served and then ultimately "went to [the] Whittlesley [location]." At the time of publication, Open Table, an online restaurant reservation service, does not explicitly say the 13th Street location is permanently closed but posted a notification on the site that says, "At the moment, there's no online availability within 3.5 hours of 7:00 PM," and there are no other dates available to reserve. There is a sign posted on the door of the location referring patrons to the Red Lobster in Columbus Park Crossing. Red Lobster has been here before. This isn't the first time the 13th Street Red Lobster has faced closure. The chain filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in May 2024. However, court filings listed the Columbus Park Crossing location, not 13th Street, as a target for lease rejection. When Red Lobster exited bankruptcy later that year, both Columbus locations were confirmed to remain open under new leadership. However, the 13th Street location has sat empty for quite some time, and it doesn't seem likely to return. If you have questions or would like to know or read more about something in Columbus, email me at [email protected] or find me on social media. Local. August 11, 2026 1:20 PM ToDo. August 11, 2026 11:36 AM

23rd Annual Food Safety Award winners are serving up excellence. August 5, 2026 Bloomington recently recognized the leaders who go above and beyond to keep its community safe and healthy. At the 28th Annual Diamond Service Awards in May, the mayor presented the City's 2025 Food Safety Awards, honoring exceptional performance across Bloomington's food service and hospitality industries. This year's recipients span a wide-range of businesses: Lunds & Byerlys, Capital One Café, Bruegger's Bagels-Southtown and DoubleTree by Hilton Bloomington-Minneapolis South. Red Lobster earned both the Full-Service Restaurant Award and the Overall Food Safety Award for 2025. City-licensed food establishments earn nominations through standout 2025 inspection results. From there, nominees bring their passion and expertise to an in-depth interview, where they're scored on enthusiasm, knowledge and proven food safety practices. The City's Advisory Board of Health reviews the top performers and gives the final stamp of approval. Congratulations to all the winners this year! Contact information.

56-year-old fast-food giant has closed over half its restaurants. Daniel Kline When beef prices climb, a restaurant like Chili's or Applebee's can advertise chicken specials and find ways to entice customers to order more affordable proteins. But when a chain focuses on one specific protein as part of its brand identity, its options become limited. Buffalo Wild Wings advertises boneless wing specials when bone-in prices rise, and WingStop, despite its name, sold chicken thighs in 2021 when wing prices skyrocketed, according to CNBC. Still, the more specific your offering, the harder it is to pivot. That's what doomed a number of Texas BBQ restaurants recently, as the price of beef has climbed, TheStreet reported. When customers expect brisket, they may not want pulled pork, and when they're going to a seafood chain, it's hard to sell them beef or chicken. This problem factored into Red Lobster's Chapter 11 bankruptcy, impacted Bahama Breeze, which was closed completely by parent company Darden Restaurants, and led to the Joe's Crab Shack downsizing. Long John Silver's keeps shrinking. Long John Silver's has long been one of the most successful seafood-based fast-food chains in the United States by sheer store count. Captain D's, a rival chain, may have surpassed it with about 530 restaurants, according to documents published on Franchise Depth. At its peak, Long John Silver's had 1,081 locations, and that number may be below 500 now. The seafood fast-food restaurant chain, launched in Lexington, Ky., in 1969, closed another 30 locations in 2025, according to Undercurrent News, which pulled the information from the chain's franchise disclosure documents (FDD). Long John Silver's menu features fried Alaskan pollock, shrimp, and chicken. It also offers grilled salmon and shrimp options. Seafood chains have struggled. Affordable seafood has been a challenge for restaurants. Red Lobster fell into bankruptcy partly because it offered an all-you-can-eat shrimp promotion. Shrimp is an expensive protein, and people can eat a lot of it. That promotion, which was only one factor in Red Lobster's eventual Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing, cost the company $11 million. More Restaurants: The challenge with offering affordable seafood is that seafood just isn't cheap. In theory, you can lure people in with shrimp, lobster, and crab leg deals, hoping to sell them high-margin drinks or desserts, but historically, this hasn't worked all that well.