O'Charley's shuts all 49 company-owned restaurants

O'Charley's closes restaurants nationwide, shutting all 49 of its company-owned locations across 13 U.S. states and ending 55 years of corporate-run service for the Nashville casual-dining chain.

Owner Cannae Holdings confirmed the shutdown took effect on September 9. A small number of franchised locations remain open: Covelli Enterprises, which runs three O'Charley's restaurants under franchise, secured an extension for one site through the end of September, according to Restaurant Dive.

Same-store sales fell 13 percent

A once-familiar Southern chain now survives only in its franchised corners.

The restaurant division posted a 13.1 percent same-store sales decline in the second quarter of 2026, with guest counts down 23.8 percent from a year earlier. The division recorded a $40 million net loss for the quarter and an $81 million operating loss over the 12 months to June 30, Restaurant Dive reported.

Cannae has invested $170 million in its restaurant group since taking control. In February, chief executive Ryan Caswell said the company would concentrate its portfolio on sports and entertainment assets rather than restaurants, a strategic review that has now reached O'Charley's.

A chain that shrank from 250 restaurants

O'Charley's opened its first restaurant in Nashville in 1971 and grew to nearly 250 units at its peak in 2010. More than 50 locations closed in 2023 alone, and the corporate footprint had fallen to 49 restaurants plus three franchised sites across 13 states by the second quarter of 2026.

Cannae has pointed to shifting demographics, as nearby malls and big-box retailers closed and drew away foot traffic even as costs kept rising. Menu changes and service updates failed to reverse the decline, the company said.

Caswell said Cannae would "continue to monetize nonstrategic assets ... to redeploy capital towards higher returning opportunities," a signal that further disposals across its holdings are likely.

O'Charley's now survives only through its handful of franchised dining rooms, a fraction of the chain that once anchored strip malls across the South and Midwest. Red Lobster and Whitbread's Beefeater chain have shed restaurants on both sides of the Atlantic this year for similar reasons: fewer visits, thinner margins, owners eager to redeploy capital elsewhere.