A Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing comes with some hope. It’s a chance to negotiate with creditors in order to try to find a path forward.
That doesn’t always work, but there are many examples of restaurant. chains that made comebacks after a Chapter 11 filing. Not every chain on this list has become a world beater, but they at least lived to fight another day.
Chapter 11 chains that survived:
- Applebee’s Chapter 11: 2007 (parent company DineEquity)
- Outcome: Reorganized and expanded aggressively; over 1,600 locations today. Applebee’s has bounced back with menu updates, franchising, and focus on delivery/pickup.
- Friendly’s: Chapter 11: 2011
- Outcome: Closed underperforming locations, refreshed menu/brand, and continues to operate 120 locations, primarily in the Northeast.
- Cosi: Chapter 11: 2016
- Outcome: Shrunk footprint, restructured debt, pivoted toward fast-casual and catering; still operates in select markets.
- Sbarro: Chapter 11: 2011 and 2014
- Outcome: Closed many mall locations, modernized menu, expanded to international markets; still active globally.
Filing Chapter 7 bankruptcy, however, means the company will be liquidated. A buyer could emerge that continues operations, but the company can just as easily be sold for parts.
Opa Restaurant Group, a formerly fast-growing Greek/Mediterranean chain has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection and closed all of it stores.
Related: Popular tourist restaurant chain closing all locations this month
A look at Opa Restaurant Group
Opa has been a fast-growing success story for most of its existence.
When we opened our first location in 1998, Opa! set out to be a different sort of quick-service restaurant, one that combined delicious, wholesome Mediterranean cuisine with outstanding customer service. Twenty years later, our mission remains the same.
Opa! started with a single food court location in Calgary’s Market Mall, where we served classic Greek dishes made using high-quality ingredients. The name, a Greek word used to express happiness, evokes the joy and celebration of feasting with family and friends.
The company also described itself as the “fastest-growing quick service Mediterranean franchise in the country.”
OPA! Restaurant Group timeline:
- 1998 — First OPA! opens in Calgary, AB.
- 2000s — Rapid mall food court expansion across Western Canada.
- 2010s — Adds street-front units; surpasses 80 locations.
- 2018 — 20th anniversary; announces first U.S. site at Las Vegas Fashion Show Mall.
- 2020 — Pivots to delivery during COVID-19.
- 2023 — Confirms one U.S. location open; sets strategy to grow with multi-unit U.S. partners.
- 2025 — 100+ locations in Canada and U.S.; continued domestic and cross-border expansion focus.
Opa Restaurant Group files Chapter 7 bankruptcy
Very little has been released by Opa aside from the official Chapter 7 bankruptcy filing. A number of California locations have closed, but because the chain is mostly franchise-operated, it’s unclear if all locations will close.
“Opa! Restaurant Group has filed to liquidate its assets in a move that would trigger a shutdown of all of the chain’s remaining restaurants in the South Bay, according to several bankruptcy court filings,” SiliconValley,com reported. “…The restaurants that filed for Chapter 7 — Campbell, Morgan Hill and Santa Clara — appear to have shuttered. In addition, Opa Signature Foods also filed to liquidate its assets through a bankruptcy proceeding.”
Bankruptcy Filing Details
- Case Numbers: 5:25-bk-51447 (Santa Clara, LP) and 5:25-bk-51451 (Signature Foods, LP)
- Filing Date: September 19, 2025
- Court: U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Northern District of California
- Chapter: 7 (Voluntary, No Asset)
- Trustee: Doris A. Kaelin
- 341 Meeting: Scheduled for October 15, 2025
These filings indicate that the companies are in the process of liquidating their assets, with no significant assets expected to be available for distribution to creditors.
