Only 10 Gordon Biersch restaurants remain open across the country.
After a tenuous few months, Craftworks— the company that owns the Gordon Biersch Restaurants—has filed for bankruptcy. In the past year, the company has closed multiple locations under the Gordon Biersch, Rock Bottom, and Old Chicago brand names. On Monday, March 2, 2020, the company closed the Gordon Biersch locations in Rockville and Baltimore, Maryland, Navy Yard and Chinatown in D.C., Syracuse, NY, and Virginia Beach, VA. The following day, Craftworks Holdings filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in Delaware.
Gordon Biersch was founded by Dan Gordon in 1988. The restaurant was famous for its in-house brewed craft beers and an upscale pub menu that included freshly made garlic fries and pizza. Craftworks purchased the Gordon Biersch restaurants in 1999, with Gordon keeping the Gordon Biersch Brewery as a separate company.
At one time Craftworks operated around 400 restaurants under the names Rock Bottom, Gordon Biersch, Logan’s Roadhouse, Old Chicago Pizza and Taproom, Chophouse, Big River Grill, AIA Ale Works, Ragtime Tavern and Seafood Grill, Sing-Sing, and Seven Bridges Grill and Brewery. Only 10 Gordon Biersch restaurants remain open, including one of the original locations in Las Vegas.
In a press release announcing the bankruptcy, Chief Executive Officer Hazem Ouf said the company will continue to operate the remaining 261 restaurants and 77 franchise locations.
"Over the past 16 months, we have made significant progress on many fronts to transform our business and position our brands for long-term growth and success. Our team has enhanced the guest dining experience through the addition of new and higher-quality menu offerings and an improved guest service platform, and we have made good strides in increasing operational efficiency across our organization.”
The company also noted that gift cards can be redeemed and restaurant loyalty programs are still in operation.