One of the things I really enjoy is a good meal out on the town. It's great to enjoy freshly prepared food that I didn't have to cook or clean up after. Plus, Abilene is filled with plenty of great restaurants to get your grub on. Some of these places our families have been going to for years. Memories were made, whether it was for a birthday or a special celebration. We all have our favorite restaurants.

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Recently I've discovered that many of these eateries are slowly disappearing. It's no surprise that the restaurant industry took quite a beating from the pandemic. For some, it's been just too much to bounce back. Others have had troubling financial issues for a while now. The blog site FAQTOIDS names well-known restaurant chains that are slowly but surely fading into the sunset.

So far Abilene remains untouched even though the companies on the national levelseem to be in trouble. Head to one of these restaurants and enjoy while you still can.

LOOK: THESE 10 WELL-KNOWN RESTAURANT CHAINS ARE SLOWLY DISAPPEARING

Alexander Wang - Backstage - Fall 09 MBFW
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Hooters

Times have changed. Women are empowered more than ever. Walking around in skimpy outfits doesn't do the company any financial favors. I do understand some franchises are being rebranded as "Hoots" where waitresses are less revealed.


 

Photo: Wikimedia Commons
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
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Golden Corral

Perhaps nobody else was hit harder during the pandemic than buffet restaurants. That's a shame. I remember going to Golden Corral often growing up throughout the 1970s. Hundreds of locations have since closed up their doors. There remain around 500 left with Abilene's location being one of them.


 

Photo: Wikimedia Commons
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
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Red Robin

I've always enjoyed a tasty cheeseburger at the Abilene location. However, on the national level, things haven't gone that well. 5 years ago, Red Robin almost closed its doors for good with a loss in the millions. According to some reports, filing for bankruptcy could be on the horizon.


 

Buffalo Wild Wings Exterior In Jacksonville
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Buffalo Wild Wings

This is an awesome place in Abilene to grab wings. But, you'll notice their prices have had to gradually increase over the past few years. The price hike wasn't appreciated by customers and sources say the company has financially declined since that time. As a result, the company has sold off many locations to franchisees who own about half of all Buffalo Wild Wings.


 

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IHOP

This one hurts. IHOP has been a part of my late-night activities since I was a teenager. However, I learned that the desire for healthier foods caused this brand to take a hit. It's even tried re-branding itself as more of a diner. Remember when the company launched the IHOB campaign? International House of Burgers? Unfortunately, the re-brand did not work and various locations have been closing since. Abilene seems to be ok for now so go grab those delicious pancakes.


 

Subway Settles Not-Really Foot Long Sandwich Litigation
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Subway

I love my sandwiches and Subway has always been a go-to for a freshly made sub. However, folks caught on to the fact that not everything on the menu was healthy as claimed. Subway has been closing stores since 2014 and still continues today. In my opinion, the chain grew too fast and saw sharp declines in their return. There are still quite a few locations left with plans to close even more in the coming years.


 

Burger King Announces Safety Move in Play Areas
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Burger King

I know what you're thinking. But, these big chains are not even safe. In the day and age with trends changing and fierce competition, it's no wonder. Burger King has steadily been closing stores for a while. 2019 was an extremely bad year with over 250 locations closing. You'll notice nowadays that the chain is revamping its stores in hopes of staying in the game.


 

Pizza Hut To Close 300 Locations After Big Franchisee Goes Bankrupt
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Pizza Hut

Pizza Hut used to be a great sit-down restaurant. Heck, I remember having birthday parties and various celebrations there. But these days if I want Italian, I'll go to an Italian restaurant. A bunch of their restaurants has turned into takeout locations. In doing so the company has already closed 450 of its stores.


 

Photo: Wikipedia
Photo: Wikipedia
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Papa Murphy's

This pizza joint started in 1995. I've enjoyed every pie I've gotten there. Papa Murphy's quickly climbed to become the biggest take-and-bake pizza chain. The concept is a great idea but most folks prefer ready-to-eat pizzas. That's just how it goes. National sales for this company have been on the decline with some of the weaker stores completely closing.


 

Papa John's CEO John Schnatter Apologizes After Using Racial Slur On Company Conference Call
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Papa John's

A big hit was taken by the brand when its CEO was surrounded by controversy with the NFL. This eventually ended in the two entities parting ways and caused a huge blow to Papa John's sales. Papa John's is still about 3000 locations strong, but that's very likely to change.

SEE ALSO: These Popular Restaurants Always Seem to Have a Waiting List to Be Seated

In this day and age when you never know what's going to happen, it's probably a good idea to stop by one of these tasty Abilene eateries. Who knows? They may not be there much longer.

Eating out is fun. The more restaurants the merrier. In fact, check out this list of ones that we all wish would come to Abilene. Just look below.

Restaurants We Wish We Had in the Abilene Area

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