Owner of Brio, Bravo Restaurants Files Chapter 11 Amid Virus

FoodFirst Global Restaurants Inc., owner of Italian restaurant chains Brio Italian Mediterranean and BRAVO Fresh Italian, is the latest to seek bankruptcy reorganization in part because of shutdowns necessitated by the coronavirus pandemic.

FoodFirst and seven affiliates filed Chapter 11 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Middle District of Florida April 10, intending to pursue a sale.

The two chains, which had 110 locations in 32 states, underperformed after being acquired by FoodFirst in 2018. Revenue dropped from more than $400 million in 2017 to about $307 million last year, the company said.

Then the current health scare “radically altered” the improvement process, forcing “massive closures” and employee losses throughout the country and driving the company into bankruptcy, FoodFirst said.

The Chapter 11 filing comes amid an uptick in restaurant bankruptcies as the industry grapples with the economic fallout of stay-at-home orders meant to prevent the spread of Covid-19.

Last month CraftWorks Parent LLC, the owner of Logan’s Roadhouse and Old Chicago Pizza & Taproom among other chains, filed Chapter 11, citing shutdowns caused by the coronavirus.

Restaurants in Europe and Japan also are commencing insolvency proceedings after feeling the effects of public health measures there.

FoodFirst plans on reducing its footprint to maintain its strongest locations while it seeks a buyer, it said.

The company owes about $27 million in funded debt, it said. Its assets include about $575,000 of inventory, $550,000 in accounts receivable, $640,000 in furnishings and equipment, and about $2 million worth of real property.

The case is In re FoodFirst Global Restaurants, Inc., Bankr. M.D. Fla., No. 20-02159, Case Management Summary filed 4/10/20.

For additional legal resources, visit Bloomberg Law In Focus: Coronavirus.

To contact the reporter on this story: Daniel Gill in Washington at dgill@bloomberglaw.com

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Seth Stern at sstern@bloomberglaw.com