18 FL Red Lobster Restaurants Close With No Notice: See List

FLORIDA — Eighteen Red Lobster restaurants in Florida are "temporarily closed," according to the company's website, with dozens more nationwide suddenly shuttered.

The closures happened on Monday and, according to social media postings from restaurant employees, the closures came without notice.

The shuttered restaurants in Florida include:

• Altamonte Springs: 340 West SR 436
• Daytona Beach Shores: 3162 S Atlantic Ave.
• Gainesville: 6910 W. Newberry Road
• Jensen Beach: 3544 NW Federal Hwy.
• Leesburg: 10010 US Highway 441
• Hialeah: 1750 W 49th St.
• Baymeadows - Jacksonville: 8720 Baymeadows Road
• Commerce Center - Jacksonville: 416 Commerce Center Drive
• Jacksonville: 13090 City Station Drive
• Kissimmee: 4010 West Vine Street
• Largo: 10500 E Ulmerton Road
• E. Hwy 50 - Orlando: 3552 E. Colonial Drive
• Sand Lake Rd - Orlando: 8003 Golden Sky Lane
• W SR 50 - Orlando: 7373 W Colonial Drive
• Sanford: 20 Towne Center Circle
• Spring Hill: 2328 Commercial Way
• E. Busch Blvd. - Tampa: 2625 East Busch Blvd.
• Palms - Tampa: 17021 Palm Pointe Drive

Other Florida restaurants remain open.

Various media reports put the number of temporary closures nationwide at 80.

A liquidation company, TAGeX Brands, also announced an online auction of Red Lobster's kitchen equipment, furniture, and more from many of the locations. The auction went live on Monday at 3 p.m. and will end on Thursday.

"As of today, select Red Lobster locations are CLOSED. On our Restaurant Equipment marketplace, we are auctioning off 50+ locations across the country. These auctions are winner takes all – meaning, each winner will receive the entire contents of the Red Lobster location they bid on," according to the company.

Red Lobster has not made any public comments about the closures and a request for comment from Patch was not immediately returned.

Just last month, Red Lobster reported that it was considering filing for bankruptcy after suffering a substantial loss from its endless shrimp promotion. The closures come as bankruptcy rumors circled the seafood restaurant chain in recent weeks.

The restaurant has been looking for a buyer, but is staggering from multiple problems, including being cut off by a key supplier.

Red Lobster locations in Florida which appear to still be open, include:

• Boynton Beach
• Bradenton
• Brandon
• Clearwater
• Clermont
• Daytona Beach
• Doral
• Fort Lauderdale
• Fort Myers
• Fort Pierce
• Fort Walton Beach
• Hollywood
• Jacksonville (some remain open)
• Kissimmee
• Largo
• Leesburg
• Melbourne
• Merritt Island
• Miami
• North Miami
• Ocala
• Orange Park

• Orlando (some remain open)
• Panama City
• Pembroke Pines
• Pensacola
• Plantation
• Port Charlotte
• Port Richey
• Saint Petersburg
• Sebring
• Tallahassee
• Tampa (some remain open)
• The Villages
• West Palm Beach
• Winter Haven

A liquidation company said it is conducting an online auction of Red Lobster kitchen equipment and other contents of the closed restaurant locations.

The Orlando-based chain, known for its endless shrimp deals, has reportedly been eyeing bankruptcy filing to restructure its debt and downsize from its 650 US locations, CNN reports.