{"id":142052,"date":"2026-02-03T15:50:08","date_gmt":"2026-02-03T15:50:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/142052\/"},"modified":"2026-02-03T15:50:08","modified_gmt":"2026-02-03T15:50:08","slug":"bahama-breeze-to-convert-tampa-bay-locations-to-new-concepts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/142052\/","title":{"rendered":"Bahama Breeze to convert Tampa Bay locations to new concepts"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Darden Restaurants will permanently close 14 Bahama Breeze locations and convert the remaining 14 into other brands within its portfolio, concluding a strategic review of the Caribbean-themed chain.<\/p>\n<p>The Orlando-based company said it no longer considers the Bahama Breeze brand a strategic priority.<\/p>\n<p>The company operates a portfolio that includes Olive Garden, LongHorn Steakhouse, Yard House, Ruth\u2019s Chris Steak House, Cheddar\u2019s Scratch Kitchen, The Capital Grille, Chuy\u2019s, Seasons 52 and Eddie V\u2019s.<\/p>\n<p>Tampa Bay locations slated for conversion<\/p>\n<p>In Tampa Bay, two Bahama Breeze restaurants are among the locations expected to be converted into other Darden concepts.<\/p>\n<p>The locations include the restaurant at 3045 N. Rocky Point Drive East in Tampa and the Brandon location at 805 Brandon Town Center Drive.<\/p>\n<p>Darden did not disclose which brands would replace Bahama Breeze at either site.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"728\" height=\"410\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Untitled-10-18-728x410.jpeg.optimal.jpeg\" alt=\"Exterior of the Bahama Breeze restaurant on Rocky Point Drive East in Tampa, located along the waterfront and slated for conversion to a new restaurant concept.\" class=\"wp-image-89539\"  \/>The Bahama Breeze restaurant on Rocky Point Drive East in Tampa is one of two Tampa Bay locations expected to be converted to another restaurant concept.<\/p>\n<p>The company said the sites are located in established commercial areas that can support multiple restaurant brands.<\/p>\n<p>Both locations will continue operating as Bahama Breeze until conversion work begins.<\/p>\n<p>Any temporary closures related to remodeling will be announced later.<\/p>\n<p>Closures expected by early April<\/p>\n<p>The 14 locations designated for permanent closure are expected to continue operating through April 5, 2026.<\/p>\n<p>Those closures include several Florida restaurants, along with locations in Georgia, Michigan, New Jersey, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Virginia and Washington state.<\/p>\n<p>READ: <a href=\"https:\/\/tbbwmag.com\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">TAMPA BAY BUSINESS NEWS<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Darden said it is focused on supporting affected employees at closing locations.<\/p>\n<p>The company plans to place as many team members as possible into roles across its broader restaurant portfolio.<\/p>\n<p>Conversion timeline spans up to 18 months<\/p>\n<p>The remaining 14 Bahama Breeze locations will be converted over the next 12 to 18 months.<\/p>\n<p>Both Tampa Bay locations are expected to remain in operation during the transition period, with conversion timelines extending into 2027.<\/p>\n<p>READ: <a href=\"https:\/\/tbbwmag.com\/tampa-bay-real-estate-news\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">TAMPA BAY REAL ESTATE NEWS<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Details on the scope of renovations, conversion costs and construction schedules were not disclosed.<\/p>\n<p>Limited financial impact expected<\/p>\n<p>Darden said it does not expect the closures or conversions to have a material impact on its financial results.<\/p>\n<p>For Tampa Bay, the changes center on two established restaurant sites that are expected to transition to new concepts over the next year.<\/p>\n<p>Stay Informed<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Darden Restaurants will permanently close 14 Bahama Breeze locations and convert the remaining 14 into other brands within&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":142053,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[8611,5752,3090,575,276,687,135,1703,52537,7682,137,136,7683],"class_list":["post-142052","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-tampa","tag-brandon","tag-commercial-real-estate","tag-dining","tag-food","tag-hillsborough-county","tag-restaurants","tag-tampa","tag-tampa-bay-business","tag-tampa-bay-business-news-and-top-stories","tag-tampa-bay-hospitality","tag-tampa-headlines","tag-tampa-news","tag-tampa-restaurants"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/142052","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=142052"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/142052\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/142053"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=142052"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=142052"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=142052"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}