Less than three years after opening, Wahlburgers has closed their downtown Atlanta restaurant. Located at 218 Peachtree Street, Wahlburgers opened their downtown outpost in January 2020 just two months before the COVID-19 pandemic wreaked havoc on the restaurant industry. The Wahlburgers shared a portion of the onetime Planet Hollywood with a Chase Bank that remains open. The company did not reveal the reason for the closure.
The Boston-based burger franchise is owned by chef Paul and actors Mark and Donnie Wahlberg.
The downtown Atlanta outpost is among several units the chain has closed in recent years.
Wahlburgers in Milwaukee's Third Ward closed its doors this past weekend, according to Hy-Vee, the regional supermarket that is also the restaurant's largest franchisee. Hy-Vee cited the "changing nature of the restaurant business combined with staffing challenges," as reasoning for the closure. Hy-Vee says that going forward they will only open new Wahlburgers restaurants at Hy-Vee locations. There are currently 61 Wahlburgers restaurants at Hy-Vee locations throughout eight states, with 20 additional locations planned for this year.
Following years of closures of restaurants outside of the Hy-Vee partnership, the grocery chain today accounts for nearly two thirds of Wahlburgers locations nationwide.
In downtown Raleigh, Wahlburgers closed their restaurant in December 2018 just seven months after it opened.
During the summer of 2020, the company shuttered what were then its only two Florida locations, in Orlando, before returning to the Sunshine State in August (2020) with a new opening in Key West.
2020 also brought the closure of the Walburgers at the OWA Amusement Park in Foley, Alabama.
The company also closed a roughly three year old restaurant in West Hollywood in December 2021 and a roughly five year old restaurant in Palo Alto this past November.
A second Wahlburgers at The Battery Atlanta which opened with the overall Braves development in 2017 is now the lone outpost of the chain in Georgia.
Despite the excitement surrounding the South Downtown and Centennial Yards developments downtown, several big name businesses have closed or are rumored to be closing their downtown locations. Arby’s closed their relatively new location at 34 Peachtree Street in 2020 as did the Braves All Star Grill, a sports bar at 200 Peachtree operated by Goldberg's Group. News this week suggests that Walgreens may be looking to close their landmark location at 25 Peachtree Street, too.
Are you surprised to see the businesses depart downtown as a new wave of investment and development comes to the area? Did you ever go to Wahlburgers? What kinds of restaurants or businesses would you like to see open in downtown Atlanta?
Please share your thoughts below.