WHY ARE SO MANY RESTAURANTS CLOSING?

With closures almost daily, restaurants are outlining a changing industry and economic and personal pressures. We know food costs are high + foot traffic slow, but when announcements include the popular, go-to bars + restaurants that at least appeared to be okay are a shock. Is there something more? We decided to ask restaurateurs what’s going on.

When Bar Bene announced it would be closing in Hudson, there was a collective gasp. Bar Bene is like an anchor store on Warren Street — a destination wine bar for regulars and weekenders — so when owner Marie Wong set December 5 as its final night, it felt like pulling the BandAid back on an unhealed wound.

It’s not like we don’t know: Nothing has quite bounced back since the pandemic. Food costs are high, tariffs straining supplies and margins, foot traffic and customer habits are unpredictable. Since 2020, the way people work, dine and socialize has changed and with remote work here to stay, the trend of staying in is hard to beat. There’s less drinking, less spending, and an entire portion of the population living full-time in their soft Comfort sweats. Where third-party delivery apps proved a pandemic life-line for restaurants and bars, they’re now twisting the garrotte. Not that people aren’t spending, but take out without the profit bump of wine and drinks doesn’t pay a full front-of-house staff. Worse still are the no shows for reservations. With a full staff on hand, empty bar seats and dining rooms add up.

For others, it goes beyond financial costs to more personal ones. Long hours away from home, difficulties finding staff, high rent and overhead, all charting a course to burn out isn’t worth it and some are preemptively closing before they can’t afford to keep the lights on.

We read through recent closing announcements + followed up with a few industry people on why they chose to close.

Bar Bene, Hudson
”Starting a wine bar (or any business) in a small town is never going to be easy. The winter months are long and hard and you depend on the tourist business that comes in during the summer and fall months to get through it. Hudson is also particularly difficult because for a town of under 6,000 residents; there’s a lot of solid competition. However, from the start of 2025, we’ve seen prices go up in every aspect of our business: Utilities, health insurance, business insurance, local products and most importantly the tariffs put on our imported wines and food products. It has taken any chance of surviving during the slow months impossible. I own the building so thankfully I’ve been able to stay open this long because I don’t have to pay rent but then that lack of rent money makes it difficult for me to meet the very high property taxes in the town of Hudson. In speaking with other local business owners I’ve heard the same messaging, some are also considering closing as this has been one of the hardest years ever.” — Marie Wong, owner

Chee-bog, Cohoes
Although Chee-bog hasn’t officially shut the doors on their tiny brick-and-mortar shop, Champ Peralta has already announced their plans to close and operate their Filipino restaurant out of a food truck: ”We’re planning on switching to a food trailer because we wanted to keep Chee-bog alive without burning ourselves out. Running a brick-and mortar with a tiny crew most times by myself is brutal. Costs keep climbing —rising food costs, labor, overhead, all of it. Hours get longer and I barely get any rest. So instead of waiting till we hit the wall, we pivoted. The trailer gives us flexibility, lets us control our schedule, and opens the doors for catering events and creative pop-ups.” - Champ Peralta, owner

UnBEETable, Schenectady
“So yeah, I didn’t close the restaurant because we were unsuccessful… but obviously the cost of everything has gone up, staffing has always been hard, and I think the industry has changed so much since I started in it when I was 15. It’s been really different since COVID. I think the lifestyle of going out is different; obviously people having less money to spend impacts us as well. Those are the same challenges I’ve faced at the cafe too (Take Two Cafe) and part of being in this industry is changing and adapting.

For me, it was really more of a work/life balance. I have the café, which is open seven days a week and when I opened Unbeetable, I was like great, they’ll be open opposite hours and I can do one in the morning and one at night, but it just kind of engulfed my whole life… and I didn’t want to get to the point where I was burnt out. The two years I had at UnBEETable were incredible and I’m so proud of everything that I accomplished there, the space we created, the events, the food, but I didn’t want to wait until I was so burnt out that I’d resent it or hate the industry. I wanted to leave on a high note. In the month since UnBEETable has closed, I’ve been able to do so much more at Take Two with specials, releasing a new menu, and doing holiday orders which we haven’t done in a couple years. I just think sometimes people don’t realize how hard and time-consuming it is to run a business. Even when you’re not there you’re still doing things on your days off; you’re running errands, sending emails, planning events, and it’s never been something I’ve complained about, but it truly just becomes your life.” - Chelsea Heilman, owner

Other recent closings:

Jaeger Haus, Tivoli — The surprise announcement that popular German restaurant, Jaeger Haus, would close on November 16, 2025 was short but clear: “It is with a heavy heart that we have to heed the economic times as well as personal needs.”

El Loco, Albany — When El Loco closed in August 2025 after 42 years, Patrick Noon, owner for the past 13 years, cited slow business: “The numbers just aren’t making sense. It hasn’t been a winning entity, business-wise, for the past year.”

Ama Cocina, Albany — Although BMT Hospitality closed rather than renew their lease in downtown Albany, it was myriad reasons that underscored the real problem. Co-owner Brian Viglucci referenced problems from too few downtown events bringing people into the city to speeding tickets (referencing the new City of Albany speed cameras), remote work and fewer downtown employees, and fewer shows, collectively reducing the foot traffic necessary to meet operating costs.

Lo-Fi Record Bar & Lounge, Albany — Battles with city officials over Cabaret Laws, noise complaints from Center Square residents and slow business on midweek nights prompted Nick Warchol and Aaron Wilson to close the doors on their popular Lo-Fi lounge. But with 26 months still left on their lease, the duo (who own the multi-location Herbies Burgers brand) are planning to open Lo-Fi intermittently for what they’re calling “Pay The Rent” music nights.

Ollie’s Slice Shop, Kingston — Co-owners Sophie Peltzer-Rollo and husband Innis Lawrence, who own Eliza in Kingston and the original Ollie’s in High Falls, closed Ollie’s Slice Shop in Kingston after also closing its sibling Fletcher + Lu next door. The reason? The costs of running the business were simply outpacing revenue, so closing was a necessity.