Increased business expenses, such as the rising costs of rent, labor, and food products, have become a huge financial burden for restaurant owners.
As restaurants pass the increased costs on to their customers with higher menu prices, consumers are becoming reluctant to spend money on dining out, which reduces potential business revenue.
“High-wage states/markets are amongst the hardest in the restaurant industry,” Michael J. Ingram, vice president and principal at National Franchise Sales told TheStreet’s Kirk O’Neil in an email.
“Franchisees can only raise their menu prices so far to make up for higher expenses, but as they lose customers, it becomes an uphill battle to cover debt they already have in place along with overall higher expenses,” Ingram said.
Financial distress is forcing certain restaurant operators to file for bankruptcy to reorganize their businesses and restructure debt.
Village Inn Oldsmar files for bankruptcy
Iconic breakfast restaurant chain Village Inn‘s Oldsmar, Fla., franchisee filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, facing long-term financial setbacks as a result of the 2024 hurricanes that significantly affected the Tampa Bay and St. Petersburg, Fla., area.
The economic losses caused by the hurricanes have been compounded by weaker restaurant sales and higher overhead costs, according to the Tampa Bay Business Journal.
The restaurant remains open with no plans to close, according to an employee who answered the phone at the Oldsmar Village Inn on Sept. 22.
Franchisee files Chapter 11 for 5 locations
The franchisee group, operated by managing member Lloyd D. Lehan IV, has filed bankruptcy for five Village Inn locations in Florida since June 2026.
Franchisee Village Inn Oldsmar LLC filed its petition in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Middle District of Florida in Tampa on Sept. 18, 2026, listing about $50,000 to $100,000 in assets and $500,000 to $1 million in liabilities, according to PacerMonitor.
The Oldsmar Village Inn’s bankruptcy filing comes just a month after the chain’s Bay Pines Group LLC franchisee, which operates the Bay Pines Boulevard Village Inn location in Seminole, Fla., filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Aug. 14. Lehan also owns the Bay Pines Group franchisee.
Bay Pines Group listed over $8 million in liabilities in its petition, according to the Tampa Business Journal.
Restaurants face declining revenue
The Oldsmar filing also came over three months after St. Petersburg, Fla.-based Village Inn franchisee and lead debtor VI Land O Lakes LLC filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on behalf of three Florida locations, as the restaurant operator’s revenue has fallen significantly over the last two years.
The 68-year-old restaurant chain’s franchisee, which is affiliated with the Oldsmar and Bay Pines franchises, filed its petitions for Village Inn locations in Land O Lakes, Brandon, and Zephyrhills, Fla., in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Middle District of Florida on June 10, according to BKAlerts.
VI Land O Lakes LLC listed over $85,000 in assets and over $234,000 in liabilities in its petitions. The debtor’s largest unsecured creditors included Florida Department of Revenue, owed $48,000; First Citizen Bank, owed $47,000; US Foods, owed $41,000; Sysco Food Service, owed $35,000, and the Internal Revenue Service, owed $29,000, court papers said.
The Land O Lakes, Brandon, and Zephyrhills locations faced declining revenues over the last two years, dropping from about $2.02 million in 2024 to $1.9 million in 2025 for a 5.94% decline. Revenue is on pace this year for another decline as the company reported over $658,000 earned through June 10, according to the petition.
A manager of the Land O Lakes Village Inn location told TheStreet in June that all of the bankrupt locations were operating as normal with no plans for closures.
Several Village Inn franchisee locations in the Tampa area have also filed for Chapter 11 protection to resolve financial issues related to hurricanes Helene and Milton in 2024, the Tampa Bay Business Journal reported.
Bankrupt Village Inn locations:
- Village Inn Land O Lakes
- Village Inn Brandon
- Village Inn Zephyrhills
- Village Inn Bay Pines
- Village Inn Oldsmar
- Source: Village Inn
