Cheeseburger in Paradise was a

casual dining Restaurants fall into several industry classifications, based upon menu style, preparation methods and pricing, as well as the means by which the food is served to the customer. This article mainly describes the situation in the USA, while catego ...

theme

restaurant chain A chain store or retail chain is a retail outlet in which several locations share a brand, central management and standardized business practices. They have come to dominate the retail and dining markets and many service categories, in many pa ...

in the United States that operated between 2002 and 2020. The chain started in 2002 as a partnership of American musician Jimmy Buffett's company, the Orlando, Florida-based Margaritaville Holdings LLC, and

OSI Restaurant Partners Bloomin' Brands, Inc. is a restaurant holding company that owns several American casual dining restaurant chains. The company was established in 1988 in Tampa, Florida, where it is headquartered. History The company was founded in August 1988 ...

, with Buffett licensing the name and

Outback Steakhouse Outback Steakhouse is an American chain of Australian-themed casual dining restaurants, serving American cuisine, based in Tampa, Florida. The chain has over 1,000 locations in 23 countries throughout North and South America, Asia, and Australi ...

operating the franchising of restaurants. After a change of ownership in 2012, most of the restaurants were closed by 2014. The last location closed in September 2020.

History

The first restaurant opened on August 19, 2002, in the

Southport Southport is a seaside town in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton in Merseyside, England. At the 2001 census, it had a population of 90,336, making it the eleventh most populous settlement in North West England. Southport lies on the Iris ...

area of Indianapolis, Indiana. It is a theme restaurant named for the song "

Cheeseburger in Paradise "Cheeseburger in Paradise" is a song written and performed by American popular music singer Jimmy Buffett. It appeared on his 1978 album ''Son of a Son of a Sailor'' and was released as a single, reaching No. 32 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. ...

" by American pop music singer Jimmy Buffett. The chain was a partnership of Buffett's company, the Orlando, Florida-based Margaritaville Holdings LLC, and

, with Buffett licensing the name and

operating the franchising of restaurants. In September 2009, Cheeseburger in Paradise was sold to Paradise Restaurant Group, LLC. Jimmy Buffett was only a royalty partner, receiving 2% of profits until selling Paradise Restaurant Group the rights to the song "Cheeseburger in Paradise". In December 2012,

Luby's Luby's, Inc. (formerly Luby's Cafeterias, Inc.) is a parent company that operates the Luby's chain of cafeteria-style restaurants. In the past, Luby's Inc. also owned the Fuddruckers, Koo Koo Roo, and Cheeseburger in Paradise restaurant chains. ...

purchased Paradise Restaurant Group for $11 million, thereby acquiring all of the restaurants and ending Jimmy Buffett's association with the chain. At the time of the sale, the company had 23 locations in 14 states.

Closings

After acquisition by Luby's, a number of the chain's locations were closed. In August 2014, Luby's announced to management and employees that half of the chain's remaining restaurants would close, either immediately or in the following few weeks. Affected restaurants included those in Fort Myers, Florida;

Algonquin, Illinois Algonquin is a village in McHenry and Kane counties, Illinois, in the United States. It is a suburb of Chicago, located approximately northwest of the Loop. As of the 2020 census, the village's population was 29,700. The village is known as ...

;

Fishers, Indiana Fishers is a city in Fall Creek and Delaware townships, Hamilton County, Indiana, United States. As of the 2010 census the population was 76,794, and by 2019 the estimated population was 95,310. A suburb of Indianapolis, Fishers has grown rapidl ...

; Terre Haute, Indiana;

Evansville, Indiana Evansville is a city in, and the county seat of, Vanderburgh County, Indiana, United States. The population was 118,414 at the 2020 census, making it the state's third-most populous city after Indianapolis and Fort Wayne, the largest city in ...

;

Kansas City, Kansas Kansas City, abbreviated as "KCK", is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Kansas, and the county seat of Wyandotte County. It is an inner suburb of the older and more populous Kansas City, Missouri, after which it is named. As of ...

;

Middleton, Wisconsin Middleton is a city in Dane County, Wisconsin, United States, and a suburb of the state capital, Madison. Middleton's motto is "The Good Neighbor City." The population was 21,827 at the 2020 census. In 2007, Middleton was chosen as the best pl ...

; Sterling Heights, Michigan; and Pasadena, Maryland. Many of these locations were to be rebranded Fuddruckers Deluxe Bar and Grill, another concept owned by Luby's and a full-service version of their

Fuddrucker's Fuddruckers (sometimes abbreviated Fudds) is an American fast casual, franchised restaurant chain that specializes in hamburgers. The Fuddruckers concept is to offer large hamburgers in which the meat is ground on-site and buns are baked on the ...

chain. Ultimately not all of them were, including the one in Fishers, Indiana and California, Maryland. In August 2018, all restaurants except for the

Omaha, Nebraska Omaha ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Douglas County. Omaha is in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's 39th-largest cit ...

, and Secaucus, New Jersey, locations were closed, including the original restaurant in Indianapolis. The Omaha location closed in early October 2018. The last remaining Cheeseburger in Paradise location was in Secaucus. On September 8, 2020, Cheeseburger in Paradise owner Luby's, Inc. announced they plan to liquidate existing assets, including the assets of Cheeseburger in Paradise, distributing the proceeds to investors. The Secaucus location permanently closed before the end of the month.

Lahaina, Hawaii

A chain named Cheeseburger Restaurants based in

Portola, California Portola ( ) is the only incorporated city in Plumas County, California, United States. The population was 2,104 at the 2010 census, down from 2,227 at the 2000 census. Portola is located on the Middle Fork of the Feather River and was named afte ...

has one of their restaurants located in oceanfront

Lahaina, Hawaii Lahaina ( haw, Lāhainā) is the largest census-designated place (CDP) in West Maui, Maui County, Hawaii, United States and includes the Kaanapali and Kapalua beach resorts. As of the 2020 census, the CDP had a resident population of 12,702. La ...

, also named "Cheeseburger in Paradise". This chain, which began in 1989, has no relation to Jimmy Buffett's business. Buffett sued the owners in 1997. After a four-year legal battle, a settlement was reached that allowed Laren Gartner and Edna Bayliff to keep the name at their existing restaurants in Lahaina and Waikiki but prevented them from using it at any additional locations.

References

External links

* {{Jimmy Buffett, state=collapsed Restaurant chains in the United States Defunct restaurant chains in the United States Restaurant franchises Theme restaurants Defunct hamburger restaurants Defunct restaurants in Indianapolis Defunct restaurants in the United States Restaurants established in 2002 2002 establishments in Indiana Companies based in Tampa, Florida Lahaina, Hawaii Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville 2009 mergers and acquisitions 2012 mergers and acquisitions Hamburger restaurants in the United States 2020 disestablishments in the United States

History

Closings

Lahaina, Hawaii

See also

References

External links