Red Lobster may file for bankruptcy protection: report

By Steve Goldstein

A previous version of this story incorrectly said Golden Gate Capital was the majority owner of Red Lobster. The firm sold its stake to Thai Union Group.

Seafood restaurant chain Red Lobster may be headed for bankruptcy, according to a published report.

Bloomberg News reported it's getting advice from law firm King & Spalding as the company has been weighed down by the costs of leases as well as labor costs.

Thai Union Group (TH:TU) in February took a writedown of 18.4 billion Thai baht ($500 million) as it lost 800 million baht on its Red Lobster investment last year.

"Other people stop eating beef, I'm going to stop eating lobster," said Thai Union CEO Ludovic Garnier on the fourth-quarter earnings call, according to a transcript from S&P Global Market Intelligence.

Related: Endless Shrimp deal meant endless pain for Red Lobster's owner

-Steve Goldstein

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04-17-24 1445ET

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