The bankrupt parent of the Souplantation and Sweet Tomatoes buffet chains has secured court approval for a sale of the company to Cerberus Capital Management, the giant private-equity firm that once owned Chrysler.
The deal will enable Garden Fresh Corp. to exit bankruptcy protection by the end of the month, the restaurant company said. The terms were not disclosed.
Under the reorganization, the twin buffet chains will cut their portfolios to somewhere between 90 and 104 units. They collectively extended to 125 locations at the time of Garden Fresh’s bankruptcy protection in October.
The restructuring will also leve Garden Fresh with “significantly” less debt, the company said.
"This challenging but necessary process has created a stronger financial foundation," CEO John Morberg said in a statement.
Another Cerberus entity, Cerberus Business Finance, bought the bankrupt Fox & Hound, Champps and Bailey’s chains in early 2014. Those chains have since filed for bankruptcy again.
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