Friendly's frowns on Ohio, closing all of its restaurants at once

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Customers approaching a Friendly's restaurant anywhere in Ohio are likely to walk away frowning.

The national restaurant chain abruptly ceased operations across the state this week when a franchise owner closed 14 Ohio locations at once.

Now dark are Friendly's restaurants in Westlake, Parma Heights, Middleburg Heights, Akron, North Canton and eight other communities.

Some of the restaurants had been operating for decades. Little explanation was given by the main office in Wilbraham, Massachusetts.

"Unfortunately, there are no longer any Friendly's locations operating in Ohio," said company spokesman Ryan Levasseur. He provided a statement attributed to the franchise owner, APEX Eagle Hospitality Inc.

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