Burger Chain With Iowa Locations to Shut Down More Stores

Many Iowa businesses are slowly starting to reopen after Governor Reynolds eased up on restrictions. Despite this, some restaurants were unfortunately unable to weather the storm. The latest being a classic burger chain.

According to KCCI, Steak 'n Shake has announced that they will permanently shut down 57 of their locations. The report states that the burger chain had 624 stores in 2019 and started 2020 with 553. Looking at that drop, it appears things weren't going too well for the businesses before the pandemic.

There aren't many Steak 'n Shake locations here in eastern Iowa. In fact, in our area, there's only one. The fate of that restaurant located at 2806 Commerce Dr. in Coralville, as well as the others that are set to close, has yet to be determined. Although, around this time last year, experts were speculating that more closures could come. So we'll see if our Coralville store will make the second round of cuts.

The Iowa Restaurant Association reportedly stated that the state has lost 10% of its restaurants and bars due to the financial devastation of closures enforces during the coronavirus pandemic, according to KCCI. We've seen this happen right here in our neighborhoods.

Just last week a restaurant that has been around for almost a century was forced to close because of COVID-19. Cronk's in Denison has been around for 90 years. Many politicians and even celebrities have stopped in there through the years. But, because of the financial situation the virus put owners Eric and Teri Skoog in, they've decided it's best to try to sell and retire. It's sad seeing a little piece of history go.

Let's hope that most of our local restaurants here in Eastern Iowa can make it through.