DALLAS Brinker International Inc. has closed all eight of its restaurants in the United Kingdom, a spokeswoman confirmed Thursday.
The restaurants -- six Chili's Grill & Bar units, one Maggiano's Little Italy and one Romano's Macaroni Grill -- closed Wednesday, said Stacey Sullivan, a spokeswoman for Dallas-based Brinker.
Sullivan said the closing of the restaurants was "consistent with our policy of proactively evaluating operations and closing underperforming locations."
The restaurants were operated in the United Kingdom by a Brinker subsidiary called Hatfield Restaurants Ltd, which Sullivan said has been placed into administration. Brinker will help compensate employees of the shuttered restaurants, she said.
Sullivan said the company would consider re-entering the United Kingdom "as the economic environment evolves there." The United Kingdom currently is grappling with its highest unemployment levels in 12 years, and a British business lobby group said this week that the nation's economy is not likely to see improvement until next year.
Brinker is moving forward with plans to have 500 restaurants outside the United States by 2014, Sullivan said. The company currently operates or franchises 1,700 casual-dining restaurants, including more than 200 international units.
Franchisees recently opened restaurants in Guam, Singapore and India, and others will debut locations in Jordan and Saudi Arabia in the next few months, Sullivan said. In addition, Brinker just signed a development agreement for 25 restaurants in the Russian Federation.
Brinker also is parent to the On The Border Mexican Grill & Cantina concept and retains an interest in the Romano's Macaroni Grill chain after selling an 80-percent stake in the brand to a private-equity firm last year.
Contact Molly Gise at [email protected].