Sept. 12, 2026, 9:19 a.m. ET

Denny's wants to serve customers a new menu – and a new narrative.

An all-too-familiar development made the news earlier this week when a franchisee closed five Denny's restaurants in Minnesota and Wisconsin, first reported by Minnesota news site Bring Me the News. In a note posted on the door of one of the restaurants, the franchisee said it planned to file for bankruptcy.

But there's more to the story, according to Denny's. The restaurant chain, founded in 1953 as a California doughnut and coffee shop, is looking beyond the public plotline of restaurant closings that has haunted the company for nearly two years. In October 2024, Stephen Dunn, the company's then-chief global development officer told investors Denny's would close 150 locations by the end of 2025. Then in February 2025, then-chief financial officer Robert Verostek said additional restaurant closures would happen by year's end.

But a new story arc began in November 2025, when Denny's announced it would become privately held after being acquired by private equity firm TriArtisan Capital Advisors, investment management company Treville Capital Group and restaurant company Yadav Enterprises, Inc. The deal, which was valued at $620 million at the time and became official in January, also included 78 locations of the Keke’s Breakfast Cafe brand.

The buyers know the restaurant business. TriArtisan's holdings include P.F. Chang's and TGI Fridays, while Yadav Enterprises owns more than 300 restaurants – a collection of Jack in the Box, El Pollo Loco, Corner Bakery Cafe, Sizzler and TGI Fridays restaurants, in addition to some Denny's locations it already owned.

“Denny’s is an iconic piece of the American dream, with a renowned brand, a strong franchise base and loyal customers,” Rohit Manocha, TriArtisan co-founder and managing director, said at the time.

Denny's looks to flip the script

The new owners have been working to move beyond the storyline of closures. "They saw an opportunity with this iconic brand to move forward in ways that were maybe hampered after COVID, and so going private gave us an opportunity to redesign our organizational structure to be very focused on what we believe will add value," Fasika Melaku, Denny's chief people, enterprise communications, and social impact officer, told USA TODAY.

Since the acquisition, Denny's has implemented Project Grand Slam, a company-wide "roadmap" to modernize the business with renovated restaurants and new and improved food.

In mid-August, Denny's introduced Triple Play Combo meals (starting at $9.99), with a drink, starter and choice of entrée including the new Diner QP, a cheeseburger with 50% more beef than a quarter-pound patty.

Catering and new menu coming to Denny's

A new menu is expected to go live in about 40 restaurants between the end of October and mid-November. "We've got new burgers, tons of sauces, just new ways of doing things," said Melaku, who has been with Denny's for a dozen years. "We've got some new french fries coming out that we are thrilled about."

Melaku hopes the new menu is "in all our restaurants in April," she said. "We have more food designed that will be introduced to our system than I have seen in the last 12 years."

Denny's also recently began offering catering services, with the help of ezCater, a food tech platform with clients including Five Guys and Smashburger. "Breakfast is the most used search filter on ezCater, making Denny’s a sure favorite for workplace orderers nationwide," said Cindy Klein Roche, ezCater chief growth officer, in a news release.

So far, nearly 700 Denny's locations offer catering and close to 1,000 will do so by the end of the month. Everything from breakfast to burgers, "we've got it," Melaku said. "And, by the way, pancakes for dinner, we got that too, right? And if you want to mix, we've got that."

Denny's plans dozens of new restaurants in 2026, 2027

In addition to the remodeling and updating of as many as 350 restaurants, Denny's expects to open as many as 20 new locations within the next year, Melaku said. Overall, Denny's anticipates 20 restaurant openings this year and another 20 in 2027, the company told USA TODAY.

The company continues to court new franchisees – two groups have plans for least two restaurants, focusing in the Houston and middle Tennessee areas.

As for those recent closings in Minnesota and Wisconsin, Denny's is working with existing franchisees to refranchise (and reopen) the locations, the company says.

Recently closed Denny's locations

Burnsville, Minnesota – 12950 Aldrich Ave S.

– 12950 Aldrich Ave S. Maplewood, Minnesota – 255 N. Century Ave.

– 255 N. Century Ave. North Branch, Minnesota – 38681 Tanger Dr.

– 38681 Tanger Dr. Roseville, Minnesota – 2045 Twin Lakes Pkwy.

– 2045 Twin Lakes Pkwy. Hudson, Wisconsin – 1000 Gateway Blvd.

"Yes, closures did happen. It's very unfortunate," Melaku said. The closures involved "a long-term franchisee, we considered him family, so we're saddened about that, and saddened obviously about the team members and what happened with them. You know we're doing everything we can to help (the new franchisee) connect with them because we're looking to open some of those (restaurants) back up."

On order at Denny's: Transition with a side of sustainable growth

The company will have to keep growing to recapture its national footprint of the past. Denny's currently has 1,321 restaurants – 78 of which are internationally located – and there's an additional 85 independently owned locations in Canada, according to the company.

That's 131 fewer locations than the company had in September 2025, according to an update filed to the Securities and Exchange Commission when the acquisition became official.

But those reductions were necessary as some restaurants were not meeting the brand's standards, the company says. Along the way, the closings of poor performing restaurants became a hard-to-shake storyline of a brand in trouble.

The closing of underperforming locations positions Denny's "for sustainable growth," noted analytics firm Placer.ai in a November 2025 report.

"Denny’s is in transition, not decline," the report read. "Its loyal customer base provides stability, and its ability to limit traffic losses amid strategic rightsizing underscores real resilience. Now, as a privately held company, Denny’s has the flexibility to plan for the long term, positioning itself to evolve thoughtfully and make a comeback, one Grand Slam at a time."

That evolution is overseen by new leadership. Chris Bode, who was previously Denny's chief operating officer, was named CEO in April. And the new chief operating officer, Aaron Howard, named in July, has held management positions at CKE Restaurants, parent company of Carl's Jr. and Hardee's, and Cracker Barrel.

"I'm seeing the future. I'm seeing the work, people rolling up their sleeves like I haven't seen before," Melaku said. "I know what we're doing, but others don't."

Mike Snider is a national trending news reporter for USA TODAY. You can follow him on Threads, Bluesky, X and email him at mikegsnider & @mikegsnider.bsky.social & @mikesnider & msnider@usatoday.com.