Sad end to an era of family dining: Bend's Shari's restaurants are closing, joining other sudden closings by a struggling chain

Redmond's Shari's closed days before: “THE WORLD IS LOW STAFF”

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) – The doors were still open around 3 p.m. Sunday at Shari's Restaurant on the north end of Bend, where thousands of people have enjoyed cakes, pancakes and various meals, family gatherings and conversations with the waiters during the day and night for decades .

But not for long.

We then entered the restaurant via Business Highway 97 (Third Street), and while some lights were on, others were not. It was much quieter than usual – too quiet, you might say.

The sign at the checkout, still asking for patience from waiting customers, read: “THE WORLD IS LOW STAFF.” Next to it, the normally full, multi-tiered cake box was unfortunately empty.

“We just closed for good – right now,” a waitress told us at the door.

Soon there was a handwritten sign on the door with two words: “Restaurant closed.”

A typical stream of potential customers who showed up for a quick bite and a chat with friendly waiters were surprised, saddened and dismayed – even shocked.

“Where will I eat now?” I come here all the time!” said one.

Shari's on the south end of Bend at Pinebrook Plaza was also scheduled to close at 8 p.m., we were told, confirming an emailed tip sent to NewsChannel 21.

The Bend locations aren't the first Shari's in the Northwest to suddenly close in recent months, and probably won't be the last, either. The chain's Redmond restaurant had closed just a few days earlier, as had one in Pendleton.

As KGW and others have previously reported, the Beaverton-based family restaurant chain has been in dire straits in recent months, struggling with unpaid bills and lawsuits as it tries to recover from the impact of the COVID pandemic.

The first Shari's opened in Hermiston in 1978 and over the years it grew to more than 60 locations in Oregon, Washington, California, Idaho and Wyoming.

You don't have to go far to Bend's Third Street to find more signs of change in the world of casual dining, whether intended or not.

To the north, IHOP closed earlier this year shortly after a driver crashed into the prominent sign, nearly toppling it. To the south, Deschutes Junction Pizza Grill Taphouse, formerly a Round Table Pizza, also closed this summer when its lease ended and the longtime owners retired.

And it's by no means limited to Bend, as Redmond's Black Bear Diner closed last spring.

Restaurants come and go all the time – next door to North Bend Shari's, the long-standing McGrath's Fish House closed a few years ago and eventually became the new location of Chi Chinese & Sushi Bar.

But Shari's has been a reliable, predictable and popular option for many Northwest residents and travelers for many years.

“It’s a shame,” one would-be diner said Sunday before getting back in her pickup to find another place to eat.