Corporate Silent as All 42 Shari’s Restaurants Close in Oregon
The restaurant chain famous for being a place for college and other students to hang out and study, and for their pies and home-made style food, has abruptly closed all of its 42 Oregon locations.
This image in our story is of the former Kennewick, WA location that closed a number of months ago.
Shari's Restuarant's sends message to workers, owners
The chain began in Hermiston, Oregon in 1978, by Ron and Sharon Bergquist, who ran it for 9 years as it expanded to several other locations.
By 1999, the chain had 96 locations and was the 9th largest restaurant chain in the US. Since the departure of the Bergquist family, there have been at least three different ownership changes, and locations have closed. They had, at their highest point, locations in 6 western states including WA, OR, Idaho, CA, Wyoming and Nebraska.
The official name was changed to Shari's Cafe and Pies. But over the years, financial troubles began to creep into the company.
In August of 2024, news came out that the company was behind in paying property taxes, and for services rendered (vendors, suppliers). A number of locations began to close.
Now, the company has officially shuttered all of its Oregon locations. According to KGW TV:
"The Beaverton-based chain faced mounting financial problems, including eviction notices, unpaid bills and back taxes."
According to multiple sources, their parent company, Gather Holdings, has not responded to queries from various media outlets, aside from the announcement confirming the closures.
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Gallery Credit: Liz Barrett Foster