Where Can You Still Find Rainforest Cafes In The US?

Steven Schussler created the Rainforest Cafe in order to share his love for tropical birds with hungry customers. It won the hearts of people all over the world, boasting 59 restaurants at its peak. However, the chain has unfortunately seen a slow decrease in business over the past few decades.

Because of this, there are currently only 16 Rainforest Cafe locations across 11 states in the United States. Certain states have multiple cafes (namely Texas and Florida, with the latter being home to the world's largest Rainforest Cafe), making the travel to the nearest Rainforest Cafe quite a trek for most people in America. Almost every restaurant is located in a large shopping mall with the exception of only a few of the chain's cafes, those of which can usually be found on boardwalks or Disney theme parks. Outside of the United States, a few Rainforest Cafe restaurants can be found in the United Arab Emirates, France, Japan, Malta, and Canada, which has a unique location compared to the U.S.

The mass amount of Rainforest Cafes closing their doors is due to the combination of America's loss of interest in themed dining chains dining chains and the detrimental effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. These two phenomenons together have caused a mass wave of closures within the last few decades. Margaritaville, another themed restaurant that Americans hold near and dear to their hearts, has also seen some recent closures and yields 21 locations in the United States and Canada.

While themed restaurants were very successful in the 1980s and 1990s, consumers are beginning to realize that the novelty of the chains are exciting enough to disguise the bland food and rising prices. This may be one of the leading factors that turns prospective costumers off of the Rainforest Cafe, since some would say the chain's high prices can be too expensive for the quality of the food.