THE LOOP — Wendy's has closed its one and only restaurant in the Loop, leaving people who work Downtown with one less lunch option.
The longtime fast food restaurant at 6 S. Clark St. had removed its sign and locked all its doors by Wednesday afternoon. A sign posted on the door near Clark and Madison streets simply says the restaurant is "permanently closed."
Sorry — The Wendy's at 6 S. Clark St. is permanently closed. [DNAinfo/David Matthews]
Its abrupt departure from the Loop still irked nearby office workers dismayed to learn their lunchtime cravings Wednesday would have to be satisfied somewhere else.
"I thought I'd get a baked potato," said Kathleen Boyle, who said she last dined at the Wendy's two weeks earlier. "It's not bad."
The Wendy's closes amid a lunchtime renaissance of sorts in the Loop, where more landlords are preferring chic "food halls" and health-conscious eateries to greasy chain restaurants.
Though a search of the Wendy's Yelp reviews show a wide range of disparate opinions, the chain has a cult following of sorts. One teenager's tweet asking Wendy's for a year of free chicken nuggets had been retweeted more than 2.7 million times as of Wednesday afternoon. The company's stock rose 25 percent last year from 2015.
Property records show the shuttered Loop restaurant is owned by Wendy's Co. and not a franchisee. Officials for the Dublin, Ohio-based fast food chain did not return a message seeking comment.
The closest Wendy's to Downtown now is an East Village restaurant at 1623 W. Division St.
