The Chuck E. Cheese sign was removed from the building at 221 N. 66th St. in June.
Game prizes and merchandise are displayed inside a Chuck E. Cheese's entertainment center in Dallas in 2014.
It's official: Lincoln's Chuck E. Cheese will not be reopening.
The location at 221 N. 66th St. is one of 45 nationwide for which the pizza chain is seeking permission from the bankruptcy court to reject leases. Eleven of the locations, including the one in Lincoln, had already shut their doors.
Signs were removed from the Lincoln location earlier this month, and people reported on social media that they had seen workers taking game machines out of the building and loading them onto trucks.
After closing in March because of the coronavirus pandemic, the location did takeout for a time, but it has been temporarily closed altogether since May.
The phone message at the Lincoln location earlier this week said the restaurant was temporarily closed, and it was still listed on the Chuck E. Cheese website.
Chuck E. Cheese's parent company, CEC Entertainment, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Thursday morning and said it intends to keep operating. Many of its restaurants have now reopened, including the one in Omaha.
Lincoln restaurants that have closed in the past year
Amigos - December
Amigos closed its downtown Lincoln location on Dec. 13.
Tornado Crepes - December
Tornado Crepes closed its location in the food court at Gateway Mall.
Lazzari's
Lazzari's Pizza said its downtown location would close at the end of 2019.
Fresh Healthy Cafe - November
Fresh Healthy Cafe has closed at 144 N. 13th St., but a post on its Facebook page says it will be moving to another location.
Old Chicago - March 1
The Old Chicago at 826 P St. closed for good March 1 after more than 23 years in business.
Village Inn - March
The Village Inn at 27th and Cornhusker closed in March 2020.
BurgerFi - March
BurgerFi closed its Lincoln location at Canopy and Q streets in The Railyard in March.
Runza - June
Runza has closed its location at Edgewood Shopping Center.
Chuck E. Cheese - June
The Chuck E. Cheese sign was removed from the building at 221 N. 66th St. in June.
Jimmy's Egg - June
Jimmy's Egg closed its 27th and Pine Lake location during the coronavirus pandemic and did not reopen in June.
Zoup! - June
Workers remove the Zoup! sign Tuesday from its location at 2801 Pine Lake Road.
Teriyaki Madness - August
Teriyaki Madness has closed after a little more than three years in Lincoln.
Fuzzy's Taco Shop - October
Fuzzy's Taco Shop, 1442 O St., is calling it quits after eight years. Saturday will be the restaurants last day.
Jimmy John's - November
Jimmy John's appears to have closed its location at 601 R St.
Reach the writer at 402-473-2647 or molberding@journalstar.com.
On Twitter @LincolnBizBuzz.
Matt Olberding
Business reporter
Matt Olberding is a Lincoln native and University of Nebraska-Lincoln graduate who has been covering business for the Journal Star since 2005.
