The Moe's Southwest Grill at 33086 US Highway 19 North, Suite B, in Palm Harbor is among 16 locations a bankrupt franchisee wants to abandon, a move that would leave a vacant storefront on one of Pinellas County's busiest retail corridors.

Quality Fresca I LLC, the Palm Beach-based operator, filed for Chapter 11 reorganization Tuesday, Aug. 4, in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in West Palm Beach. As one of its first emergency motions, the company asked a judge for permission to reject leases at 16 restaurants and walk away from the equipment inside, The Real Deal reported.

The Palm Harbor location appears to have already gone dark. Uber Eats listed the restaurant as closed as of April 9, and Yelp users have flagged it as permanently shuttered.

A rapid collapse

Quality Fresca acquired 67 Moe's franchises across Florida, South Carolina, Virginia, Maryland and Washington, D.C., on March 9, 2020, days before COVID-19 lockdowns gutted the restaurant industry. It added two more Florida locations in August 2021, bringing its total to 69.

The company blamed declining foot traffic, rising food and shipping costs, labor shortages and inflation for draining its cash. Court filings show Quality Fresca generated $60 million in revenue in 2025 but posted a negative EBITDA of $111,204, according to BigGo Finance. The company has been in default on its franchise agreements since Aug. 5, 2025.

"Although several of the restaurants have remained profitable, others have been operating at a loss, resulting in the debtor's inability to meet its obligations and achieve the financial metrics required under various agreements," chief restructuring officer G. Michael Verdisco said in a court declaration filed Aug. 4.

Quality Fresca plans to close 47 of its 69 restaurants and reorganize around or sell the rest. Of the 16 immediate lease rejections, 14 are in Florida, one is in Virginia and one is in Georgia.

What it means for Palm Harbor

If the court approves the lease rejection, the landlord at the US 19 shopping center loses its tenant retroactive to Aug. 4 and is left to pursue damages as an unsecured creditor in the bankruptcy case. The motion names several major landlords across the 16 sites, including Brixmor Property Group, Regency Centers, Publix Super Markets and Benderson Properties. The specific landlord for the Palm Harbor suite has not been publicly identified.

The space won't lack for traffic. The 33000 block of US 19 North draws roughly 90,000 vehicles a day, according to commercial real estate data, and is anchored by national tenants including Walmart, Publix and Walgreens. The timeline for re-leasing depends on when the bankruptcy court formally releases the space.

Wider restaurant distress

Quality Fresca's filing follows On the Border Mexican Grill & Cantina's Chapter 7 liquidation on June 19, part of a wider shakeout in Mexican casual dining. Moe's franchisor Go To Foods, an affiliate of Roark Capital Group, has not filed for bankruptcy and continues to operate the brand's 541 locations in 39 states.

Quality Fresca listed between $10 million and $50 million in liabilities against $1 million to $10 million in assets. It owes about $16 million to secured lender GR Loanco 1 LLC and is seeking $1.6 million in debtor-in-possession financing from that same lender to fund operations during the case.

No hearing date for the lease rejection motion has been publicly scheduled. The court's next steps will determine how quickly the Palm Harbor space becomes available for a new tenant.