Pembroke Friendly’s Continues Trend of Business Closures for Brand in Massachusetts

Friendly's in Pembroke, Massachusetts, located at 146 Church St., has closed. 

According to a MassLive report, the Friendly's in Pembroke displays as permanently closed on Google Maps. A call to the telephone number listed with the location comes back as no longer in service. 

Boston.com also spoke with a former staff member who confirmed the location's closure. The Pembroke spot is also no longer listed on Friendly's website. While it's not clear when the Pembroke restaurant closed, a post in The Brockton Hub Facebook group claimed the closure occurred earlier in October.

According to MassLive, the Friendly's Pembroke location closure adds to the chain's loss of 90% of its locations in recent years, Eat This, Not That reported. A Friendly's on Riverdale Street in West Springfield closed last year. Also, in March 2024, Friendly's closed its last Boston location at Logan International Airport's Terminal A.

After filing for bankruptcy in 2011 and again in 2020, Brix Holdings, Friendly's parent company, was acquired by Legacy Brands International in July of this year. Legacy is committed to reviving the restaurant chain. The investment group managed by Amol Kohli is a multi-unit franchisee of Friendly's Restaurants.

Founded in Springfield, Massachusetts, in 1935 by brothers S. Prestley and Curtis Blake, Friendly's was once a prominent chain with up to 800 locations on the East Coast. Today, approximately 100 Friendly's locations are left in the United States, including 22 in Massachusetts. 

According to Boston.com, the following Massachusetts Friendly's locations that remain open are:

The company's headquarters has also moved from Western Massachusetts to Long Island, New York, as part of the company's ongoing restructuring efforts.