TECUMSEH, Mich. — JR's Grill and Pub, a southeast Michigan restaurant chain, is shutting down all of its locations. Restaurants in Tecumseh, Brookyln and Milan have already closed and the Adrian location will close on Sunday, according to the owners.
WTOL 11 was told the temporary closure during COVID-19 and the increased cost of operations contributed to the decision.
The Big Boy restaurant in Tecumseh is offering 25% off of a bill of up to $25 in exchange for a JR's gift card, co-owner Sherri Tuckey said.
"At least they're going to get something for their money," Tuckey said of people with unused JR's gift cards. "With JR's closing their Adrian location on Sunday, there's no way people are going to be able to redeem all of those cards in time."
The deals don't stop there. The team at Sal's Italian Restaurant in Tecumseh is offering the same discount as Big Boy, but the owner is willing to take it a step further by offering jobs to former JR's employees.
"It's really unfortunate that they lost their jobs on short notice, so, we're always hiring," said employee Sarah Stoerger.
Dundee car dealership Williams Brothers is also offering discounts. Car salesman Christopher Noe wants to give people a discount, too, but on vehicles instead of food.
The dollar amount of a JR's gift card will quadruple in value at Williams Brothers.
"If you got $25, we're going to make it $100 toward a new car and we'll do it up to $750," he said. "Anytime you give money away, it's always going to hurt your commission. But again, it's more about giving than receiving."
Noe heard about the closures of JR's and wanted to alert his friends and family. He said the line at the Adrian restaurant was long.
"There are lines all around," he said. "I'm from Adrian, so I saw the lines. There's a lot of people waiting."
JR's management declined to comment on the chain's closure.