Springfield Newk's shuts down

The last remaining Newk’s Eatery in Springfield closed down.

Dan Garrett, co-owner of franchisee Danco LLC, said the 220 W. Battlefield Road restaurant, located near the Campbell Avenue intersection, shuttered April 8.

“We just didn’t have the volume,” he said, declining to disclose sales. “There was a sustained period of that over a couple years.”

Garrett said the fast-casual restaurant had employed 40-50 people.

Garrett invested $2.5 million to build the Newk’s restaurant on Battlefield Road. It’s located on property he owns that formerly housed Balboa Bed Co. He said this morning plans for a property sale listing are in the works.

The West Battlefield Newk’s opened in March 2017. Danco’s other local Newk’s eatery, at 2639 S. Glenstone Ave. near Battlefield Mall, was consolidated into the Battlefield store after operating there since May 2012, according to past Springfield Business Journal reporting.

At the former Newk’s near Battlefield Mall, restaurateur Michael Felts is planning a barbecue and Cajun restaurant called Bourbon and Beale.

Jackson, Mississippi-based Newk’s website lists around 130 restaurants operating mostly in the South and Midwest. No other Newk’s restaurants operate in Missouri, according to the website. The chain of fast-casual restaurants offers sandwiches, soups and other menu items.