Manchester Outback To Close, New Business Coming To Same Plaza

MANCHESTER, CT — The Outback Steakhouse in Manchester is doomed to close near the end of the month in another ride on the commercial rollercoaster at the shopping plaza at 170 Hale Road.

According to a statement from parent company Bloomin' Brands Inc., closing the location was a "business' decision and the final day will be Jan. 26.

The announcement was made Thursday and backed up by a staffer who answered the phone Friday at lunchtime. The staffer said those not being able to use gift cards and bonuses by that date can use them at any Bloomin' Brands restaurant like Carrabba's or Bonefish Grill.

As Outback was getting ready to fade into the bush, workers were busy converting the former Bob's Stores location into the latest location of Urban Air Adventure Park. Its Facebook page says "coming soon." The Urban Air web page page bills the place at part gym, part trampoline park, part virtual reality experience. Bob's stores abandoned the space in 2017.

(Chris Dehnel/Patch)

At the other end, the banners for a seafood restaurant slated to take over the former Hometown Buffet location still say the eatery is coming soon. That announcement by Pennsylvania-based Crab Du Jour was first made in July, seven months after the Hometown Buffet, the last in Connecticut, announced its closure.

The two restaurants sit as free-standing bookends at each end of the plaza.

(Chris Dehnel/Patch)

Meanwhile, back at the Outback end of the plaza, the former Marshall's sits vacant. In May, Marshall's announced it was moving to the former Toys R Us Location at the Plaza at Buckland Hills, located at other end of the Buckland Hills shopping district.