Matt Fish Has Permanently Closed Melt Bar & Grilled

Matt Fish, founder of Melt Bar & Grilled Credit: Courtesy photo

After launching Melt in Lakewood in 2006, Matt Fish grew the brand to a dozen locations over the next decade and a half.

In recent years, however, as dining habits changed and financial realities hit, he made the hard decision to begin closing some outposts. And by late 2024, he had shuttered them all save for the original, which he revamped to focus on a quality that had gone missing from the chain and a refocused menu built to cater to today’s dining audience.

Now, it’s all over.

On the first day of 2025, Fish announced the original and lone remaining Melt loction has permanently closed.

“I have made the difficult decision to permanently close Melt Bar and Grilled,” Fish said. “This decision was not made lightly or without years of incredible efforts and stress.”

Melt, like so many restaurants, has struggled to return to pre-pandemic numbers. That reality led Fish and his team to close all but one store and file Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Last year’s rebranding and relaunch, Fish hoped, would entice regulars to return in large numbers.

“All aspects of the relaunch succeeded according to plan except one: the projected robust business levels never happened,” he said. “The financial burden of bankruptcy, combined with the lack of robust sales have proved to be completely devastating.”

Fish says that his business future is uncertain at this time. For now, he will focus on his family and wrapping up the operation.

“Today is a very sad day for me both personally and professionally,” he adds. “The company I launched 18 years ago is over. What started as random ideas on a piece of notebook paper turned into nearly two decades of a very successful business.”

In the announcement, Fish made sure to thank his many, many supporters over the years.

“Thank you to the millions of guests who have supported us over the last 18 years,” he says. “I feel we provided a very fun, unique, consistent and delicious experience during our lifetime.”