Some Kelly’s Roast Beef locations close in Florida

Food News

The remaining Florida restaurants “are expected to follow a similar transition.”

Several locations of Kelly’s Roast Beef in Florida have closed for good, according to a press release from the private equity firm that became the new owners of the North Shore sandwich shop last year. 

AAM15 Management, Kelly’s new owners, sent out the press release Tuesday, noting that the closed locations — in Naples, Pasadena, and Fort Myers, Florida — were managed by different owners. The Burlington-based corporate group operates New England locations of Kelly’s, including the original location at Revere Beach. 

Still, the Florida closures mark an end to expansion plans that took root only a few years ago, when Kelly’s brought its 3-way roast beef to a part of Florida teeming with New England transplants. The other Florida locations — there are four left, according to Kelly’s website — “are expected to follow a similar transition, with timing determined solely by the local operators.”

“We understand this news is disappointing, especially for the loyal guests and dedicated team members who made Kelly’s part of their everyday lives,” said a spokesperson for Kelly’s Roast Beef. “We’re grateful to everyone who supported us in Florida.”

Kelly’s new owners added that the New England locations — six in Massachusetts and one in New Hampshire — “remain open and fully operational.” 

When AAM15 announced its acquisition of Kelly’s from the founding families a year ago, the firm’s founder and CEO David Masse told The Boston Globe that his goals included expansion of the brand in both New England and across the East Coast, as well as a brand “relaunch.”

They also promised not to tamper with the sandwich at the heart of the brand: the North Shore 3-way — roast beef with James River BBQ sauce and cheese on the bottom of an onion roll. Kelly’s has long claimed it invented the North Shore 3-way in 1951 at Revere Beach. 

Katelyn Umholtz

Food and Restaurant Reporter

Katelyn Umholtz covers food and restaurants for Boston.com. Katelyn is also the author of The Dish, a weekly food newsletter.