The company had more than 500 restaurants by 1987. That year, they decided to begin franchising by licensing 55 distressed restaurants to their most successful general managers. Because of poor training, nationwide concerns about the consumption of red meat, and a shift in market shares to upscale restaurants, sales were falling. The company added salad bars to all of its locations, sacrificed seating in most and in others sacrificed part of the parking lot to make additions to the buildings.[10]
In 1991, the first seven "Metro Market" concept restaurants opened. They were 10000 sqft and seated between 400 and 450 customers. These new Golden Corral restaurants more than doubled the size of the old, which were typically 5000 sqft with a capacity of 175 people. There was the addition of the Brass Bell Bakery, named for the brass bell which rang every 15 minutes to signal that fresh bread, rolls, and pastries were coming out of the oven. An expanded buffet, dubbed the Golden Choice Buffet, was also added, which had a new layout to showcase its items. The location of these new restaurants, the majority of which were in Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico and North Carolina, was also a change for the company, moving away from small towns and into metropolitan areas. In 2001, system-wide annual sales exceeded $1 billion for the first time.[11] As of 2021, there were nearly 500 restaurants in 43 states covering most regions of the country aside from: Oregon (no locations), Hawaii (no locations), New England (only three restaurants—Springfield, Massachusetts, New Haven, Connecticut, and Manchester, New Hampshire), the New York City Metropolitan Areas (only one in the Bronx) and the low population states of Delaware and Wyoming.[2] In some other larger metropolitan areas, such as the San Francisco Bay Area (only one location, in Concord to the northeast), Philadelphia, Washington, and New Orleans, there are only locations in the far-flung suburbs.[2] The first Puerto Rico location opened on October 25, 2020, in Canóvanas with plans to open more locations throughout the island.
In late 1993, VICORP acquired the right to a small Florida chain called Angel's Diner. They acquired this from Eric A. Holm; he had also sold the rights to Golden Corral and VICORP was forced to pay Golden Corral $1M to secure the exclusive rights. The intent was to convert underperforming Village Inn and Bakers Square units to this new concept. After building seven units, VICORP realized that the concept was not economically viable and wrote off $11M on the venture. During this time frame, Eric A. Holm filed for personal bankruptcy.[12]
The company updated their restaurants to a concept, called "Strata", during the mid-2000s in an effort to bring more of the food preparation into view of the guests. In all locations, guests serve themselves, including requesting made-to-order items such as Belgian waffles, omelets and char-broiled steaks.[13]
The most recent designed restaurants are known as the "Gateway" style rolled out late 2018. These locations were created in the hopes of offering a more contemporary appearance for the interior and exterior of the building, with different layouts for the dining room, adding new food service bars and kitchen areas.[14]
Many locations offer "GC on the go" services, as well as delivery partnerships with companies like Grubhub, Uber Eats and DoorDash. GC on the go allows customers to pack anything they want into a takeout container and then pay for it by the pound. Many restaurants also offer reserved parking.[15]
During the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020, the chain had to temporarily close down most of its locations just like other restaurants in response to the directives for the prevention of COVID-19 that spread across the globe. In order for the chain to sustain its business and to ensure the safety of its guests, some of the chain's locations were reopened offering cafeteria-style dining and family-style service.[16][17] Others were permanently closed.[18]
