Smokey Bones barbecue chain is closing stores, including its lone Indiana location.

The chain, known for its authentic fire-grilled and house-smoked meats, closed various locations April 28. Signage at some shops indicates all locations have been closed.

The store at 1203 Apple Glen Boulevard in Fort Wayne was among 20 locations listed on the chain’s website on April 29, but its hours were listed as “CLOSED” for every day this week and the site was not allowing customers to place orders there for pickup or delivery.

The chain previously operated stores in Central Indiana, including spots in Indianapolis, Avon and Greenwood.

The closures come after Twin Peaks Hospitality, the owner of Smokey Bones and Twin Peaks restaurants, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in Texas, USA TODAY reported in January.

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The chain began closing restaurants in late 2025.

Smokey Bones was acquired as a 60-unit group by FAT Brands Inc. in 2023 and was spun off into Twin Hospitality in January 2025. Then, in September 2025, Twin Hospitality Group Inc. said it planned to rebrand 19 Smokey Bones locations as Twin Peaks restaurants while closing 15 underperforming sites.

Restaurant news: Blake Shelton restaurant and live music venue coming to Indianapolis

Contact Midwest Connect reporter Cheryl V. Jackson at cjackson@usatodayco.com or 317-444-6264. Follow her on X.com: @cherylvjackson or Bluesky: @cherylvjackson.bsky.social.

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. ––– In the last week of the regular season, Indiana will host Evansville (April 29) and Illinois for the team’s final Big Ten series (May 1-3) at Andy Mohr Field.
 
The Hoosiers go into the week at 37-13 and 14-7 in the Big Ten. Evansville is 21-24 while Illinois comes into the week at 14-36 overall and 3-17 in the conference.
 
QUICK HITTERS:

• IU’s offense ranks top-15 nationally in many statistical categories: No. 14 Batting Average (.352), No. 4 On Base Percentage (.459), No. 6 RBI (374), No. 8 Scoring (8.18), No. 1 Hit By Pitch (68), No. 6 Total Runs (409), No. 8 Stolen Bases (112), No. 2 Triples (25).
• Avery Parker earned Big Ten Player of the Week after hitting .500 with five home runs and a double while not striking out once in Indiana’s 3-1 week. The Hoosiers defeated Valparaiso and won the series at Michigan.
• Avery Parker became the program’s career home run leader last weekend when she hit home run No. 46 at Iowa on April 19.
• Of Indiana’s 37 wins this year, 20 of them have been by run rule.
• Against Portland State in the Littlewood Invitational (Feb. 12), VanBrandt hit for the cycle as part of a 5-for-5 day where she also totaled two home runs.

 
LAST TIME OUT:

• Indiana took care of business against Valparaiso (April 22) in a 14-1 win in five innings before winning a road series at Michigan, 2-1.
• The Hoosiers took the Friday and Sunday games of the series, including an 11-2 win in five innings on Sunday. The Hoosiers blasted 13 home runs across the four-game stretch.
• After the game on Sunday, Indiana broke its single-season program record of 409 runs and tied their single-season record for RBIs with 374.
• Indiana has won 10 of their last 12 games dating back to April 8 in the win versus Butler.
• Parker’s two home runs against Michigan (April 26) put her at 50 and 51 career home runs.
• In that Sunday win, Taylor Hess pitched a complete game and struck out three batters.

 
SCOUTING THE OPPONENT:

• Evansville is 21-24 on the season and has a 12-12 record in the Missouri Valley Conference. The Purple Aces lost their most recent series at UIC after winning three games in a row (Bradley 2x and Northern Kentucky).
• Niki Bode leads the way at the plate for the Purple Aces, posting a .team-high 407 batting average. Taylor Howe (.314) and Jess Willsey (.306) also have had strong seasons hitting for them.
• Illinois comes into the week at 14-36 overall and 3-17 in the Big Ten. The Fighting Illini got swept versus Penn State in their last Big Ten series.
• The Fighting Illini’s Skylar Brennan (.324) and Adisyn Caryl (.318) are Illinois’ two best hitters. Each of them have eight doubles on the season.
• Abby Sabalaskey and Karley Yergler are the Illini’s two-most consistent arms, each having at least 27 appearances and 50 strikeouts.

 
SERIES HISTORY NOTES:

• Indiana leads the all-time series versus Evansville, 27-8. The Hoosiers have won five in a row against them and Wednesday’s matchup will be the first meeting since 2023. Illinois leads the all-time series versus Indiana, 21-11. Indiana and Illinois have not faced one another since 2022.

A Coldwater man was arrested after a vehicle pursuit that went into Indiana Monday night.

Just after 9:45 p.m., deputies from the Branch County Sheriff’s Office (BCSO) attempted to conduct a traffic stop on a vehicle for a license plate violation on Fiske Road near Newton Road.

The driver did not stop, and a vehicle pursuit was engaged. The vehicle fled south on Fremont Road, west on Copeland Road, then south on I-69.

The chase continued into Indiana, where the Indiana State Police (ISP) assisted. The vehicle came to a stop after a successful deployment of stop sticks.

The driver, a 39-year-old Coldwater man, attempted to flee on foot. He was quickly apprehended by BCSO deputies and ISP troopers.

The driver was arrested and lodged by the Indiana State Police. Charges are being sought by the Branch County Sheriff’s Office.