COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES	3 Months Ended
COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES	Dec. 27, 2025
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]
COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES	COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES Leases — The Company leases several restaurants, bar facilities, and administrative headquarters through its subsidiaries under terms expiring at various dates through 2046. Most of the leases provide for the payment of base rents plus real estate taxes, insurance and other expenses and, in certain instances, for the payment of a percentage of the restaurant’s sales in excess of stipulated amounts at such facility and in one instance based on profits. In connection with one of our leases, the Company obtained and delivered an irrevocable letter of credit in the amount of $324,000 as a security deposit under such lease. Bryant Park Grill — The Company's agreements with the Bryant Park Corporation (the “Landlord”) (a private non-profit corporation that operates and maintains Bryant Park under agreements with the City of New York Department of Parks & Recreation), for the Bryant Park Grill & Cafe expired on April 30, 2025 and for The Porch at Bryant Park expired on March 31, 2025. In July of 2023 (for the Bryant Park Grill & Cafe) and September of 2023 (for The Porch at Bryant Park), the Company received requests for proposals (the "RFPs") from the Landlord to which we responded on October 26, 2023. The agreements offered under the RFPs for both locations were for new 10-year agreements, with one five-year renewal option. In the second quarter of 2025, the Landlord stated publicly that it had selected a new operator for the Bryant Park Grill & Café and The Porch at Bryant Park. However, to the best of our knowledge, no agreements between the Landlord and the selected operator have received the approvals of either the City of New York Department of Parks & Recreation or the New York Public Library, of which both approvals are required before any new lease can become effective. Management has been working with outside advisors to assist the Company's efforts to ensure that the RFP awards process was both fair and transparent and to enforce the Company's right of first lease under the Company's lease agreements in connection with the Bryant Park Café. On March 28, 2025, the Company filed a complaint in New York State Supreme Court (the "New York Action"), alleging among other things, that the bid process conducted by the Landlord was defective, failed to comply with the provisions of the agreements underlying the Landlord’s right to operate Bryant Park and violated applicable law; that a lease was being awarded to a lower bidder with a limited, unsuccessful track record in the hospitality business; and that the award of the lease for the Café violated the Company's right of first lease. As part of the relief sought in the New York Action, the Company is requesting that the court declare that, under the circumstances presented, the Landlord was required to accept—and should have accepted — its submitted bids. In addition, on March 28, 2025, the Company also filed a motion for a preliminary injunction in court to enjoin the Landlord from commencing legal proceedings to evict the Company from the Bryant Park Grill & Café and The Porch at Bryant Park premises. On April 24, 2025, the Court denied the motion. The Company has filed a notice of appeal of the ruling. The Company has received from the Landlord a “notice to quit” the premises and for the Company to terminate its tenancy. On June 16, 2025, the Company filed an amended complaint in the New York Action, adding a cause of action for age discrimination by the Landlord in its selection of a new operator for the Bryant Park Grill & Café and The Porch at Bryant Park. On June 26, 2025, the Landlord filed counterclaims against the Company in the New York Action seeking, among other things, to eject the Company from the Bryant Park Grill & Café and The Porch at Bryant Park. On July 16, 2025, the Company moved to dismiss eight of the fourteen counterclaims filed by the Landlord. On July 29, 2025, the Landlord filed a motion to require the Company to make monthly use and occupancy payments in connection with the Bryant Park Grill & Café and The Porch at Bryant Park during the pendency of the case. On August 13, 2025, the Court issued a decision requiring the Company to make the use and occupancy payments demanded by the Landlord during the pendency of the case. Given that the Company had made and will continue to make all payments pursuant to the expired leases while it continues to operate the restaurants, it did not substantively oppose the Landlord’s motion or appeal the Court's decision. On December 8, 2025, the Court dismissed the Landlord’s claims for declaratory judgment, unjust enrichment, and tortious interference. On January 9, 2026, the Landlord moved for summary judgment, seeking dismissal of the Company’s claim and judgment in its favor on its counterclaims, for ejectment, breach of contract, and use and occupancy. The motion for summary judgment, including the Company’s opposition, is scheduled to be fully submitted to the Court on March 12, 2026. In the meantime, no trial date has been set for the New York Action and discovery is ongoing and will continue through June 30, 2026 and possibly longer. As of the date of this filing, we continue to operate the above properties and intend to do so until we are either awarded the lease extensions or ordered to vacate the premises. The underlying lawsuit filed by the Company to protect its rights continues, and we will pursue all available options to protect the Company's interests. Management, after consultation with legal counsel, is unable to predict the outcome of this matter at this time. While the outcome of these proceedings cannot be predicted with certainty, the Bryant Park Grill & Cafe and The Porch at Bryant Park, collectively, accounted for $7.9 million and $9.9 million of our total revenues for the 13 weeks ended December 27, 2025 and December 28, 2024, respectively, which represented approximately 19.5% and 22.3% of our total revenue for such periods, respectively. The uncertainty related to this dispute has had a material adverse impact on our business, financial condition, and results of operations and will continue to do so while the dispute is litigated and if we are unable to prevail in the above actions and/or are unable to extend or renew these leases on favorable terms, if at all. Legal Proceedings — In the ordinary course of its business, the Company is a party to various lawsuits arising from accidents at its restaurants and workers’ compensation claims, which are generally handled by the Company’s insurance carriers. The employment by the Company of management personnel, waiters, waitresses and kitchen staff at a number of different restaurants has resulted in the institution, from time to time, of litigation alleging violation by the Company of employment discrimination laws. Management believes, based in part on the advice of counsel, that the ultimate resolution of these matters will not have a material adverse effect on the Company’s consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

ARK RESTAURANTS CORP 10-Q