The buyer, Sun Capital Partners, owns shares of other restaurant groups such as Boston Market, Fazoli’s, El Torito, Chevy’s and Kincaid’s American, Fish, Chop and Steakhouse. Its restaurant portfolio is but a sliver of its broader holdings in other companies, which implies the operators looked at Smokey Bones’ balance sheet as much as its brand. In short, the Sun gang believes it has a bargain on its hands.

Sun also has a reputation for holding onto its assets, which means they’ll likely not gnaw the profit off of Smokey Bones and toss it to the side. If you’re a fan of the concept, don’t expect to see Smokey headed for the bone yard anytime soon.