Waterford ― Andy and Crystal Chen, owners of the Charleys Philly Steaks franchise at Crystal Mall, were wistful Wednesday as they tended to some last-minute business in the now-vacant space their shop had occupied since 2011.

Charleys served up its last cheesesteak sandwich Dec. 31, joining a handful of other food court mainstays that sang swan songs in 2023’s final days.

Subway, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell bowed out, too. Sarku Japan, Dairy Queen/Orange Julius and Wok Express remain open.

COVID-19 was devastating, Andy Chen said, pointing to a former Dunkin’ Donuts space that’s been vacant for years. Traffic at the nearly half-empty mall, already sputtering before the pandemic forced retail closings in 2020, never recovered.

The rise of food-delivery services like DoorDash and UberEats have altered consumers’ eating habits in a way that seems permanent, Chen said.

In the last couple of years, store closings at the mall have accelerated, claiming anchors like Macy’s, Bed, Bath and Beyond and the Christmas Tree Shops. Namdar Realty Group, the mall owners, took over in May, their commitment to the mall’s long-term future uncertain.

“It’s not about America; it’s everywhere, even China,” Crystal Chen said, referencing her homeland. “The pandemic changed people’s mind about shopping ... and they don’t have money. For us, it’s not so bad. We’re OK, we’ve got a new location. But Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, they just closed. I feel so sad for them.”

The Chens are reopening their Charleys franchise in the Lisbon Walmart, where all four of the full-time employees who worked for them at the Waterford location will have jobs.

Crystal Chen also lamented the long-time customers they’re leaving behind.

“I see kids who were 5 years old when they came in with their parents, and now they’re all grown up,” she said. “I tell them, ‘If you miss me, just go to Lisbon.’”

When they negotiated a new lease a year ago, the Chens sought a reduction in their rent due to the mall’s declining traffic and the rising cost of workers and food. In 2023, they began leasing on a monthly basis for the first time.

“Mall management has been very nice,” Andy Chen made a point of saying.

The owner of the closed Subway franchise, who asked that her name not be used, wasn’t nearly so magnanimous.

Interviewed at another Subway she owns in Old Lyme Marketplace, she said she hopes to replace her Crystal Mall location with one elsewhere in southeastern Connecticut where management is supportive of small business.

She attributed the food court’s demise to the new mall owner’s unwillingness to “look at the reality” facing malls and their tenants.

“In general, malls are a dying breed,” she said. “You should want to help them stay in business by taking into account the declines in sales, the rising cost of labor and rising food costs when you negotiate rents.”

“It’s almost as if they didn’t want people to stay,” she said of Namdar.

She said previous management was willing to significantly reduce her rent in exchange for a longer lease, a deal Namdar didn’t want to honor.

Rents need to be tied to sales, she said.

Subway’s closing at the mall cost three employees their jobs, a mother of two children who worked full time and two part-timers, according to the owner.

“I don’t see any positive future for the mall,” she said. “They’re doing nothing to increase traffic.”

b.hallenbeck@theday.com