Basis Of Presentation (Policies)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 29, 2013

Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]

Basis of Accounting, Policy [Policy Text Block]

Basis of Presentation. The accompanying unaudited consolidated financial statements for the three and nine months endedSeptember 29, 2013 and September 30, 2012 have been prepared without an audit, pursuant to the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission and do not include certain of the information and the footnotes required by accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America for complete financial statements. In the opinion of management, all normal and recurring adjustments considered necessary for a fair presentation of such financial statements have been included. The results of operations for three and nine months endedSeptember 29, 2013 and September 30, 2012 are not necessarily indicative of the results to be expected for the full year.

Consolidation, Policy [Policy Text Block]

Basis of Consolidation. Carrols Restaurant Group is a holding company and conducts all of its operations through Carrols Corporation (“Carrols”) and its wholly-owned subsidiaries. The unaudited consolidated financial statements presented herein include the accounts of Carrols Restaurant Group and its wholly-owned subsidiary Carrols. Any reference to “Carrols LLC” refers to Carrols’ wholly-owned subsidiary, Carrols LLC, a Delaware limited liability company.

Unless the context otherwise requires, Carrols Restaurant Group, Carrols and the direct and indirect subsidiaries of Carrols are collectively referred to as the “Company.” All intercompany transactions have been eliminated in consolidation.

Fiscal Period, Policy [Policy Text Block]

Fiscal Year. The Company uses a 52-53 week fiscal year ending on the Sunday closest to December 31. The fiscal year ended December 30, 2012 contained 52 weeks. The three and nine months endedSeptember 29, 2013 and September 30, 2012 each contained thirteen and thirty-nine weeks, respectively.

Fair Value of Financial Instruments, Policy [Policy Text Block]

Fair Value of Financial Instruments. Fair value is defined as the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants on the measurement date. In determining fair value, the accounting standards establish a three level hierarchy for inputs used in measuring fair value as follows: Level 1 inputs are quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities; Level 2 inputs are observable for the asset or liability, either directly or indirectly, including quoted prices in active markets for similar assets or liabilities; and Level 3 inputs are unobservable and reflect our own assumptions. Financial instruments include cash, accounts receivable, accounts payable, and long-term debt. The carrying amounts of cash, accounts receivable and accounts payable approximate fair value because of the short-term nature of these financial instruments. The fair value of the Carrols Restaurant Group 11.25% Senior Secured Second Lien Notes due 2018 is based on recent trading values, which is considered Level 2, and at September 29, 2013 was approximately $168.0 million. See Note 5 for a discussion of the fair value measurement of non-financial assets.

Fair value measurements of non-financial assets and non-financial liabilities are primarily used in the impairment analysis of long-lived assets, goodwill and intangible assets. Long-lived assets and definite-lived intangible assets are measured at fair value on a nonrecurring basis using Level 3 inputs.

Use of Estimates, Policy [Policy Text Block]

Use of Estimates. The preparation of the financial statements in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the dates of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting periods. Significant items subject to such estimates include: acquisition accounting, insurance liabilities, evaluation for impairment of goodwill, long-lived assets and franchise rights, lease accounting matters, accrued occupancy costs and valuation of deferred income tax assets. Actual results could differ from those estimates.