Leases (Notes)

12 Months Ended

Jan. 01, 2019

The Company leases restaurant facilities, office space and certain equipment that expire on various dates through January 2032. Lease terms for restaurants in traditional shopping centers generally include a base term of 10 years, with options to extend these leases for additional periods of five to 15 years. Typically, the lease includes rent escalations, which are expensed on a straight-line basis over the expected lease term. The difference between rent expense and cash paid for rent is recognized as deferred rent. Total rent expense for operating leases for 2018, 2017 and 2016 was approximately $41.7 million, $43.9 million and $48.5 million, respectively.

Future minimum lease payments required under existing leases as of January 1, 2019 are as follows (in thousands):



2018	$	42,652
2019	39,626
2020	35,609
2021	30,611
2022	24,440
Thereafter	54,414
	$	227,352