Texas Roadhouse has gone from one original location to the largest steakhouse chain in
the country. How did this restaurant pull off such an impressive transformation? It's
quite the story, and maybe not the one you'd expect. Here is what you didn't know about
Texas Roadhouse.
You'd be forgiven for assuming that Texas Roadhouse's story began in the Lone Star State.
It is in the restaurant's name, after all. But the chain actually got its start hundreds
of miles away in Indiana. In 1993, founder Kent Taylor opened the doors of the first
Texas Roadhouse in Clarksville, Indiana, a city located on the Ohio River just across
from Louisville, Kentucky. In fact, to this day, the company's headquarters are based
in Louisville.
But, according to Funding Universe, neither Texas nor Indiana was Taylor's original culinary
inspiration. The avid skier loved the mountains of Colorado, where he lived for many years.
After moving to Indiana — where he managed several casual and fast food restaurants — Taylor
decided to try his hand at operating his own eatery.
"So I figured I'd better work for myself or I'm going to get fired several more times,
I guess."
Naturally, he opted for a Colorado theme. In 1991, with the financial backing of former
Kentucky Governor John Y. Brown, Taylor opened Buckhead Hickory Grill, today known as Buckhead
Mountain Grill, in Louisville.
"And personally, I'd swim across the river for these steaks."
When the business proved to be an immediate hit, the pair hatched plans for a second location,
this time in Clarksville, but couldn't agree on how to divide the profits. Still wanting
to open a restaurant in Indiana, Taylor found new investors, but the Colorado theme belonged
to Buckhead. Thus, Texas Roadhouse was born. In 1994, Taylor sold his interest in Buckhead
and never looked back.
After he graduated from the University of North Carolina, Texas Roadhouse founder Kent
Taylor moved to Colorado, where the self-proclaimed ski addict could carve up the mountainside
any time he wished. It wasn't until he relocated to Indiana that he opened up his steakhouse
chain. But why did the avid skier relocate to the Midwest in the first place? In what
would ultimately prove to be serendipitous, it was a series of personal setbacks that
led Taylor to move back not just to his hometown, but to his parents' house.
Taylor and his wife divorced in 1990, leaving him to raise his two young daughters alone.
Soon, he found himself so financially burdened that he was forced to move back in with his
mom and dad, according to Investor's Business Daily. This wasn't the worst thing, however.
Taylor admitted to Investors' Business Daily:
"[My mom] sure helped me with my kids when I was first starting the company."
It proved to be a big help, as Taylor, despite these significant personal and financial setbacks,
was able to open the first Texas Roadhouse in 1993, not too long after moving to Indiana.
Taylor told Investor's Business Daily;
"Things worked out. I like to fill my mind with positive thoughts. I've always been very
persistent and prove the naysayers wrong."
Texas Roadhouse has come a long way from its humble beginnings as a single restaurant in
Indiana. And its sustainability didn't look too promising when several of its first expansion
locations were forced to close, notes Funding Universe. Needless to say, it didn't appear
as though Texas Roadhouse would become the largest steakhouse chain in the country — and
yet that's precisely what happened.
According to Restaurant Business, the company brought in just over $3 million in revenue
in 2019, the most of any steakhouse chain in the United States. That's roughly $400,000
more than its closest competitor, Outback Steakhouse, which had 724 locations compared
to Texas Roadhouse's 553. And Texas Roadhouse's success doesn't appear to be slowing down.
Aside from a drop in revenue in 2020, which was an industry-wide trend primarily caused
by the COVID-19 pandemic, the restaurant chain has seen a significant jump in sales each
year since 2017.
The first thing any guest notices upon sitting down to eat at Texas Roadhouse is the complimentary
bowl of shelled peanuts on the table. In fact, the chain may be better known for their peanuts
than their steaks. Travis Doster, Texas Roadhouse's senior director of public and government relations,
told the National Peanut Board:
"We're known for what we call, 'legendary food, legendary service,' but you will always
hear people say 'oh, the peanut place!'"
The company has become so famous for its salty snack, in fact, that it now sells bags of
them at sports stadiums across the country. Texas Roadhouse takes its peanuts and freshly
baked bread, which is also complimentary, pretty seriously. That's because the restaurant
sees them not as just a pre-meal snack, but symbolic of the great value customers get
when they dine there. Therefore, the chain invests heavily in these treats. Doster claimed
that across all its locations, Texas Roadhouse spends more than $20 million on peanuts and
bread, which includes purchasing more than 10 million pounds of peanuts.
Texas Roadhouse founder Kent Taylor met the icon known as Willie Nelson at a Farm Aid
benefit concert. According to Texas Roadhouse, the two became fast friends and bonded throughout
the years over more than a few poker games. They were such good friends, in fact, that
Taylor decided to incorporate the country music legend into his business. What's a Texas-themed
restaurant without some Willie Nelson influence, anyhow?
"If it doesn't say Texas, it's not Texas Roadhouse."
Although each Texas Roadhouse location's interior decoration is primarily dedicated to representing
the local community, every restaurant across the country has one corner dedicated to Willie
Nelson, aptly known as "Willie's Corner." It naturally features photos and memorabilia
of the legendary country crooner. The restaurant sometimes also distributes Willie Braids to
its employees and guests, consisting of a bandana and two pigtail-style braids that
mimic Nelson's signature hairstyle.
And like a true friend, Texas Roadhouse always has Nelson's back. When a stuffed armadillo
that tours with Nelson was stolen, Louisville Business First reported that the restaurant
chain was on the case, offering $1,000 gift cards for any information on the whereabouts
of "Ol' Dillo," as the armadillo was called. According to USA Today, the armadillo was
eventually returned to Nelson unharmed.
If you wake up in the morning with a hankering for some Texas Roadhouse ribeye, porterhouse,
cheeseburgers, rolls and cinnamon butter, or all of the above, you're going to have
to muster up some patience. The steakhouse chain abides by a dinner-only philosophy.
This means that it's only open for lunch on the weekends.
Why does Texas Roadhouse forgo the potential revenue lunch? There are a few reasons, starting
with the well-being of its employees. According to the company's fact sheet, the restaurant
is closed for lunch during the week to help its employees, particularly managers, maintain
a healthy work-life balance. Not only does this improve the work situation for Texas
Roadhouse employees, but it also makes them better at their job, according to founder
Kent Taylor. Taylor told Forbes:
"You have better execution when you're focused on two shifts. Most chains only do 30 percent
of business at lunch. I get my A team working for dinner. I like that."
Only serving dinner also helps Texas Roadhouse save money on real estate costs. Most people
eat lunch during the week close to where they work, which is often in a high-traffic area.
But owning or renting a property in these areas costs far more than in less densely
populated locations. By not having to focus on the lunch crowd, Texas Roadhouse can set
up shop just off the beaten path, where the cost of owning real estate can be significantly
lower.
Texas Roadhouse may not have begun in the Lone Star State but it sure has adopted its
culture. That includes, of all things, line dancing. Members of the service staff at Texas
Roadhouse restaurants are often known to line dance throughout their shift. To be more precise,
they dance along to one song every hour, according to the restaurant's Twitter, so you're bound
to catch at least one performance during your meal.
It has become such a tradition at Texas Roadhouse that the company has gone as far as hosting
line-dancing competitions with the staff of different restaurants across the country going
head-to-head.
Few industries, if any, were hit harder by the COVID-19 pandemic than the restaurant
industry. But, while some restaurants have been forced to close, others have fared better.
On the top of that list is Texas Roadhouse. According to the marketing agency TOP, Texas
Roadhouse was the most popular casual dining chain in the country during the one-year period
from July 2019 to July 2020. The steakhouse restaurant was the most visited casual dining
destination in 15 different states, from Arizona and Colorado, to Massachusetts and Maine.
It was also among the top five such eateries in 18 other states.
Texas Roadhouse's success can be attributed to its rapid business model transition, according
to FSR. The restaurant was quick to switch to a curbside and drive-thru operation, equipped
all employees with gloves and masks, and even set up double-drive-thru tents. The results
were downright staggering. FSR reported that, in January 2020, Texas Roadhouse's to-go business
was bringing in roughly $8,400 per week at each location. By the end of April, that number
skyrocketed 575 percent to $56,000. Kent Taylor said on a conference call back in May 2020,
"Make no mistake, Texas Roadhouse is open for business."
Fans of Texas Roadhouse will be happy to know that it's not the only place they can get
the franchise's level of quality and service. In fact, the company owns two other restaurant
chains. In 2013, founder Kent Taylor opened the first Bubba's 33 in Fayetteville, North
Carolina. The sports bar-themed eatery was named after Taylor, whose nickname was Bubba,
with a nod toward the end of Prohibition in 1933.
Following many of Texas Roadhouse's successful steps, like being closed for lunch on most
days and keeping prices down, the brand quickly found success. The chain now has 34 locations
across the country, with more on the way. When asked by Forbes why people would choose
Bubba's 33 over its competitors, Taylor said simply,
"It's about the food and people. Number one, our wait staff handles three or four tables,
where they have five or six. I do scratch-based food and they don't. If people eat my food,
it's not easily compared."
Two years after Bubba's 33 arrived, Taylor had yet another restaurant idea. This time
it was focused on perfecting the staples of chicken, burgers, and salads, or, as Taylor
described the theme to the Louisville Business Journal,
"What if Chick-fil-A and Five Guys got married and had a kid?"
Unlike its sister chains, Jaggers is a fast food restaurant and is still in its infancy.
There are just three locations: two in Indiana and one in Kentucky.
It has not all been good news for Texas Roadhouse, as the chain suffered a devastating loss in
the early part of 2021. In March, the company announced founder and CEO Kent Taylor had
died. Louisville television station WDRB reported that his family revealed Taylor had taken
his own life. The family said in a statement:
"We are saddened by the decision Kent felt he needed to make and want to emphasize more
than ever the importance of reaching out for help if you or someone you love is suffering."
What led a successful man to end his life at the age of 65? Sometime prior to his death,
Taylor was diagnosed with COVID-19. One of the lingering effects of Taylor's experience
with the disease was a severe and persistent ringing in his ear, known as tinnitus. The
discomfort became so unbearable that Taylor's family said it contributed to his suicide.
The family's statement said:
"Kent battled and fought hard like the former track champion that he was, but the suffering
that greatly intensified in recent days became unbearable."
Although in extreme distress, Taylor managed to make one more significant philanthropic
contribution before he died. According to his family, he committed to fund a clinical
study to help members of the military also suffering from tinnitus.
If you or anyone you know is having suicidal thoughts, please call the National Suicide
Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255).