11 Once-Troubled Steakhouse Chains That Completely Bounced Back

Ever since people started eating at the first steakhouse, they've been a go-to option for a fancy meal out — but times are changing, folks. These days, there's a world of different cuisines at our fingertips, and it means that the good old-fashioned steakhouse has taken a hit in recent years. Although modern steakhouses have adapted to new consumer tastes by offering more flavor profiles, a wealth of different sides, different world influences, and smaller portion sizes, there's no denying that there's something distinctly retro about a lot of them. This has meant that some of the best-loved steakhouse chains out there have been left floundering, particularly during the rocky days of COVID-19, when the dine-in styles of most of these joints didn't adapt easily to takeout or delivery.

However, for whatever reason, it seems that people have found their hankering for steak once more — and those very steakhouse chains that were once in trouble are now more popular than ever. Well-known names like Texas Roadhouse, LongHorn Steakhouse, and Fogo de Chão are seeing customers flock to their restaurants. Other steakhouse chains have seemingly risen from the dead, with places like Sizzler and Steak and Ale making a renewed play for market dominance. Ready to see where you'll be having your next steak dinner? Let's check out these comeback kids.

Texas Roadhouse has been doing pretty well for itself recently as of this publication. A combination of moving with the times, figuring out its to-go offer, and taking extra steps that set its steaks apart has seen the chain balloon to a portfolio of almost 800 restaurants, with plans to reach 900 units in the coming years. This huge number of restaurants won't be raking in a small amount each, either: In 2024, each Texas Roadhouse unit made more than $8 million in volume on average, a new high watermark for the company.

However, it wasn't always this way, folks. Texas Roadhouse hasn't struggled as much as some other steakhouse chains, but in 2020, things looked incredibly rocky for the restaurant. In April 2020, Texas Roadhouse was down a massive 46.7% from the previous year due to the impact of COVID on dining room closures. By December 2020, the restaurant was down 18.2% on sales from December 2019, with CEO Kent Taylor stating that it had been the most challenging year he had ever experienced in the restaurant industry. Despite this, the company persevered and managed to turn things around in the coming years, and is now the star of the steakhouse scene.

2020 was a tough year for everyone, and a lot of businesses felt the impact of the pandemic keenly. Few industries, though, struggled as much as the restaurant business — and steakhouses saw a massive hit. For LongHorn Steakhouse, 2020 was seriously tough, with its sales down 45.3% in the fiscal 2020 fourth quarter. Its in-house sales were also super low, which is not surprising given the restrictions in place during the spring months of 2020, but which begged the question of how much a business that was primarily based around dining-in options could weather the storm.

Well, weather the storm it did, people. LongHorn Steakhouse managed to make it through 2020 in large part due to its to-go sales, which saw a massive spike when people were forced to stay at home. Cut to a couple years later, and it seems like the only way is up for the steakhouse chain. For the fiscal year 2024 second quarter, LongHorn Steakhouse saw a 7.5% increase in same-store sales. It's managed to achieve this by putting the quality of its food over how much it shouts about it: Instead of spending all of its cash on marketing, it's invested in the sheer size of its portions and the taste of its meals. As a result, people know that it's the place to get a great steak (whether it's expensive or cheap), and brand loyalty is at a serious high as of this publication.

Seems like you just can't keep a good brand down, folks — and Steak and Ale is a testament to that. The legendary steak restaurant was founded in 1966, and it quickly became the place to go for beef. At its height, Steak and Ale had almost 300 locations around the country, and people couldn't get enough of favorites like its prime rib and Hawaiian chicken. However, in 2008, things came crashing down when operator Metromedia Restaurant Group filed for bankruptcy, causing Steak and Ale branches to shut down, seemingly forever.

Until 2023, that is. First, in 2015, the Steak and Ale brand was purchased by Legendary Restaurant Brands, and eight years later it was announced that a brand new Steak and Ale was to be opened in Minneapolis. Further branches were planned for the city, and a Texas branch was due to open in 2025 after facing delays. If things go well enough, the sky really could be the limit for this brand. Judging by recent reviews of the Minneapolis location as of this publication, which praise both the value of the food and its nostalgic feel, it's off to a good start.

Fogo de Chão has had a fairly erratic history in the last few years, but it looks like all of the moves it's gone through are starting to pay dividends. In 2018, the Brazilian steakhouse brand was acquired by associates of Rhône Capital, who took it private. The company then saw a seriously rocky 2020, as so many other restaurants did — but crucially, it wasn't exactly killing it going into the year, either. It seemed like things could be going south for the chain.

By the end of 2021, though, Fogo de Chão was back. The brand saw massively improved sales throughout the year, with people desperate to return to its dining rooms and enjoy a taste of eating in-person. As a result, Fogo de Chão was able to go public once more, and in doing so sought to pay off a chunky debt bill that had been building up. The brand changed hands again in 2023, and subsequently announced an ambitious growth plan of approximately 15% per year. As of 2025, there are 15 new units due to open, with further restaurants planned for 2026. There are clearly some pretty smart folks behind the wheel over there, and we respect it, you guys. Now just don't make any mistakes when eating at Fogo de Chão, and we'll all be happy. 

Ruth's Chris Steak House had a pretty rough pandemic. While some restaurants managed to cling on by their fingertips and avoid closing any (or most) of their units, Ruth's Chris Steak House was hit particularly hard. By the end of March 2020, it was announced that 23 Ruth's Chris Steak Houses had to close, decimating the number of its units and reducing them by just under a sixth. At the same time, its executives reduced their own salaries in a bid to protect funds, with further reductions to other staff members, too.

The problem that Ruth's Chris Steak House had was that it just wasn't suited for takeout and delivery as other restaurants were. The fine dining vibe just didn't translate, and with no customers to sit in its restaurants proper, things were looking tough. It was a real question mark as to how much Ruth's Chris would survive at all — but by the end of 2022, things were looking up. Ruth's Chris announced a 9.6% increase in sales compared to 2021, with six new restaurants opening their doors during the year. Those new restaurants haven't stopped appearing, either: A new location in Philadelphia was set to open in spring 2025, and we're sure there are more to come.

Outback Steakhouse has had a rough few years, and while it's not entirely out of the woods yet, it's certainly bouncing back in a pretty unique way as of this publication. At the start of 2024, things were looking pretty bad for the steakhouse chain. Outback Steakhouse parent company Bloomin' Brands announced that it was closing 41 restaurants across its portfolio, citing under-performance. This left certain states, like Hawaii and New Hampshire, without any Outback Steakhouses at all.

Now, it's never a good sign when a restaurant business shutters dozens of stores, and it did seem like Outback Steakhouse was struggling slightly — but it's moving forward not by building massively, but by refining things further. In early 2025, Outback Steakhouse (which isn't actually Australian) announced plans to streamline its menu while building restaurants more carefully, in a bid to improve customer experience. It seems that the hope by doing this is to make its offer more nimble, and the ambition of the plan shows that the company's in it for the long haul. It was still planning to build restaurants in 2025, though, and combined with its new outlook, the chain clearly had its eyes on a bright future.

Another day, another restaurant impacted by COVID-19. This time, it's Smith & Wollensky's turn. The steakhouse chain had a seriously rocky few months after March 2020 rolled around, with some of its restaurants down by more than 60% in sales. Given that Smith & Wollensky was a small chain at the time, with just six U.S. locations, it didn't quite have the robustness of other businesses. However, help was potentially on the horizon: In June of that year, its parent company, Danu Partners, announced that it was looking for potential acquisitions in a bid to make sure it survived into the future.

Well, it managed to see the rest of the pandemic out, and it looks like things are business as usual as of this publication. Not only did Smith & Wollensky gain an extra location in the United States in the last few years, but it also announced its ambitious plans to expand internationally. To that end, the steakhouse chain opened a location in Taiwan in 2023, and later launched a new restaurant in South Korea in October 2024. Additionally, the chain had its eyes on expansion into Japan in 2026.The chain is still very small compared to some other steakhouses, but it clearly has staying power. 

Like so many other steakhouse chains out there, STK was in big trouble in 2020. Once March rolled around, the coronavirus restrictions began being put in place across the country. With these restrictions, the prospect of eating a steak in an STK dining room became completely alien — and the chain's sales suffered as a result. Comparable sales were down by 81.4% throughout the second quarter of 2020, with April seeing a mammoth 95.6% sales drop. STK responded to the pandemic and its restrictions by launching STK Meat Market, an e-commerce service that allowed folks to buy their favorite cuts of steak and get them delivered, but it wasn't quite enough to recoup all of its losses.

However, STK soon bounced back. It leaned into its takeout and delivery options in a bid to allow diners to recreate the steakhouse experience at home, and managed to bring itself back from the brink. Gently, STK Steakhouse started to re-establish itself, and by the end of 2024 it was back in action. Towards the end of 2024, STK Steakhouse announced a new Miami Beach location, with other locations also opening up throughout the year. In March 2025, it was announced that STK Steakhouse was going to open a new location in Union Square in Manhattan.

If any restaurant deserves to make a comeback based on sheer grit alone, it's Black Angus Steakhouse. This steakhouse chain has been plagued by financial issues for decades. Its owner, ARG, previously filed for bankruptcy protection back in 2004, but managed to bring itself (and Black Angus Steakhouse) back from the brink by refreshing its offer — before it then had to file for bankruptcy again in 2009. The restaurant was a casualty of the recession, but it somehow managed to cling on in subsequent years, albeit in a seriously diminished state.

However, things started to change once the 2020s rolled around. In 2021, the restaurant gained new leadership in the form of Deborah Shapiro, who set about modernizing the steakhouse's image and output in her new role as vice president of growth. Shapiro systematically updated the steakhouse for a modern audience, changing everything from its walls to its promotions. Fast forward to 2024, and the steakhouse chain celebrated its 60th anniversary, with folks feeling more optimistic than ever about its future. As Shapiro told the Los Angeles Daily News, the chain is still keeping its founder's vision in mind: "He founded the restaurant on the principle that if you're a hardworking, everyday worker you shouldn't have to sacrifice quality for price. We have 21-day aged steaks still to this day."

Of all the restaurants that struggled during COVID, few of them were as tragic as Sizzler and its downfall. The pandemic wasn't the first moment that this beleaguered chain had struggled: It had been on rocky ground since way back in 1996, when it closed well over 130 restaurants and filed for bankruptcy protection. In 2020, it had to do exactly the same thing, with a pointed statement from Sizzler president Chris Perkins. "Our current financial state is a direct consequence of the pandemic's economic impact due to long-term indoor dining closures and landlords' refusal to provide necessary rent abatements," he said in a statement seen via CNN. It looked as though Sizzler had finally been cooked.

However, just a couple years later Sizzler managed to avoid becoming one of those steakhouses that time forgot, and it's looking like it's about to burst back onto the scene in a big way. The restaurant leaned hard into a new image towards the end of 2024, working with branding agency Tavern to revamp its approachability, particularly for a modern audience. At the same time, it started announcing that it was remodeling its stores. It's pretty clear that the longstanding chain has its sights set on the future as of this publication, and we anticipate that this new positive attitude is going to pay off.

The Capital Grille has been plagued by issues for years, and it's been marked by a seriously poor public image — for good reason. In 2012, The Capital Grille faced a revolt from its own workers, who filed class action lawsuits in multiple different states against the brand. Workers alleged several issues, including some pretty serious accusations of wage theft, failing to pay workers on time, and even racial discrimination against African-American employees. The Capital Grille saw out the decade still in operation, but it then had to deal with the blow of the COVID-19 pandemic, with sales plummeting by well over 60% in its fiscal fourth quarter for 2020.

The combination of these two things should be enough to end a restaurant for good, but somehow, The Capital Grille kept on going. It was helped by it being operated by super group Darden Restaurants, which also owns LongHorn Steakhouse and Olive Garden, and after a couple years, it looked like the chain was back with a bang. As of this publication, The Capital Grille looks like it's firmly on the rise again, with new locations popping up in Denver and Texas in 2025. It looks like steak's back on the menu, and The Capitale Grille is serving it up.