There's a new king in the U.S. casual dining scene. Texas Roadhouse has surpassed Olive Garden as the No. 1 casual dining destination based on systemwide sales, according to new data from Technomic on the 500 largest restaurant chains in America. The Louisville, Kentucky-based steakhouse chain overtook Olive Garden, which had held the top spot since 2018. Texas Roadhouse sales surged 14.7% last year to $5.5 billion, while Olive Garden sales rose just 0.8% to $5.2 billion in 2024, according to Technomic. Olive Garden has tried to lure more customers with its $6 take-home entrées and endless soup or salad and breadsticks. The Orlando, Florida-based Italian restaurant chain, owned by parent company Darden Restaurants, opened 15 new restaurants in 2024, compared to 26 new locations for Texas Roadhouse, Restaurant Business reported. Steakhouses represented three of the top 10 casual dining restaurants on the list. LongHorn Steakhouse, which is also owned by Darden Restaurants, jumped Tampa, Florida-based Outback Steakhouse, according to the data.
