Yeah, I know, these are some unprecedented times, ladies and gentlemen. I mean, I truly don't know where to go from here. According to the American Customer Satisfaction Index for sit-down restaurants, LongHorn Steak House is no longer the top dog. Well, I guess they technically never were, but we'll discuss that later. The important thing is that Texas Roadhouse is in, LongHorn is out.
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Playing With Texas Road-House Money?
I mean, as the new indisputable top dogs, I'd say that's pretty accurate. These guys apparently put the steak in the steak house. I don't know if that made any sense, but you get what I mean.
Now, this wasn't always the case. Even as recently as last year, these two restaurants were neck and neck.
LongHorn Steak House had an 85 rating right alongside Texas Roadhouse. But now it has a measly 83, and Texas Roadhouse has topped it with an 84. (So, if you really think about it, both restaurants technically got worse.)
But regardless of how it happened, it happened. Texas Roadhouse has officially topped the charts as America's favorite Steak House. And honestly, if I'm reading this chart right, they seemingly topped the whole ACSI sit-down restaurant chart!
Another big change is that Chili's overall rating dropped from 80 to 78. Additionally, Cracker Barrel dropped from 82 to 80 overall, and even Olive Garden dropped a couple of points.
I'm no economist here, but I am definitely concerned when I see a lot more negative values in the % change column than positive ones. In fact, of the thirteen restaurants listed in the index, only three had positive percent changes. Three!
How Did They Win The Steak House Battle?
Through grit, hard work, and determination. (And inflation, and competition failing hard.)
I mean, don't get me wrong, Texas Roadhouse makes a mean Steak. But it also helps that their food comes at an unbeatable price. Especially when you consider how crazy that corner of the food market can get.
Plus, Outback has fallen off drastically in both sales and ratings from just last year to this one. I wish that weren't the case because I would be heartbroken to see that bad boy shut down. They were a staple of my childhood!
Needless to say, no matter how they did it, Texas Roadhouse is now the undisputed Steak House heavyweight champion.
