Why Casual Steakhouse Chains Are Closing Locations in 2026
Steak used to be the reliable order at a casual chain restaurant. In 2026, it’s become the reason some of those chains are shrinking. A mix of record beef prices, thinner post-pandemic dining budgets, and years of overexpansion has pushed several steakhouse brands into closures, downsizing, or, in a few cases, near-total collapse.
Here’s what’s actually happening, chain by chain, and why.
Outback Steakhouse leads the closures.
Bloomin’ Brands, the parent company of Outback Steakhouse, has announced it will close around 40 U.S. Outback locations between 2025 and 2026. The company closed 21 U.S. restaurants in 2025 and chose not to renew leases on 22 additional locations, most of which were set to expire over the next few years. In its most recent quarter, Bloomin’ Brands closed nine restaurants, four company-owned and five franchised, while opening only five new ones. Beloved Steakhouse Chain, More Than 30 Years Old, Closing Locations – Men’s Journal +2
This isn’t a brand in freefall, though. The closures are part of a deliberate turnaround strategy following the company’s 2025 Q3 financial report, aimed at cutting losses and doubling down on locations that still perform well. Bloomin’ Brands is putting roughly $50 million into refurbishing the roughly 600 remaining Outback locations, with a chunk of that going toward upgraded grill equipment, food quality, and the overall dining experience, targeting completion by 2028. WhatNowFood Republic
A wider pattern across casual dining
Outback isn’t operating in isolation. Black Box Intelligence estimates that 15% of existing restaurants will close in 2026, hitting full-service chains especially hard. Food costs are up roughly a third since 2019, and diners are still watching their budgets closely, which has made it harder for sit-down steak concepts to justify their price points against cheaper fast-casual alternatives.
The industry has seen this movie before, just with different brands in the lead role. Steak & Ale, once a 280-location chain that pioneered the salad bar in casual dining, went fully out of business before being revived by new owners in 2015. Chains like Ponderosa and Bonanza, which combined once had hundreds of locations, now have only 21 remaining in the U.S., while Ground Round has shrunk from roughly 200 locations at its 1980s peak to a single restaurant in Columbus, Ohio. Sizzler has followed a similar downward path.
Why beef is the real culprit
Almost every closure story traces back to the same problem: the cost of meat itself. The USDA reported the average retail price of beef hit a record $9.64 per pound in April 2026, up about 13% from a year earlier. Ground beef wasn’t spared either, averaging around $6.75 to $6.90 a pound at retail in the spring of 2026, with steak cuts running roughly $12.80 a pound, up 16% year over year.
The supply problem behind those prices is structural, not seasonal. Years of drought and expensive feed pushed ranchers to sell down their herds rather than rebuild them, and because it takes roughly two years to bring a calf to slaughter weight, most analysts don’t expect meaningful relief until 2028 or 2029. The USDA has forecast beef and veal prices will climb another 12.1% for all of 2026.
Even chains that aren’t closing locations are feeling it. Darden’s CFO told investors that “near-record beef costs have sustained longer than we anticipated,” calling it a significant headwind for brands like LongHorn Steakhouse. When a company the size of Darden is flagging beef costs on an earnings call, it’s a sign the pressure runs across the entire casual-steakhouse category, not just the chains making headlines for shutting doors.
What this means for diners
For now, most of the closures, Outback’s included, are targeted rather than existential. Underperforming locations are being cut so the stronger ones can get reinvestment. But if beef prices stay elevated into 2027 and 2028 as USDA forecasts suggest, more brands may face the choice of Steak & Ale, Ponderosa, and Ground Round already made: shrink dramatically, sell off the brand, or disappear from most of the country entirely.
