Olive Garden Dethroned As United States' Top Casual Dining Restaurant By This Thriving Chain

Someone tell Olive Garden there's a new sheriff in town. While the Italian-inspired restaurant earned a long-standing place in the hearts of diners thanks to promotions like Olive Garden's never-ending pasta bowl, Restaurant Business reports that Texas Roadhouse has usurped the chain as the leading American casual dining establishment. In 2024, Texas Roadhouse experienced a sales increase of nearly 15%, along with the debut of 26 new restaurants. By comparison, Olive Garden's sales grew by less than 1% that same year, although the restaurant did open 15 new locations.

Worth noting is that the Italian chain has held the top spot among casual establishments for six years prior, as diners can't seem to get enough of Olive Garden's popular menu items (which we've ranked from worst to best). Texas Roadhouse's ongoing success is at least partially attributed to the establishment's strong standing immediately following the pandemic, which allowed it to hold fast at a time when other restaurants were struggling to keep up amidst shut-down orders. Overall, steakhouses seemed to have had a stellar year in 2024. Consider that LongHorn Steakhouse, which is owned by Olive Garden's parent company Darden Restaurants, experienced a 7.2% sales growth that same year.

Eating out has become extremely expensive over the years thanks to increasing costs attributed to inflation and other factors. These increases have many consumers concerned about financial instability, which in turn has caused them to avoid dining out. While Olive Garden does have some affordable items on its menu, many of the pasta dishes cost $20 or more, which might not be a reasonable expenditure for many people in today's financial climate.

As for Texas Roadhouse, the chain's menu items certainly aren't cheap, but consumers often consider visits to steakhouses as special experiences, which could entice them to pay more than they'd be willing to dish out for pasta. Additionally, prices at Texas Roadhouse are far more favorable than at other steakhouses, which makes the restaurant an appealing option for many consumers. With even more financial instability on the horizon, it's unclear what will happen to casual dining restaurants like Olive Garden. However, based off of the chain's limited growth in 2024, Olive Garden shouldn't be counted out just yet.