RESTAURANTS
WITH GREEN LOCATION, TEXAS ROADHOUSE GETS A CASE STUDY IN SUSTAINABILITY
The new Greeneville, Tenn., restaurant is a model for the casual-dining chain’s potential eco-friendly future.
SAM OCHES, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, NATION'S RESTAURANT NEWS S ome restaurants that enjoy positive sales and traffic growth quarter after quarter might follow the adage, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” And for the most part, Texas Roadhouse — the No. 2 full-service brand in the U.S. by sales, hav - ing closed 2023 with nearly $5 billion at 638 locations, according to Technomic — follows that path, with very few changes to its menu and service structure over the course of its 32 years in business. But there’s at least one change that the Louisville, Ky.-based casual chain is exploring that could make a big impact on the business: sustainable operations. And the company took a very strategic, measured approach to that evolution by recently opening a sustainability-focused restaurant in Greeneville, Tenn., that can serve as a case study for sustainable innovation. Travis Doster, chief communications officer at Texas Roadhouse, said that with so much innovation in sustainable equipment, tech, and tools, the company wanted a better look at what might make sense for the stores — without committing to a wholesale change that would require a huge upfront investment. “So we said, ‘You know what, why don't we just open a restaurant and [get] proof of concept and put some different pieces of equipment and different items in there and just see what happens and see if it really does save energy?’” Doster said.
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SUSTAINABILITY OUTLOOK 2025
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