It may be the end of an era after Outback Steakhouse made changes and cutbacks over the past year.
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Bloomin’s Brands Inc., the parent company of Outback Steakhouse, announced in early 2024 that it would be closing 41 locations across its portfolio.
“Closing restaurants is never easy,” Bloomin’ Brands shared in a statement to USA Today. “This was a business decision that has no reflection on the staff or their service. Many team members will have the opportunity to transfer to open positions at another restaurant.”
The company then stated that those employees who did not transfer would receive severance pay.
“We periodically review our asset base and, in our latest review, we made the decision to close 41 underperforming locations,” David Deno, the CEO of Bloomin’ Brands, also shared during an earnings call at the time, per Nation’s Restaurant News. “The majority of these restaurants were older assets with leases from the ’90s and early 2000s.”
Deno further stated that the decision “considered a variety of factors” in the closures, including sales and traffic-trade areas, as well as “the investment that would have to be made to improve the restaurants.”
However, Bloomin’ Brands appeared to be prepared to bounce back, with plans to open more restaurants.
“Despite this initiative, our confidence in our portfolio remains high,” he said. “As we play to open 40 to 45 new restaurants across the system in 2024.
Although the closures continued into 2025, other noticeable financial decisions have been made at Outback Steakhouses.
FinanceBuzz.com reported that, along with the restaurant closures, Outback Steakhouse menus have slimmed down, with fan-favorite dishes no longer available.
There was also an increase in prices for signature dishes, as well as “mediocre sides” and shrinking serving sizes. The restaurant patrons have noticed an inconsistency in the food, with the steaks having a different taste.
“They changed the way steaks are cooked,” one patron claimed on Reddit. “They used panini-style grills with preset cooking times instead of a flat top grill.”
The patron further claimed, “They would put a steak inside, press a button on the top for how it’s cooked, and then wait. It took them seven minutes to ‘cook’ a well-done steak.”