Why Your Texas Roadhouse Meals Are Getting More Expensive

These days, with many people regularly checking which grocery store chain in their area is the cheapest, it's easy to forget that food costs have gone up for everyone in recent years. That includes restaurants like Texas Roadhouse, where folks can get a fresh-cut steak for a price that's often more affordable than its competitors. Although revenue was up 3% for the company by the end of 2025, income fell by a whopping 30%. Part of the decline was a result of rising food costs, and in an effort to balance the scales, the chain raised menu prices by almost 2% at the beginning of the second quarter this year.

That amount may not seem like much, and to a customer, the difference won't result in sticker shock. But for corporate chains, working in the margins to access what seem like minimal gains can increase income significantly. If Texas Roadhouse had just 10 stores and each made $150,000 in a week, which is roughly what the average store made weekly as of September 2025, that approximate 2% increase equates to $342,000 more in revenue annually across those 10 locations. Considering Texas Roadhouse has 749 restaurants worldwide, a near-2% rise in menu prices should be a major boon to its bottom line.

Texas Roadhouse is performing a balancing act of sorts by increasing prices to combat rising food costs without drawing the ire of its customers. However, that's not the only way the chain is attempting to boost income. One big change coming to Texas Roadhouse in 2026 is the continued expansion of digital kitchen technology.

In 2025, the chain began utilizing digital kitchen technologies aimed at allowing stores to pump out more to-go orders efficiently. To-go orders accounted for roughly 14% of overall sales by the end of the third quarter in 2025. With no signs indicating that trend is dying down, the company is continuing to plan for the future by improving technology that helps it complete to-go orders without negatively affecting dine-in customers.

Another thing people can expect to see in 2026 is more Texas Roadhouse locations. The chain plans to expand its footprint internationally with six new locations. Domestic expansion is also in the works. Texas Roadhouse also owns Bubba's 33 and Jaggers, and between the three restaurant themes, the company expects to have 35 new stores by the end of the year. If you've always wished you had a Texas Roadhouse in your neck of the woods, keep your fingers crossed that one of those new stores is coming to your area.