A Texas Roadhouse restaurant -- which serves a dinner-only menu of steaks, ribs, chicken and salads -- is planning to open in January near Miller Hill Mall in Duluth.
The 250-seat restaurant and small bar will set up shop south of the Home Depot and the Olive Garden on Mall Drive. The restaurant has received approval from the city's planning division, and site development of the new 7,000-square-foot building will begin within weeks.
New building construction in Duluth this year is not "a boom or a bust," said Bill Taplett, an official in the city's building safety office. Taplett said large projects such as the Duluth Entertainment Convention Center expansion have overshadowed a slight decrease in smaller projects such as residential remodeling.
Texas Roadhouse will hire about 80 employees, with about 30 full-time.
The restaurant will feature a butcher to provide fresh cuts of meat, fresh bread and sides made from scratch, said spokesman Travis Doster. The most popular item is a six-ounce steak with the choice of two sides and a drink for about $14, Doster said.
ADVERTISEMENT
Texas Roadhouse, which began in 1993, has 325 restaurants in 46 states, including 10 in Wisconsin and one in Minnesota in the Minneapolis suburb of Coon Rapids.
"We looked at other cities in Minnesota, but we thought Duluth was a good fit," Doster said.
The restaurant will have a casual theme with country music playing and servers often line dancing to the tunes.
"It will be an energetic, lively atmosphere," Doster said.
Check out reader comments on the Twin Ports Business blog.
