{{Short description|American restaurant chain}} {{Use mdy dates|date=January 2019}} {{Infobox company | name = Ruth's Chris Steak House | logo = Ruths Chris Logo.svg | trade_name = Ruth's Chris Steak House | type = Division | traded_as = | foundation = {{start date and age|1927}} in Broad Street, New Orleans, Louisiana | former_name = Chris' Steak House (1927–1976) | genre = Fine dining | location_city = | location_country = | location = Winter Park, Florida | locations = 100+ steakhouses | founder = Chris Matulich (1927, namesake)<br>Ruth Fertel (1965, namesake) | key_people = Rik Jenkins (President) | area_served = United States (including Puerto Rico) <br> Canada <br> Aruba <br> Panama <br> Mexico <br> Singapore <br> China <br> Indonesia <br> Japan <br> Taiwan <br> Hong Kong <br> Philippines | industry = Restaurants | products = Food service | services = | revenue = US$468 million {{small|(FY 2019)}}<ref>{{cite news |last1=Darby |first1=Luke |title=Ruth's Chris Made $468 Million in Revenue but Gobbled Up $20 Million in Small Business Relief |url=https://www.gq.com/story/ruths-chris-small-business-steakhouse |work=GQ |date=April 20, 2020 |language=en}}</ref> | operating_income = | net_income = | assets = | equity = | num_employees = 5,000+ (''2020'')<ref name=wsj/><ref name="hoovers.com">{{cite web|url=http://hoovers.com/company/Ruths_Hospitality_Group_Inc/cthsif-1.html |title=Ruth's Hospitality Group, Inc. | Company profile from Hoover's |publisher=Hoovers.com |date=October 21, 2010 |access-date=January 25, 2012}}</ref> | parent = Darden Restaurants <!-- previously Ruth's Hospitality Group --> | divisions = | subsid = | caption = | homepage = {{URL|www.ruthschris.com}} | dissolved = | footnotes = | intl = }} [[File:Ruth's Chris Steak House, Charlotte.jpg|thumb|Ruth's Chris Steak House in Charlotte, North Carolina]] '''Darden Concepts, Inc.''' doing business as '''Ruth's Chris Steak House''', is a chain of over 100 steakhouses across the United States, Canada and Mexico. On May 22, 2008, the company underwent rebranding and became part of Ruth's Hospitality Group after its acquisition of Mitchell's Fish Market.<ref>[http://columbus.bizjournals.com/columbus/stories/2008/03/24/daily28.html?ana=yfcpc Ruth's Chris vying to change name], First of Columbus, March 27, 2008</ref> The group's headquarters are in Winter Park, Florida. Darden Restaurants later acquired the chain.
== History ==
=== The original Chris' Steak House (1927–1965) === Chris' Steak House was founded on February 27, 1927, by New Orleans entrepreneur Chris Matulich.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune_archive/1998/07/06/244825/index.htm|title=So Just What Does 'Ruth's Chris' Mean?|work=Fortune|access-date=July 11, 2019|date=July 6, 1998|author=Anne Faircloth}}{{dead link|date=May 2026|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> It was located at 1100 North Broad Street near the Fair Grounds Race Course, seated 60 people, and had no parking lot. During Matulich's 38-year management, the business was sold six times. Each time it was sold the business failed and Matulich bought the restaurant back cheaply from the purchasers.<ref>Fortune Magazine, October 2003</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Ruth's Chris' Steak House History|url=http://www.fundinguniverse.com/company-histories/ruth-s-chris-steak-house-history/|work=Funding Universe|access-date=February 4, 2013}}</ref> In 2022, the building became the focus of a historic preservation dispute, when its new owner demolished the iconic wraparound terracotta-tile awning without the proper permits.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Schackai, III |first=John L. |date=July 18, 2022 |title=Viewpoint: Plundering Of Original Ruth's Chris Steak House Reveals Problems With Partial-Control Historic Districts |work=Mid-City Messenger |publication-place=New Orleans, La. |url=https://midcitymessenger.com/2022/07/18/viewpoint-plundering-of-original-ruths-chris-steak-house-reveals-problems-with-partial-control-historic-districts/ |access-date=August 7, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Sledge |first=Matt |date=August 6, 2022 |title=Unpermitted demolition at original Ruth's Chris Steak House sparks preservation debate |work=The Times-Picayune/New Orleans Advocate |url=https://www.nola.com/news/politics/article_f58f7552-150e-11ed-ad9e-6fb5dd0b7d1f.html |access-date=August 7, 2022}}</ref>
=== Ownership by Ruth Fertel, 1965–1999 ===
==== Acquisition, 1965 ====
Ruth Fertel was a divorced single mother who needed money to send her teenage sons to college. Ignoring the advice of her banker, lawyer, and friends, Ruth purchased the restaurant in 1965.<ref>{{cite web|title=Ruth Fertel: A Pioneer in the Restaurant Industryauthor= Katie Bloor & Linda J Shea|url=http://people.umass.edu/q4/0%200%20Profiles/20-1%20Ruth%20Fertel%20paper.doc|work=HTM 591S – Foundations in Hospitality and Tourism Management|publisher=University of Massachusetts Amherst|access-date=February 4, 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150402103935/http://people.umass.edu/q4/0%200%20Profiles/20-1%20Ruth%20Fertel%20paper.doc|archive-date=April 2, 2015}}</ref> She used her brother's restaurant, Sig's Antique Restaurant in Port Sulphur, Louisiana, along with family recipes to lay the foundation for her restaurant.<ref>{{cite web|title=The BP Oil Spill and the Bounty of Plaquemines Parish|author= Randy Fertel|url=http://www.gastronomica.org/bp-oil-spill-bounty-plaquemines-parish/|work=Gastronomica The Journal of Critical Food Studies|date= February 9, 2011|access-date=January 2, 2015}}</ref> She initially planned to raise just $18,000 ({{Inflation|US|18000|1965|fmt=eq|r=-2}}{{Inflation/fn|US}}) to cover the purchase price, until it was pointed out to her that she would need an additional $4,000 (equivalent to ${{Inflation|US|4000|1965|r=-3|fmt=c}}{{Inflation/fn|US}}) to cover the cost of renovations and food.<ref>{{cite web|title=Steamroller – Ruth Fertel|url=http://capitalistchicks.com/?q=node/527|work=Capitalist Chicks|access-date=February 4, 2013}}</ref> On her first day, May 24, 1965, she sold 35 steaks at $5 each (equivalent to ${{Inflation|US|5|1965|fmt=c|r=-1}}{{Inflation/fn|US}}).<ref name="Her Life Is The Stuff Of Legend">{{cite web|title=Her Life Is The Stuff Of Legend|url=http://www.fertel.com/images/about_ruth.pdf|access-date=February 4, 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131024163101/http://www.fertel.com/images/about_ruth.pdf|archive-date=October 24, 2013}}</ref>
Fertel personally took a hand in every part of the business. For many years, Chris Steak House was the only upscale restaurant in New Orleans with an all-female wait staff.<ref name="Her Life Is The Stuff Of Legend"/>
==== Name change to ''Ruth's Chris Steak House'', 1976 ====
In early 1976, shortly after Fertel signed a new ten-year lease on the restaurant, a fire destroyed the building. Fertel had recently acquired a second property nearby to rent out as a party space. Within seven days, she had relocated the restaurant to its new location a few blocks away at 711 North Broad Street and re-opened it, expanding to 160 seats in the process.<ref name="Her Life Is The Stuff Of Legend"/> The sales agreement with Matulich prevented her from using the original name at any other address, so she named the new restaurant ''Ruth's Chris Steak House'' in order to keep some continuity with the previous location.<ref>McDowell, Bill, "Ruth's Chris Steak House," ''Restaurants & Institutions'', August 1, 1994, 54.</ref> She admitted later to ''Fortune Magazine'' that "I've always hated the name, but we've always managed to work around it."<ref>{{cite web|title=Ruth Fertel of Steakhouse Fame Is Dead at 75|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2002/04/18/business/ruth-fertel-of-steakhouse-fame-is-dead-at-75.html|work=NY Times|date= April 18, 2002|access-date=February 4, 2013}}</ref>
==== Expansion and franchising, 1976–1999 ==== The first franchised restaurant was opened in 1977 by a loyal customer, Thomas J. "T. J." Moran (c. 1931–2015), in Baton Rouge, who went on to open several more franchised Ruth's Chris locations, TJ Ribs, and Ruffino's restaurants<ref>{{cite web|url=http://theadvocate.com/news/12405583-123/philanthropist-restaurateur-tj-moran-dies|title=Philanthropist, founder of TJ Ribs, Ruffino's restaurants T.J. Moran dies at age 84, family friend says: Restaurateur funded medical outreach|publisher=Baton Rouge Advocate|author=Bill Lodge|access-date=May 19, 2015|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150520155406/http://theadvocate.com/news/12405583-123/philanthropist-restaurateur-tj-moran-dies|archive-date=May 20, 2015}}</ref> through his company T.J. Moran Associates. Fertel noted, "All our franchisees were people who had eaten at one time or another in one of our restaurants. We never looked for franchisees. They came to us".<ref name="Her Life Is The Stuff Of Legend"/> The chain expanded rapidly over the next two decades, with 66 locations in the U.S. and overseas by mid-1998,<ref>{{cite web|title=So Just What Does 'Ruth's Chris' Mean?|url=https://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune_archive/1998/07/06/244825/|work=CNN Money|date=July 6, 1998|access-date=February 19, 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130409095426/http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune_archive/1998/07/06/244825/|archive-date=April 9, 2013}}</ref><ref>"Never Give Up: Ruth's Chris Steak House," ''Entrepreneur Magazine'', September 1997, 81.</ref> and achieving over $200 million in annual revenues.<ref name="Chicago Tribune">{{cite web|title=Madison Dearborn Finds Ruth's Chris To Be Tasty Morsel|url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/1999/07/20/madison-dearborn-finds-ruths-chris-to-be-tasty-morsel/|work=Chicago Tribune|date= July 20, 1999|access-date=February 19, 2013}}</ref>
=== Acquisition by Madison Dearborn 1999–2005 === In 1999, Fertel, then 72, developed lung cancer. She sold a 79.3 percent interest in the chain in August 1999 to investment company Madison Dearborn Partners of Chicago, remaining as a shareholder until her death in 2002.<ref name="Chicago Tribune"/>
In that period, the chain expanded to 86 restaurants, including 10 overseas locations. Revenues fell to $167.8 million in 2003, before rising again to $192.2 million in 2004.<ref>{{cite web|title=Ruth's Chris IPO to raise $235M|url=http://www.bizjournals.com/tampabay/stories/2005/04/25/daily12.html|work=Tampa Bay Business Journal|date= April 25, 2005|access-date=February 19, 2013}}</ref>
=== Public company, 2005 onward ===
On August 9, 2005, under President and CEO Craig Miller, Ruth's Chris Steak House became a public company following a successful IPO valuing the company at $235 million and an increase of 15 percent in first-day trading.<ref>{{cite web|title=Ruth's Chris Steak IPO sizzles|url=http://articles.marketwatch.com/2005-08-09/news/30713731_1_stock-market-debut-friedman-billings-renaissance-capital|work=Wall Street Journal|date=August 9, 2005|access-date=February 19, 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130411073426/http://articles.marketwatch.com/2005-08-09/news/30713731_1_stock-market-debut-friedman-billings-renaissance-capital|archive-date=April 11, 2013}}</ref>
==== Relocation to Florida, 2005 ====
In late August 2005 Hurricane Katrina devastated Greater New Orleans (see: Effect of Hurricane Katrina on New Orleans), and the chain moved its corporate headquarters to Heathrow, Florida. Like most businesses in the city, two of the chain's locations in the New Orleans area were forced to close because of the storm.<ref>{{cite news |last=Dash |first=Craig |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/09/business/09ruth.html?ex=1283918400&en=eed85083a22295e3&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland&emc=rss|title=Ruth Built the Steakhouse. Katrina Intervened |work=New York Times|date=September 5, 2005 |access-date=April 22, 2007}}{{closed access}}</ref> The Metairie location has since reopened.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Best Steak House in Metairie, LA {{!}} Ruth's Chris|url=https://www.ruthschris.com/restaurant-locations/metairie/|access-date=2020-07-22|website=www.ruthschris.com|language=en}}</ref> Members of the Fertel family, particularly Ruth's son Randy, were bitterly opposed to the move. Amid much criticism by local officials and media, and on the heels of the announcement by Morton's that it would reopen its own New Orleans branch,<ref>{{cite news |last=Fitzmorris |first=Tim |url=http://www.neworleanscitybusiness.com/viewStory.cfm?recID=14865 |title=Morton's beefs up city's diminished steak offerings |publisher=New Orleans City Business |date=February 27, 2006 |access-date=April 22, 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928075605/http://www.neworleanscitybusiness.com/viewStory.cfm?recID=14865 |archive-date=September 28, 2007 }}</ref> the corporate offices announced that, due to extensive damage, the old flagship location on Broad Street would be permanently closed and donated to charity.<ref>[http://www.ruthschris.com/news/details.php?id=43 Press Release] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061231005420/http://www.ruthschris.com/news/details.php?id=43 |date=December 31, 2006 }}, Ruth's Chris Steakhouse, Inc., November 18, 2005.</ref> Tulane University was the recipient of the gift, remodeling and reopening the site in 2012 as the Ruth U. Fertel/Tulane Community Health Center.<ref>{{cite news |last=Rickard|first=Mary|url=http://blog.nola.com/new_orleans/2012/04/fertel_tulane_clinic_moves_to.html|title=Fertel Tulane health clinic moves to new home in Mid-City|publisher=Times-Picayune|date=April 25, 2012|access-date=November 26, 2013}}</ref> In May 2008, Ruth's Chris reopened in New Orleans and is centrally located downtown in Harrah's Hotel.{{citation needed|date=March 2026}}
In 2011, the corporate headquarters was relocated to its current location in Winter Park, Florida.<ref>{{cite web|title=Ruth's Hospitality Group moving to Winter Park|url=https://www.orlandosentinel.com/2011/07/20/ruths-hospitality-group-moving-to-winter-park/|work=Orlando Sentinel, July 20, 2011|date=July 20, 2011 |access-date=February 19, 2013}}</ref>
==== Expansion ==== In February 2008, the company purchased the Mitchell's Fish Restaurant and Columbus Fish Market brands from Cameron Mitchell Restaurants for $92 million.<ref>{{cite web|title=Ruth's Chris Completes Acquisition of Mitchell's|url=http://www.seafoodsource.com/newsarticledetail.aspx?id=1336|work=Seafood Source, 20 February 2008|access-date=February 19, 2013}}</ref> As the recession began to bite, the acquisition was not initially successful. The stock price fell from $22 in 2006 to under $5 and company debts rose to $185 million. CFO Tom Pennison resigned, and CEO Craig Miller was ousted by the board to be replaced by Mike O'Donnell.<ref>{{cite web|title=GOP Senate hopeful defends moving Ruth's Chris HQ here after Katrina|url=https://www.orlandosentinel.com/2011/09/07/gop-senate-hopeful-defends-moving-ruths-chris-hq-here-after-katrina/|work=Orlando Sentinel, 7 Sept, 2011|date=September 7, 2011 |access-date=February 19, 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Former Ruth's Chris CEO Craig Miller joins Republican field for U.S. Senate|url=http://www.tampabay.com/news/politics/national/former-ruths-chris-ceo-craig-miller-joins-republican-field-for-us-senate/1180051|work=Tampa Bay Times|date=July 12, 2011|access-date=February 19, 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120129001303/http://www.tampabay.com/news/politics/national/former-ruths-chris-ceo-craig-miller-joins-republican-field-for-us-senate/1180051|archive-date=January 29, 2012}}</ref> O'Donnell restructured and rebranded the company, creating Ruth's Hospitality Group (RHGI) as the parent entity in May 2008, allowing each of the individual restaurant brands to have their own identity within the group.{{citation needed|date=March 2026}} The current President and COO is Kevin Toomy, formerly owner and president of the Goldcoast Seafood Grill in South Florida.{{citation needed|date=March 2026}}
In February 2013, RHGI reported that fourth quarter sales at Ruth's Chris restaurants were up by 7.0 percent on the previous year, representing the 11th consecutive quarterly increase in sales.<ref name="phx.corporate-ir.net">{{cite web|title=Ruth's Hospitality Group, Inc. Reports Full Year and Fourth Quarter 2012 Financial Results|url=http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=190038&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1785522&highlight=|access-date=February 19, 2013}}</ref>
Ruth's Chris continues to add new restaurants, most recently in Harrah's casino in Las Vegas in January 2013, after the previous Las Vegas location on Flamingo closed in 2009.<ref>{{cite web|title=Ruth's Chris Rumbles Back into Las Vegas|date=January 28, 2013 |url=http://vegas.eater.com/archives/2013/01/28/ruths-chris-rumbles-back-into-las-vegas.php|access-date=February 19, 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Ruth's Chris on Flamingo closing|url=http://www.lvrj.com/news/52756352.html|work=Las Vegas Review-Journal, 8 August 2009|access-date=February 19, 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Ruth's Chris Steak House Expands Global Presence to China|url=http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=190038&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1779389&highlight=|access-date=February 19, 2013|archive-date=November 3, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131103120309/http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=190038&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1779389&highlight=|url-status=dead}}</ref> a new restaurant in Denver, Colorado, and four or five new franchised locations.<ref name="phx.corporate-ir.net"/> In 2015, it was announced that the restaurant was expanding into Albuquerque, New Mexico.<ref>{{cite news|author=Jessica Dyer|url=http://www.abqjournal.com/579780/abqnewsseeker/ruths-chris-steak-house-coming-to-albuquerque.html|title=Ruth's Chris Steak House coming to Albuquerque |publisher=Albuquerque Journal |date=May 6, 2015}}</ref> In 2016, Ruth's Chris opened its restaurant in Odenton, Maryland.{{citation needed|date=March 2026}} In 2018, Ruth's Chris opened at the Silver Legacy in Reno, Nevada which replaced Sterling's Seafood Steakhouse that had been in business from 1995 to 2018.{{citation needed|date=March 2026}}
The newest Ruth's Chris location in West Des Moines, Iowa, opened in August 2023.{{citation needed|date=March 2026}}
====COVID-19 pandemic==== During the coronavirus pandemic, Ruth's Hospitality Group received $20 million in forgivable loans intended for small businesses from the Paycheck Protection Program, leading to widespread backlash.<ref name=wsj>{{cite web |last1=Scott |first1=Charity L. |title=Ruth's Chris Steak House Gets $20 Million From Coronavirus Aid Program |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/ruths-chris-steak-house-gets-20-million-from-coronavirus-aid-program-11586895864 |website=The Wall Street Journal |date=April 14, 2020 |access-date=17 April 2020}}</ref> The funds were distributed as part of the government's $2.2 trillion CARES Act, which set limits of $10 million per entity. On April 17, 2020, two of the company's subsidiaries each received $10 million.<ref name=fox>{{cite web |last1= Genovese |first1= Daniella |title=Ruth's Chris Steak House receives $20M in coronavirus relief |website= Fox Business |date= April 15, 2020 |url=https://www.foxbusiness.com/money/coronavirus-relief-ruth-chris-steak-house |access-date=17 April 2020}}</ref><ref name=wsj/> These loans were meant for companies with 500 or fewer employees while Ruth's Chris employs more than 5,700.<ref name=wsj/> On April 24, 2020, it was reported that the loans would be repaid to the Treasury Department following the public controversy.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.ktvu.com/news/ruths-chris-steakhouse-owner-to-return-20m-in-small-business-loans|title=Ruth's Chris Steakhouse owner to return $20M in small business loans|date=2020-04-24|website=FOX Business|language=en-US|access-date=2020-04-25}}</ref>
===Acquisition by Darden Restaurants (2023 – )=== On May 3, 2023, Darden Restaurants announced it was acquiring Ruth's Hospitality Group Inc. for $21.50 per share in an all-cash transaction with an equity value of approximately $715 million.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Lucas |first1=Amelia |title=Olive Garden owner Darden Restaurants buys Ruth's Chris Steak House for $715 million |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2023/05/03/olive-garden-owner-darden-restaurants-buys-ruths-chris-steak-house.html |access-date=3 May 2023 |work=CNBC |date=3 May 2023 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite press release |title=Darden Restaurants to Acquire Ruth's Hospitality Group in $715 Million Transaction |url=https://investor.darden.com/news/news-details/2023/Darden-Restaurants-to-Acquire-Ruths-Hospitality-Group-in-715-Million-Transaction/default.aspx |access-date=2023-05-03 |website=investor.darden.com |language=en-US}}</ref> The acquisition was completed on June 14.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Ruggless |first1=Ron |title=Darden completes Ruth's Chris acquisition |url=https://www.nrn.com/mergers-acquisitions/darden-completes-ruth-s-chris-acquisition |access-date=20 August 2025 |work=Nation's Restaurant News |date=14 June 2023 |language=en}}</ref>
== Lawsuits and discrimination == On multiple occasions and in several jurisdictions, Ruth's Chris has been the target of legal action for its treatment of staff, employees, and customers. In 2011, class action status was granted to female employees in a complaint that charged the company with pay discrimination, fewer promotions, and maintaining a "sexually-charged" environment.<ref name=forbes>{{cite news |last= Casserly |first= Meghan|date=October 19, 2011 |title=Ruth's Chris Hit With Class Action Discrimination Suit |url= https://www.forbes.com/sites/meghancasserly/2011/10/19/ruths-chris-hit-with-class-action-discrimination-suit/#11e9b4ea5a9c|work= Forbes|access-date=October 19, 2019 }}</ref>
In 2017, the company was accused of denying service to black customers, as part of a class action lawsuit. The charges stemmed from a Houston customer who was seated in a different dining area.<ref name=houstonchron>{{cite news |last= Banks |first=Gabrielle |date=February 15, 2017 |title= Burger war: Ruth's Chris accused of denying service to African-American in federal lawsuit|url= https://www.chron.com/news/houston-texas/article/Ruth-s-Chris-accused-of-denying-service-to-10934729.php|work=Houston Chronicle|location= Houston|access-date=February 15, 2019 }}</ref>
== References == {{Reflist|30em}}
== External links == {{Commons category}} * {{Official website|www.ruthschris.com}} * [https://finance.yahoo.com/q/ks?s=RUTH Updated financials from Yahoo! Finance] {{Darden}}{{Restaurants in New Orleans}}
Category:Steakhouses in the United States Category:Companies based in Orange County, Florida Category:Restaurants established in 1965 Category:Madison Dearborn Partners companies Category:Restaurant chains in the United States Category:Restaurant franchises Category:1965 establishments in Louisiana Category:Restaurants in New Orleans Category:Fine dining Category:Winter Park, Florida Category:Darden Restaurants brands Category:Trade name