Sizzler - History

History

The chain was founded in 1958 as Del's Sizzler Family Steak House by Del and Helen Johnson in Culver City, California. The chain is composed of more than 270 locations throughout the U.S. Most of Sizzler's U.S. locations are in the West.

In the late 1970s and early 1980s, Sizzler promoted mainly steak and combination steak dinners with an optional salad bar. The restaurant wanted to give the customer the feel of a full-service restaurant, but at a price just slightly more than that of a fast food chain. To keep costs down, many of the restaurants had their own in-house meat cutters where they would cut their own steaks and grind their own hamburgers. Heading into the mid 1980s, competition began to appear from other casual-dining restaurants. After promotions such as all-you-can-eat fried shrimp, the chain decided to expand its popular salad bar into a full buffet promoted as the "Buffet Court." Patrons began to use the buffet as their meal instead of an add-on to an entree. In response, Sizzler began to lower the quality of food in other areas of the menu. Customers took notice and Sizzler's reputation suffered. It was a classic example of an arms race between Sizzler and their customers, with strategies and countermeasures to gain the advantage, but in the end both sides were losers. Sizzler filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy in 1996 ("primarily to void leases"), closed 140 of 215 stores and changed their logo. They reemerged from chapter 11 in 1997. During the late 1990s, new management upgraded the quality of food but also increased prices. Sizzler's revenue flat-lined, and 21 locations were closed in 2001. Sizzler began an image makeover around 2002. A new restaurant concept was created featuring a lighter and more open dining room. The changes were accompanied with a new menu. In an effort to return to their roots, steaks, seafood, and the salad bar are now being reemphasized while the all-you-can-eat buffet is being phased out.

Sizzler was sold to Pacific Equity Partners, an Australian-based investment firm, in 2005. In January 2008, Sizzler announced it was planning to take action against the Multi-State Lottery Association (MUSL) of Urbandale, Iowa, over the use of the name The Sizzler (Hot Lotto).

In June 2011, it was announced that Sizzler USA, a USA management group led by the Sizzler CEO, would buy the restaurant chain from Pacific Equity Partners. The headquarters initially remained in Culver City, California where the chain was founded, but moved to Mission Viejo, California in 2012.

Sizzler has launched its "ZZ" food truck as a way to expand sales and market test new dishes.