Key Takeaways
- Texas Roadhouse confirmed Kenneth Card received the wrong steak once at its Forsyth, Illinois, location but said it could not verify his claim that the mix-up happened three times.
- The chain said staff replaced the sirloin with Card’s eight-ounce Dallas Filet, which costs $29.99 compared with $19.49 for the sirloin, and stressed that it double-checks orders before they leave the kitchen.
- Card’s TikTok drew more than 31,000 views as Texas Roadhouse also pushed back on separate viral food-tampering allegations, saying its investigation found “no credible evidence.”
Texas Roadhouse is pushing back after an Illinois customer claimed he was served a cheaper steak instead of the filet mignon he ordered on three separate visits. The chain confirmed that Kenneth Card received the wrong cut once at its Forsyth location but said it could not verify his claim that the mix-up happened repeatedly.
“While we can’t confirm this happened on multiple occasions, when Mr. Card brought this to our attention, it was made right by our team,” a Texas Roadhouse spokesperson told People.
The company said restaurant management replaced the incorrect steak with the filet Card had ordered as soon as employees became aware of the problem.
Texas Roadhouse also defended the safeguards used to catch incorrect orders before they reach the dining room. “We have processes in place to double-check food for quality and accuracy before it leaves the kitchen,” the spokesperson said. “If a guest receives the wrong item or is charged incorrectly, we encourage them to let a member of our team know so we can make it right.”
The statement followed Card’s Oct. 5 TikTok video, which has accumulated more than 31,000 views. Card said he ordered an eight-ounce Dallas Filet but received a sirloin, which costs considerably less. According to the Forsyth restaurant’s online menu, the filet costs $29.99, while an eight-ounce sirloin costs $19.49—a $10.50 difference.
Card, a former restaurant cook, argued that his experience handling meat let him identify the substitution by its texture. “I know [the] difference between a ribeye, a filet, a T-bone, New York strip, all that crap,” he said. “Whenever I go out to eat, I know what I get.”
According to Card, employees replaced the steak the first time he received the wrong cut. He said he did not complain when it allegedly happened again but asked for a manager after what he described as a third mix-up.
On that visit, Card said a server took the steak back for another opinion before confirming that it was a sirloin. The replacement filet was later boxed for him to take home.
The chain’s response comes as Texas Roadhouse continues to face heightened online scrutiny over a separate viral allegation involving its restaurants. Social media posts previously claimed that white restaurant workers participated in a private Facebook group where members discussed contaminating food ordered by Black customers.
No specific employee, location, or confirmed food-tampering incident was identified.
Texas Roadhouse said that an investigation found “no credible evidence of food tampering” and that outside sources also indicated the story was an online hoax.
The company has since hired a third-party firm to investigate the source and possible motives behind what it called “unfounded allegations.”
