Steak houses seem to be growing in appeal every year. Some of the biggest restaurateurs, like Wolfgang Puck, Emeril Lagasse and Charlie Palmer are opening high-end steakhouses around the country. To take advantage of this popularity, invest in a franchise steak restaurant that is popular, well known, and serves a high-quality menu that will draw in the crowds and keep them coming back for more.

This steak houses industry overview will give you some ideas about choosing a franchise that's right for you and your budget. When you choose your steak restaurant franchise, you'll have some choices to consider before your narrow down your possible picks. Some things to think about:

1. Do you meet the minimum requirements for your steakhouse franchises?

2. Should I join a restaurant association?

3. Do you know the laws, regulations, and health agencies that regulate these laws for your steakhouse restaurant?

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Choose steakhouse chains with requirements you can meet or exceed

All steak franchises have minimum qualifications for their owners, including minimum net worth, educational background, business experience, and specific steakhouse industry experience. The steak house chains you choose may have some different requirements, but most of them are industry standards. If you don't meet the requirements, chances are you won't be able to open the franchise steak restaurant of your dreams, so choose your chain steak houses wisely before you enter into franchise negotiations.

I recommend: Montana Mike's Steakhouse franchise offers some of the lowest royalties and franchise fees of all the steakhouse chains and they offer customers good value for their food dollar, too. Sizzler is one of the largest steak restaurant chains in the country, and they offer a detailed look into their franchising opportunities at their website.

Join restaurant associations to gain greater knowledge of the industry and other restaurant chains

To get an idea of what it's like to own and run steakhouse chains, try joining a regional or statewide restaurant association. You can mingle with other restaurateurs, learn more about the business, and assess the types of restaurants popular in your area. You'll learn more about everything from locating purveyors to hiring staff and creating the perfect menu.

I recommend: The National Restaurant Association offers statewide associations where you can meet locally with other restaurant owners and find suppliers, too. You can find an accredited franchiser with the American Association of Franchisees & Dealers, and they support franchisees and their issues for members.

Learn more about state and local health regulations before you purchase steakhouse chain restaurants

The food industry has to abide by laws and regulations that pass many other industries by, and you need to be sure your staff is familiar with them. In fact, in many states, someone with a health department food license has to be on duty at all times. You can find health laws and regulations at a variety of sources, including local and county government sites, and at the FDA website, too.

I recommend: StatePublicHealth.org offers a database of state and local health agencies, just find your state and choose your location. Food-safe-schools, a division of the FDA offers information on food safety for all food service professionals.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Be sure to understand the benefits and support you'll get from your steakhouse franchise. Do they offer help with advertising (co-op advertising) or national advertising? How long is the commitment to the franchiser, and what type of royalties do they charge? Do they offer restaurant training and support after you purchase the franchise? Will they help you select a site or provide financial support for your start up? These are all important questions to understand before you sign on the dotted line for your new steak house franchise.

Steak restaurant chains are some of the most popular eateries in the United States. A steakhouse restaurant attracts a regular clientele, as well as families and friends for special occasions, such as birthdays and anniversaries. Furthermore, steakhouse chains also attract business clientele for dinner meetings and other important events.

There are a number of popular steakhouse franchises throughout the United States that serve high-quality steak entrées at competitive prices. It is important to consider how these steak franchises succeed in their businesses, and to also evaluate the competition and its influence on steakhouses as you shop for franchises.

1. The most popular steakhouse chains offer choice cuts of meat, as well as other alternatives, such as chicken and seafood.

2. Steakhouse restaurant chains are important contributors to the restaurant economy.

3. Despite steady sales, some steak restaurant chains have suffered losses due to weakened economic conditions.

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Evaluate existing steakhouse franchises to identify successes and failures

Many steakhouse chains have flourished, despite high gas prices and generally weak economic conditions. These chain steak houses represent a smaller yet loyal percentage of the restaurant-visiting general public. Steakhouses that offer high quality food and service are likely to remain an American staple for years to come.

I recommend: Outback Steakhouse is a steakhouse franchise with an Australian flair, with a number of popular side dishes for purchase, including the Bloomin' Onion. Ruth's Chris Steakhouse offers higher end steaks that cater to the distinctive customer.

Open a steakhouse restaurant with the help of a consulting firm

Many restaurant consultants are available to provide leadership and guidance in opening a steakhouse restaurant. These consultants develop business plans, negotiate locations, and conduct economic studies to determine if the business will be successful. Restaurant consultants will provide guidance regarding the potential for the steakhouse business in a given location.

I recommend: National Restaurant Consultants provide comprehensive consulting services to promote successful outcomes. The Barfly Group offers similar services, for first time entrepreneurs and experienced owners.

Consider a well-known steakhouse restaurant for business outings and meetings

There are a number of business-friendly steakhouses that are designed to accommodate business professionals for lunches and dinners. These typically serve lower-priced fare and offer salad bar choices, as well as bakery items and a variety of desserts. Have your business dinners there to scope out the menu and atmosphere when considering purchasing a franchise.

I recommend: Ponderosa Steakhouse offers a variety of steak, chicken, and meat choices at prices lower than much of the competition. Golden Corral offers similar fare at their locations, and can accommodate larger groups for business outings.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  When considering a steakhouse restaurant, evaluate the ability of the business to overcome a health-conscious marketplace, including organic and vegetarian food items. Develop a business plan that will ensure that all meat choices and processing tactics are within the guidelines of the Food and Drug Administration.

Steakhouse chains survive and thrive by understanding the latest news and trends in the restaurant business. Discover how to stay ahead of the game and raise profits even when more people are deciding not to dine out by altering menus to reflect current food trends, nutritional ideas and outlooks for the future.

Steak Houses remain popular with a large part of the dining public, because they offer traditional menus, hearty food and beverage options. Keep the customers coming back by:

1. Watching the food industry trends and outlooks.

2. Knowing the nutritional trends for traditional franchise steak restaurant ingredients.

3. Seeking out the latest news and information on steakhouse franchises and other restaurants.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Follow food industry trends for steak houses and related industries

In steak restaurant chains, just like any other restaurant, consumers can be fickle. What they love one day they may decide they hate another, and menus have to keep up with those food trends. Steakhouse chains can sometimes fall into a rut with menu choices, so check out these surveys and other industry outlooks for steak houses news and trends to find out how to tailor your menu to what's hot and what's not.

I recommend: You can stay up-to-date on the latest restaurant and steak house news and trends by visiting the National Restaurant Association press room. Restaurant Hospitality offers front-of-the-house and back-of-the-house trends so you know what to expect in the steak franchises. ProvisonerOnline.com offers a state of the industry report regarding meat and poultry that's extremely valuable for the steak house manager or owner.

Study nutritional trends for your steakhouse ingredients

Many people might think dining out at a steak house isn't the healthiest food option, so it's part of your job to change their minds. Look for information on your menu items, from steaks to seafood and sides, and make sure it's available for your diners. Also, look to what's happening in nutrition trends to help keep your menu exciting and accessible to the most people.

I recommend: Cattlemen's Beef Board and National Cattlemen's Beef Association offer wallet cards and online information on the lean beef cuts available at most steakhouse chain restaurants. Submit your menu items to Healthy Dining for a complete nutritional analysis. They provide healthy menu planning, too.

Find the latest news and information for steakhouses

In a tough economy, less people are eating out, so keeping up on the latest news and information is imperative in a the changing franchise steak restaurant. Look for news that offers information on how to increase sales, including revamping menus, adding on to bar revenue and keeping food costs down to make the most of these news sites.

I recommend: The Cattle Industry Annual Convention & Tradeshow website offers information about the convention as well as informative forums on top issues.  Request a beef price forecast with up to 80 percent accuracy from Market Technologies. This information can help you price your menu and plan in advance.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Just because you operate chain steak houses doesn't mean you don't have control over what's served on the menu. Many of the most popular dishes in steak house chains come from owners, operators, managers and chefs, so if you see a trend developing, or your staff creates a signature dish, share it with your corporate office to add it to the chain's menu.

Almost every town has a steak house, and large cities often host steak house chains or franchises along with locally owned restaurants. When it comes to steak houses, key terms typically mean the same thing from restaurant to restaurant. Whether you've always wondered why the house dressing is different at every steak house, or you want to know what makes a signature dish special, knowing these terms can help you know the best food to order when you're dining out.

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Steak house chains, franchises

When a company owns more than one restaurant operating under the same name with the same menu, it has a steak house chain. While individuals can purchase a franchise and operate according to the franchise agreement, one owner or organization owns a chain and hires managers to run each one.

I recommend: Find more information about steak house chains from Charlie Brown's, a chain that operates in several states. It also owns and operates restaurants that are part of the chain but under different names. Smith & Wollensky, which began with one flagship New York steak house, now has branches in several states.

Entrée

When it comes to steak houses, the word entrée refers to the main part of the meal. Using this definition, an entrée at a steak house could be a large salad with strips of steak served as the main meal. Traditional steak houses also offer popular side dishes, such as creamed spinach, stewed tomatoes and thick-cut steakhouse fries, on an a la carte basis.

I recommend: Epicurious provides a definition for entrée in both America and in parts of Europe.

USDA Prime

The United States Department of Agriculture grades beef with a quality rating. USDA Prime is a select, and the highest, category of beef known for its tender and juicy qualities.

I recommend: Prime Time Top Ten Steakhouses provides an explanation on USDA grading.

Cuts

Steak houses feature various cuts of beef, including Chateaubriand, Delmonico, New York strip, Porterhouse and T-bone steaks and roasted prime rib, along with chops and sometimes seafood or chicken dishes.

I recommend: The Food Paper from Gayot.com lists the most popular steak house cuts and offers a diagram of which part of the animal these come from.

Aged

Many steakhouses use an aging process to make the meat more tender. Usually the process occurs during the hang time before the butcher cuts the meat.

I recommend: Good Cooking provides instruction on how to dry age beef, including steaks.

Signature dish

A signature dish is usually the one dish that gets rave reviews for a steak house. It can include everything on the plate from vegetables to sauce, as well as the steak.

I recommend: Cookthink looks at the history for signature dishes and explains why in some cases a signature dish may not be a good thing. View a slideshow of the featured signature dishes at the popular, Australian-inspired Outback Steakhouse chain.