Texas Roadhouse In The Middle East: How The Menu Differs From America

Texas Roadhouse got its start in Indiana, but this Southwestern-style eatery has since expanded its locations to 10 countries outside of the United States. With more than 300,000 meals served daily, it's no surprise the chain had room to grow. Four countries in the Middle East have locations: Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates, and while there are plenty of similarities between the menus in the U.S. and menus in the Middle East, there are also a handful of differences.

The main difference is in the entrees. In the U.S., Texas Roadhouse offers a number of steaks, as well as chicken, seafood, and pork dishes. In the Middle East, those options still exist — except for pork. The Middle East locations prepare beef ribs and don't have pulled pork on the menu. Lamb, however, is on the menu. The menu in the Middle East has a specialty dinners section, which features four options, including a lamb dinner and a beef kebab. Additionally, the regional menu offers a marinated chicken dish called brick chicken that isn't available in the U.S., but the chain doesn't offer the herb-crusted chicken option that we have here. Some of the chain's appetizer options differ slightly, such as the shrimp appetizer. In the U.S., it's made with shrimp, garlic butter, and toast, but in the Middle East, the appetizer is called shotgun shrimp and appears to be fried shrimp served with a spicy aioli. (We're not big fans of Outback's grilled shrimp version, but perhaps Texas Roadhouse's is worth ordering.)

There are a few differences in the appetizer and dinner options, but Texas Roadhouse actually keeps things surprisingly similar between its restaurants in both regions. However, locations in the Middle East have a different menu layout than the United States' version. Texas Roadhouse in the U.S. breaks up its meat and seafood into sections: Hand-Cut Steaks, Dockside Favorites, and Fall-off-the-Bone Ribs are just a few examples. Meanwhile, the Middle East menu just has Main Entrée and Specialty Dinners sections, and otherwise groups all of the meal options into the same category. The latter menu does offer a separate section for burgers and sandwiches, though, similar to the U.S.

The Middle East menu also has a Lunch Value Offers section that doesn't exist in the U.S., with burger and steak options available for a lower price than at dinnertime. Some Texas Roadhouse locations in America aren't open for lunch most days, so this could be why there is no set lunch menu in the U.S.