Claim Jumper Restaurant and Saloon is an American

restaurant A restaurant is an establishment that prepares and serves food and drinks to customers. Meals are generally served and eaten on the premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and Delivery (commerce), food delivery services. Restaurants ...

chain with 11 locations as of October 28, 2023. The company is based in

Houston, Texas Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

History

Restaurateur Craig Nickoloff opened the first Claim Jumper in

Los Alamitos, California is a city in Orange County, California. The city was incorporated in March 1960. The population was 11,780 at the 2020 census, up from 11,449 at the 2010 census. The USA Water Polo National Aquatic Center is located on the Joint Forces Tr ...

, on September 27, 1977. The original restaurant had a large menu and an atmosphere inspired by California's

Gold Rush of 1849 The California gold rush (1848–1855) began on January 24, 1848, when gold was found by James W. Marshall at Sutter's Mill in Coloma, California. The news of gold brought approximately 300,000 people to California from the rest of the Uni ...

Acquisition by Landry’s, Inc.

In September 2010, the chain filed for

bankruptcy Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the deb ...

and was slated to be auctioned off. In October 2010, Landry's, Inc. acquired Claim Jumper, with a bid of $76.6 million. Landry's President/CEO

Tilman J. Fertitta Tilman Joseph Fertitta (born June 25, 1957) is an American businessman and television personality. He has served as the United States ambassador to Italy and San Marino since May 2025. He is owner of Landry's, Inc. He also owns the National Bas ...

relocated the company's headquarters from

Irvine, California Irvine () is a Planned community, planned city in central Orange County, California, United States, in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. It was named in 1888 for the landowner James Irvine. The Irvine Company started developing the area in the ...

, to Landry's corporate headquarters in the

Uptown Uptown may refer to: Neighborhoods or regions in several cities United States * Uptown, Chicago, Illinois * Uptown Manhattan, New York City, New York * Uptown, Richmond, Virginia * Uptown, Dallas, Texas * Uptown, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania * Upt ...

area of Houston.

Franchised locations

All locations on th
claimjumper.com
website are franchised to Kelly Restaurant Group (KRG). , KRG has locations in

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a landlocked state in the Western United States. It borders Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the seventh-most extensive, th ...

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

, and

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

. Due to the onset of the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

and the fact that part of the business was a buffet, KRG closed some of its locations, including the ones in

Long Beach, California Long Beach is a coastal city in southeastern Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is the list of United States cities by population, 44th-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 451,307 as of 2022. A charter ci ...

Valencia, California Valencia is an unincorporated community in northwestern Los Angeles County, California, United States. The area, west of Interstate 5, is expanding with residential development and already includes major commercial and industrial parks. It stra ...

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

, and

Lynnwood, Washington Lynnwood is a city in Snohomish County, Washington, United States. The city is part of the Seattle metropolitan area and is located north of Seattle and south of Everett, Washington, Everett, near the junction of Interstate 5 in Washington, ...

Non-franchised locations

There are three locations that are still owned and operated by Landry's. They are located inside the

Golden Nuggets Golden Nuggets are a breakfast cereal sold in the UK and Ireland by Nestlé. It is made mainly from cereal grains, sugar and honey, formed into large yellow crunchy balls. It has a sweet, slightly honey-like flavour. The taste has been describ ...

Laughlin, Nevada Laughlin () is an unincorporated community in Clark County, Nevada, United States. Laughlin lies south of Las Vegas, in the far southern tip of Nevada. As a resort town, it is known for its gaming and water recreation. As of the 2020 census, t ...

Las Vegas, Nevada Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...

, and

Lake Charles, Louisiana Lake Charles is the List of municipalities in Louisiana, fifth-most populous city in the U.S. state of Louisiana, and the county seat, parish seat of Calcasieu Parish, Louisiana, Calcasieu Parish, located on Lake Charles (Louisiana), Lake Char ...

. These are also the only Claim Jumpers to be under the Landry's Select Club rewards program.

References

External links

* {{Landry's, Inc. Regional restaurant chains in the United States Companies that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2010 Restaurants established in 1977 Restaurant franchises Steakhouses in the United States 1977 establishments in California Companies based in Houston 2010 mergers and acquisitions American companies established in 1977 Companies based in Harris County, Texas