Texas City is getting a new stop for steak lovers, with LongHorn Steakhouse set to join the busy Gulf Freeway corridor near the Tanger Outlets. Permit filings and local reporting point to construction kicking off this summer and wrapping by late February 2027, with a soft opening targeted for early 2027. The project will bring the city its first LongHorn and one more national sit-down option along the I-45 stretch between Houston and Galveston.
According to What Now Houston, the restaurant is planned for 3725 Gulf Freeway, where a permit on file shows construction slated to start in August and finish by the end of February 2027. The outlet also reported that Darden construction manager Bob Fields confirmed the plan and noted that this will be LongHorn's first Texas City location.
Where the New LongHorn Will Land
The steakhouse is expected to occupy a pad near the Tanger Outlets shopping center on the Gulf Freeway, a major magnet for shoppers and out-of-town visitors. Tanger Outlets Houston lists its address as 5885 Gulf Freeway in Texas City, and that steady stream of outlet traffic is likely a big part of why Darden picked the spot. A pad near the outlets would put LongHorn in the mix with other national chains that serve both weekend bargain hunters and nearby residents.
LongHorn's Footprint and Why It Matters
LongHorn started in Atlanta in 1981 and became part of Darden Restaurants in 2007, later shifting to its current ranch-style branding in 2009, according to LongHorn Steakhouse. The chain promotes its menu as "Steak Done Right," and Darden's fiscal filing showed LongHorn operating roughly 590 restaurants as of May 2025. A presence that large helps explain why the company likes high-visibility, highway-facing pads for new builds like the Texas City project.
Jobs and Local Impact
Once the shell goes up, the project will shift into interior build-out, followed by a hiring push for kitchen, front-of-house, and management positions. Openings at other ground-up LongHorn locations in Texas have triggered sizable staff ramp-ups. For example, San Angelo LIVE! reported a similar project there was expected to hire roughly 125 to 150 people. If the Texas City schedule stays on track, locals can probably expect to start seeing job postings and "now hiring" signs not long after construction wraps.
For now, the Texas City LongHorn exists mainly in permit records and scattered reports, since Darden has not released a formal corporate announcement tied to a specific opening date. Shoppers and nearby residents will likely be the first to spot progress as dirt starts moving, walls go up, and eventually, those telltale job listings signal that steaks are finally on the way.
