Red Flame Steak & Grill has shut its doors at 3211 Grand Pkwy in Katy after three years in business, the restaurant announced Wednesday. The closure leaves the chain's original Magnolia location as its sole remaining dining room.
According to Chron, the Katy restaurant posted its closure announcement on September 30, telling customers it had done its very best to provide the experience they deserved and thanking the Katy community for welcoming it. The restaurant also said it put its hearts and passion into every plate, table, and celebration. Owner Julio Amer did not disclose why the Katy location closed, per the same report.
Amer opened the first Red Flame Steak & Grill in April 2019 at 7214 FM 1488 in Magnolia, in a building that had previously housed Patron Azteca until that restaurant closed in March 2016, Chron notes. He expanded to Katy in August 2023, envisioning the concept as a dining experience suited for both special occasions and casual nights out.
An International Menu Built Around Open Flame
Red Flame's menu centered on open-flame cooking and hardwood smoking, according to Chron, with a lineup that included specialty burgers, pasta, seafood, soups, and salads. The approach traces back to the restaurant's founding concept, when Amer hired three chefs with roots in Yucatán, South America, and El Paso to build an international menu that paired Brazilian picanha alongside traditional USDA Prime steaks, as Community Impact reported.
Amer, who serves as CEO of Amer Enterprises, also operates three Mexican restaurants under the Julio's Mexican Grill brand in Spring and Magnolia, according to WhatNow. He immigrated from Mexico to San Antonio in 2006, worked at Mexican restaurants, and became a Rico's Mexican Grill franchise owner in Spring, Community Impact reports, eventually purchasing the former Patron Azteca property in Magnolia to launch his steakhouse concept.
A Suburban Squeeze Hitting Independent Restaurants Statewide
The Katy shutdown lands amid a brutal stretch for Texas restaurants. The state recorded 1,039 restaurant closures in the first six months of 2026 alone, leading all U.S. states and accounting for 12.7% of the 8,171 total closures across the U.S. and Canada during that span, according to RestaurantData.
Half of Texas restaurant operators reported their businesses were not profitable in 2025, driven by food costs that jumped 35% above pre-pandemic levels along with rising commercial rents and labor costs, per Community Impact. Nationally, 46% of restaurant operators reported lower customer traffic in August 2026 compared with the year before, marking 18 of the past 19 months with net traffic declines, according to the National Restaurant Association. The Texas Restaurant Association reported in August that operators statewide are also contending with steep workforce shortages and double-digit jumps in commercial insurance premiums, as KSAT reported.
Red Flame's Katy spot sat inside the Peek Elite Center, an 18,000-square-foot strip mall built in 2022 along Highway 99. The freeway-facing center offers high visibility, but that hasn't been enough to insulate suburban concepts from the broader slowdown.
For now, Red Flame's Magnolia flagship remains open, giving Amer's steakhouse concept a continued foothold even as its suburban Katy expansion comes to an end.
