Billionaire Owner of the Houston Rockets Scoops Up Steakhouse Chain

A ubiquitous steakhouse chain with 35 coast-to-coast locations has a baller new owner, reports the Houston Chronicle.

Tilman Fertitta, owner of the NBA’s Houston Rockets, will absorb Southlake-based Del Frisco’s steakhouse restaurants in a new deal announced on Wednesday. Locally, Houston is home to a Del Frisco’s Double Eagle Steakhouse in The Galleria mall and a Del Frisco’s Grille in The Woodlands.

Fertitta is already a steakhouse tycoon in his own right. As the CEO of Landry’s Inc., he also owns elite meat destinations Mastro’s, Morton’s, Vic and Anthony’s, Strip House and Brenner’s.

The news comes just hours after Connecticut-based private equity firm L Catterton just closed on its previously announced arrangement to buy Del Frisco’s Restaurant Group in an all-cash deal valued at around $650 million, notes the Chronicle.

The deal’s structure calls for L Catterton to retain ownership of Del Frisco’s Bartaco and Barcelona Wine Bar properties while handing off Del Frisco’s Double Eagle Steakhouses and Grilles to Fertitta. Fertitta’s side of the acquisition is expected to close at the end of October; terms are not disclosed. In a statement, he says Del Frisco’s operations will remain unchanged.

Fertitta’s overall multibillion-dollar hospitality empire includes more than 500 high-end and casual restaurants, the Golden Nugget casinos, and hotel-resorts and amusement parks, adds the Chronicle.

His latest buy comes 7 years after Fertitta originally tried scoop up Del Frisco’s steakhouses, soon after Landry’s went public.

• Houston Rockets owner, billionaire Tilman Fertitta to acquire Del Frisco’s steakhouses [HC]