Each and every time we scoot by Longhorn Steakhouse over on Route 31 in Flemington, NJ – we’re astonished at how crowded it is. What is the draw?

(Note that we’re the type of family that prepares most of our food at home, and I have personally become a bit dismayed with eating any food that is commercially made. Too many questionable experiences for comfort, if you know what I mean. So this isn’t a faux restaurant “review” that most citizens are accustomed to…)

Parking lot at LongHorn Steakhouse ALWAYS filled up!

Is the food good – or is there something else going on? (Addictive?)

Large groups of people go in and out of this Longhorn place. Many of the folks we witness leaving the joint are often slow, sluggish, and appear bloated. As if they gorged on way too much food. “Stuffed to the gills.” Hilarious, in fact.

But it might pay to know that Longhorn is part of one of the largest publicly-traded “casual” restaurant companies.

They’re part of the Darden Restaurants Group. That may not ring a bell, but Olive Garden certainly does, right?

They also run that Seasons 52 Grill that you often can literally smell outside of Bridgewater Mall.

All in all, the Darden Restaurants company has over 1700 restaurants, employing over 180,000 workers – and brings in eight and a half-billion dollars per year. (Oddly, we did some math – and discovered that if all the 8.5 billion in revenue – not including expenses – went to employee salaries, that would equal an average of only $47,000 per year per employee. That obviously means that most of the workers are making much less than that – i.e., part-time, and low-wage wait staff.)

We honestly find it hard to trust a food company that is run like this. Despite what they may say or visually present to their customers. Food businesses, in general, have to be taken with a grain of salt. How could anyone have any faith in a company that is run mainly as a “money machine” that picked food as their venue – instead of true chefs that love their craft?

“Soon to be bloated table of five, you can be seated now!”

High carb foods = repeat customers

We took a look at their menu. Not just the “menu,” menu – but the nutritional chart. You should take a look. (Let us know if that link works or not, so we can upload a saved copy if necessary.)

A majority of the items are very high in carbohydrates. Their famous “Texas Tonion” is a whopping 126 grams of carbs. Most of their single dishes (not including dips or fries) all have enough carbs to spike the blood sugar – and certainly, break anyone in ketosis. We bet a common meal for the average person would likely result in over 200 grams of carbs per sitting. Probably even more for those who torture themselves with a dessert after all that gluttony. No wonder everyone is queasy and exhausted when they leave.

There is good news though…

Not all items are bad – especially the steaks

It appears that a low-carb, keto, carnivore person can eat there. Just with no sides. Or anything, but…

The steaks.

They all appear low enough in carbs as to not derail your blood sugar stability.

They have a few massive 16oz. and larger steaks that just have 1g of carbs. Ribeye, prime rib, and more. Just be careful to avoid dishes like the “chicken fried steaks” which have too many carbs. (Just know that for the price of one steak here – you can easily have 10 POUNDS of ground beef cooked at home instead.)

Maybe steak is just delicious you’d do anything for it?

The cups of chili are relatively low too, only 11 grams. But beans are generally avoided by people who eat low carb.

But what is in the seasoning? We may try them out one day – just to put them to the test. Have always been a bit leery regarding the seasonings. Especially MSG. If we feel up to it – I’d be very interested to see how I feel after just eating one single steak. Who knows, maybe it might not be so bad.

Note that there are a few Longhorn Steakhouses in the NJroute22.com coverage area, including Springfield, NJMt. Olive, NJ (east of Hackettstown)Easton, PA – and just outside of Allentown, PA.

Longhorn Steakhouse of Flemington, NJ Map & Contact Info

Phone: 908-788-9490
Hours: 11am to 10pm 7 days a week (open till 11pm on Fridays and Saturdays)

About the author

NJroute22

NJroute22 (site admin) is an avid traveler along NJ Route 22 (and almost all of central New Jersey!) Family man, pet lover, and property owner who has a natural curiosity for everything around.