The Kemah Boardwalk is a 60-acre Texas Gulf Coast theme park in Kemah, Texas , approximately 30 miles southeast of Downtown Houston , Texas. The Boardwalk is built entirely along the shores of Galveston Bay and Clear Lake . The complex is owned and operated by Landry's, Inc ., and has restaurants, rides, midway games, a boutique hotel, a charter yacht, a 400-slip marina and shops. There is no charge to walk on the boardwalk. Tickets are sold for rides.
24-548: B.R. Guest (stylized as "BR Guest") is a collection of fine-dining restaurants owned by Landry's, Inc. By 2015, BR Guest owned 15 large Manhattan places, including five branches of Dos Caminos, two Strip House steak joints, Blue Water Grill and Ruby Foo's. Opened in 1987, Hanson signed a partnership deal with Barry Sternlicht , CEO of Starwood Capital Group , as part of its Starwood Opportunity Fund 7 in 2007. The transaction valued BR Guest between $ 150 million and $ 250 million. In August 2010 BR Guest welcomed Alexandre Gaudelet to
48-712: A dinosaur themed restaurant chain at Disney Springs formerly known as Downtown Disney in Orlando , Florida , location was also opened to the public, and the Legends Outlets in Kansas City , Kansas , location was opened in 2006 and which was closed on August 13, 2017, replaced by Michael Kors and it is themed after The Rite of Spring segment by Igor Stravinsky in the 1940 Walt Disney 's animated film Fantasia (1940). In 2010, Landry's, Inc., acquired three new restaurants: Bubba Gump Shrimp Company ,
72-535: A 60% stake in the online casino platform, Golden Nugget Online Casino as part of the deal to go public. Since the 1990s, Landry's has expanded to real estate holdings beyond dining and hospitality. Landry's, Inc., owns aquariums in Houston , Denver , Nashville , and Kemah, Texas . All aquariums contain restaurants branded in Landry's Aquarium subsidiary. On September 19, 2016, a consortium of parties, including
96-404: A collection of seafood restaurants themed on the movie Forrest Gump , The company also acquired Claim Jumper , a national chain of family restaurants. The Oceanaire, a national collection of seafood restaurants, is known for flying in fresh fish daily. In 2011, Landry's bought two more restaurants – McCormick & Schmick's Seafood & Steaks and Morton's The Steakhouse . In 2012,
120-593: A concrete dungeon, Landry’s has profited financially, but caused the tigers serious mental and physical harm .... Retiring the tigers to a sanctuary will guarantee that the tigers may spend the rest of their lives in the species-appropriate conditions that they need and deserve.” Before the expiration of the 60-day notice period, Landry's sued the ALDF and its co-parties to the original lawsuit notice for defamation, business disparagement, tortious interference with prospective business relations, and abuse of process. In response,
144-429: A high-speed wooden roller coaster opened on the boardwalk. The 96-foot-tall, 3,236-foot-long roller coaster is built on a 1-acre footprint, making it one of the most compact roller coasters in the world. A new source published on December 27 of 2012 stated how an evacuation happened because of a device that was spotted on the boardwalk near southeast of Houston on Galveston. The police got everyone out safely and said it
168-932: A restaurant built around a 150,000-gallon, floor-to-ceiling centerpiece aquarium , a bar, banquet facilities, amusement rides, and midway games. A train carries guests into a tunnel running through a 250,000-gallon shark tank. Other Aquarium restaurants have since opened in Denver , Nashville , and on the Kemah Boardwalk in Texas . In 2005, the company acquired Golden Nugget Hotel & Casinos , with locations in Las Vegas and Laughlin, Nevada . Landry's, Inc., has since opened three additional locations in Atlantic City, New Jersey , Biloxi, Mississippi and Lake Charles, Louisiana . On October 14, 2008, T-Rex Cafe,
192-494: A willing buyer in Tilman Fertitta , who paid $ 400,000 on December 31, 1986, for a controlling interest in the company. The remaining partner, Denis Wilson, was bought out for $ 850,000. He received $ 250,000 upfront, but had to spend $ 120,000 in legal fees to eventually collect the remaining $ 600,000 from Fertitta. Fertitta became CEO and quickly began standardizing the appearance and menus of his restaurants; he removed
216-645: The Animal Legal Defense Fund (ALDF), sent Landry's a notice of an intended lawsuit against it under the Endangered Species Act . The lawsuit notice concerned the alleged treatment and habitat conditions of four white tigers exhibited at the Downtown Aquarium, Houston. The ALDF complained that the four tigers, which are federally protected by the Endangered Species Act of 1973 , “are kept in deplorable conditions” at
240-497: The BR Guest restaurant brand. In August 2017, Landry's re-acquired Joe's Crab Shack restaurants from Ignite Restaurant Group, which had filed for bankruptcy protection on June 6, 2017. Landry's had sold Joe's to Ignite's predecessor in 2006. The Ignite group's Brick House Tavern, and Tap restaurants were also included in the deal. In September 2019, Landry's bought Seattle-based Restaurants Unlimited Inc , adding Skates on
264-513: The District of Columbia . The company also owns and operates numerous international locations. The company is owned by President & CEO Tilman Fertitta . The first Landry's Seafood restaurant opened in Texas in 1980. While many patrons assumed it was named for Dallas Cowboys coach Tom Landry , it was not; Bill and Floyd Landry were the original owners. They had started opening restaurants in
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#1732793222770288-506: The 1990s, Landry's, Inc., expanded, developing and acquiring restaurant, entertainment, hospitality, and gaming businesses. In 1994, Landry's, Inc., acquired Joe's Crab Shack . In 2006, Landry's, Inc., sold Joe's Crab Shack, which had grown to more than 120 locations, to J.H. Whitney & Company . During the decade, the company acquired several other restaurants, including The Crab House and Cadillac Bar. Landry's, Inc., expanded its hospitality and entertainment divisions in 1996, acquiring
312-449: The ALDF filed a motion for the dismissal of the defamation lawsuit, citing Texas’ Anti-SLAPP law, which allows judges to dismiss meritless lawsuits filed against those who speak out about a “matter of public concern.” On February 22, 2017, Harris County District Judge Steven Kirkland dismissed the defamation lawsuit filed by Landry's and further ordered Landry's to pay $ 450,000 in penalties and an additional $ 174,000 in legal fees to deter
336-574: The Aquarium. According to a press release provided by the ALDF: "For the last 12 years, Landry’s has deprived these four tigers [...] of any access to sunlight, fresh air, or natural surfaces. These species-inappropriate living conditions violate the ESA [...]. At no point do the tigers have the opportunity to run, jump, or engage in the full range of their natural behaviors. "The dungeon-like conditions that
360-550: The Bay, Portland City Grill , Manzana Grill, Palisade, Cutters Crabhouse, Stanford's, Henry's Tavern, Kincaid's, Palomino Restaurant & Bar, and Portland Seafood Company to its portfolio. Also in September 2019, Landry's acquired Del Frisco's Grille and Del Frisco's Double Eagle Steak Houses for around $ 650 million. In November 2024, Landry's acquired Keens Steakhouse for $ 30 million. Landry's, Inc. will assume ownership of
384-651: The Beach. In 2004, the adjacent Hilton Galveston Island Resort was acquired. The San Luis Resort includes 700 guest rooms, ten restaurants, and 200,000 square feet of event space. In 1998, the company developed the 35-acre Kemah Boardwalk , with a hotel, a marina, more than ten restaurants, and dozens of midway games, amusement rides, and attractions. The company's hospitality division also includes The Westin Houston Downtown in Downtown Houston and
408-637: The Boardwalk Inn on the Kemah Boardwalk. After 2000, Landry's, Inc., continued to grow. In 2000, the company acquired Rainforest Cafe , a collection of jungle-inspired restaurants and retail villages. In 2002, the company acquired three national seafood restaurants: Saltgrass Steak House , Chart House, and Muer Restaurants,. In 2003, the company opened the Downtown Aquarium , a 20-acre entertainment complex in Houston with an aquarium,
432-471: The Cajun spicing from most dishes and scrubbed away the unique interior of Willie G's. He took the company public in 1993, with a valuation of $ 30 million. Under Fertitta, the company expanded. In 2010, already the majority shareholder, Fertitta acquired all outstanding shares of company stock, gaining sole control and ownership. By 2011, the company's value had risen to more than $ 1.7 billion. Throughout
456-421: The Houston area in the 1970s. Brothers Bill and Floyd Landry and other partners from their hometown of Lafayette, Louisiana , began opening authentic Cajun restaurants in the Houston area in the 1970s. These included Willie G’s (named for their father), near The Galleria , and the first Landry's Seafood on the far west side of the city. By 1986, nearly all of the partners wanted to sell their shares. They found
480-559: The San Luis Resort, a 32-acre beachfront resort on Galveston Island's historic Seawall Boulevard and built on top of the former Fort Crockett . In 2004, Landry's, Inc., partnered with the city of Galveston to open a 140,000 square foot convention center, the Galveston Island Convention Center at the San Luis Resort. In 2003, the company acquired the adjacent Holiday Inn Resort Galveston – On
504-581: The company expanded its entertainment division with the opening of the Galveston Island Historic Pleasure Pier . In 2013, Landry's acquired Mastro's restaurants. The company has developed and acquired a collection of restaurants called Landry's Signature Group, which include Vic & Anthony's, Grotto, Brenner's Steakhouse, Brenner's on the Bayou, La Griglia, and Willie G's Seafood & Steaks. In 2016, Landry's acquired
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#1732793222770528-621: The company from filing such lawsuits in the future. The decision to dismiss the defamation lawsuit by Landry's was affirmed on October 18, 2018, by the Fourteenth Court of Appeals of Texas , although the penalties sanctioned on Landry's were reduced. Kemah Boardwalk Landry's, Inc. acquired property along the Kemah Waterfront in 1997 and opened the Kemah Boardwalk in 1998. In 2007, the Boardwalk Bullet ,
552-610: The team as its new Chief Operating Officer. In November 2016, BR Guest was sold to Landry's, Inc. , the operator of many casinos and restaurants including Bubba Gump Shrimp , the Rainforest Cafe , and Golden Nugget Casino . Landry%27s, Inc. Landry's, Inc. , is a privately held American multi-brand dining, hospitality, entertainment, and gaming corporation headquartered in Houston, Texas . Landry's, Inc., owns and operates more than 600 restaurants, hotels, casinos, and entertainment destinations in 35 U.S. states and
576-614: The tigers are forced to endure at Houston’s Downtown Aquarium harm their physical health and psychological wellbeing and deny them much that is natural and important to a tiger," says renowned big cat veterinarian Dr. Jennifer Conrad. "It is cruel to confine complex, roaming carnivores such as tigers to a tiny, dark, artificial, unenriched enclosure where they never see any daylight, much less bask in sunshine, and are at risk for serious long term, debilitating injuries from being forced to live on slippery, unyielding concrete their entire lives." […] "By forcing these tigers to live in what amounts to
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