An Iowa man's knee was shattered after carelessly discarded peanut shells caused him to slip onto the floor of a national steakhouse chain's Cedar Falls restaurant, according to a lawsuit filed in federal court on Friday. Show  Tama County resident Curtis Jensen slipped and fell in February 2015 on "peanuts and/or peanut shell debris" scattered on the floor of the Texas Roadhouse on University Avenue, according to the lawsuit. The national chain with more than 400 locations is known for serving diners free buckets of dry roasted peanuts and allowing cracked-open shells to be thrown on the floor, Jensen's attorneys claim. The negligence and premises liability lawsuit claims that the tossed peanut debris, a "marketing gimmick," created "extremely dangerous" conditions inside the restaurant. The situation is made worse by Texas Roadhouse's wait staff, who often toss the shells onto the floor themselves if customers let them pile up on tables, Waterloo attorneys Thomas Frerichs and Luke Guthrie wrote in the complaint. “By intentionally maintaining their restaurants in a manner whereby peanut shells and debris are routinely discarded and left on the floor by employees, defendants encourage customers to engage in the same practice, thereby creating a unique, but extremely dangerous condition,” the lawsuit said. The lawsuit also claims that the flooring inside the Cedar Falls restaurant where Jensen fell was part of the problem, because it repels the natural oils inside the salty remains instead of absorbing them. A Des Moines attorney representing the restaurant, listed in the complaint as Texas Roadhouse Holdings L.L.C., did not immediately return a reporter's phone call. A director of public relations at the Texas Roadhouse corporate headquarters in Louisville, Ky. was also not immediately available for comment. But Jensen's case is hardly the steakhouse chain's first peanut slip-and-fall rodeo. In 2008, a woman received $43,000 after she slipped on peanuts and fractured her kneecap at a Texas Roadhouse in Temple, Texas. The case was tried in front of a jury by well-known Texas personal injury attorney Vic Feazell. Lawyers for the steakhouse argued the peanut waste was "open and obvious" and that the woman should have been aware of her surroundings, according to a Texas Lawyer blog. A lawsuit filed in 2013 on behalf of another Texas woman, Amelia Tijerina, sought more than $1 million in damages after she slipped on peanuts at a restaurant in Harlingen, Texas. Lawyers representing Tijerina reached a confidential settlement last year with Texas Roadhouse Holdings that allowed the restaurant to neither admit nor deny liability for her injuries, court records show. The lawsuit filed on behalf of Jensen claims the fall fractured his kneecap in four places, and asks for monetary damages for physical impairment, medical expenses and loss of earning capacity. The lawsuit also asks for punitive damages, arguing that Texas Roadhouse should know the peanut husks are a slipping hazard. "Defendant deliberately chose not to reduce or eliminate the risk of slipping and falling posed by the peanut shells and debris on the floor, choosing instead to maximize profits by perpetuating a marketing gimmick of encouraging the accumulation of peanut shells and debris on the floor," the lawsuit reads. Frerichs declined to speak with a reporter on Monday because of the pending nature of the case. The lawsuit was originally filed in Black Hawk County District Court, but was removed to U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Iowa by attorneys representing the restaurant.
Jonathan Weiss/Shutterstock Remember when
Olive Garden put the kibosh on the whole filling up on free breadsticks and salad thing? (via Olive Garden) They started charging customers who wanted to make it a stand-alone meal. (Asked The Cold Wire) You can now order unlimited bread, salad, and soup anytime you want,
but it will cost you varying amounts depending on the time of day and whether you order it off their lunch or dinner menu. Many of the formula Mexican restaurants still offer free chips and salsa to pair with your number 11 combo of taco, burrito, and enchilada, but other than that, there just aren't many places left that supply you with freebies. Texas Roadhouse, the largest steakhouse chain (Statistica) in the country, is one exception. Their complimentary buckets of whole peanuts are a fun, peel-able, and poppable treat, even if the oily residue from discarded shells does turn the floors into something resembling a greased-up slip-and-slide. Peanuts are the perfect food to hold you over before your meal, especially at a steakhouse, where you hope to conserve ample
room for that ribeye or porterhouse. These pea-sized members of the legume family are crunchy, salty morsels that address immediate hunger needs while not spoiling your appetite as much as a basket of bread (assuming that you're not devouring an entire peanut bucket solo).
Wararara/Shutterstock More importantly, if you're looking to save money, noshing on Texas Roadhouse's free peanuts can prevent you from splurging on an appetizer that might set your wallet back another $10-$15. Peanuts also provide health benefits, including lowering cholesterol levels and reducing the risk of stroke and heart
attack, and are packed with protein, according to WebMD. Of course you can also request a basket of Texas Roadhouse's complimentary fresh-baked bread with butter if you want to up the ante and risk occupying valuable stomach space that could be reserved for succulent steak. But peanuts are the safe bet. However, it should also be noted that since the pandemic, some Yelp reviewers have shared that at certain Texas Roadhouse locations, the peanuts now either come bagged or don't show up at the table at all (via Eat This, Not That!). There can be no doubt that Texas Roadhouse's leadership recognizes the complimentary peanut's strong association with the franchise. Travis Doster, senior director of public and government relations for Texas Roadhouse, told the National Peanut Board that it's one of their main identifiers, and "you will always hear people say, 'Oh the peanut place.'" Texas Roadhouse does spend an eye-popping $20 million annually on peanuts and bread, which becomes harder to justify in times of staffing shortages and supply chain disruptions, but what a tragedy it would be if "the peanut place" stopped giving away free peanuts. Does Texas Roadhouse still have peanuts on the ground?No not anymore. But you can still get some of their delicious peanuts! Just ask the server!
Is Texas Roadhouse safe for peanut allergies?There is no protein in peanut smell. Enclosed areas such as the bars and restaurants like Logan's and Texas Roadhouse may have large amounts of peanut in the air and should be avoided.
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Does texas roadhouse have peanuts on the floor
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