TEXAS — Restaurant doors open every day across Texas, but for some owners, keeping those doors open has become an increasingly difficult challenge.
A midyear report from RestaurantData shows 1,039 restaurant closures across Texas during the first half of 2026, the highest number of closures in the nation.
At Renny’s Bar and Grill in Dallas, owner Mark Maguire is a familiar presence, laughing with customers, checking in on tables and making sure guests feel at home.
Maguire has been in the restaurant business for more than 40 years. For him, Renny’s is more than a business — it is a family legacy.
“Renny is my dad. That’s where the name of the restaurant came from,” Maguire said.
His father did more than inspire the restaurant’s name. Maguire said he helped shape the personality of the business.
“He’s like the mayor of the place. He walks in and says hello to everybody wants to stop and talk to everybody,” Maguire said.
But behind the laughter and familiar faces, Maguire said running a restaurant has become increasingly uncertain.
“What we’ve seen in the last really, six to 10 months has definitely put a knot in my stomach,” Maguire said.
Maguire is far from alone.
The Texas Restaurant Association said rising operating costs are among the biggest challenges facing restaurants. Food, wages and other expenses have increased significantly since the pandemic.
“Food costs are up 35% since the pandemic. Wages are up about 30%,” said Kelsey Erickson Streufert with the Texas Restaurant Association.
Those higher costs are also being felt by customers as restaurants work to keep menu prices from rising even further.
“We are struggling to try to find ways to keep our our prices on our menus stable,” Maguire said.
For Maguire, higher operating costs were more than numbers on a spreadsheet. Last summer, they nearly forced him to consider closing Renny’s.
“We were close to having to make a decision on whether we thought we could keep our doors open or not,” Maguire said.
The restaurant ultimately stayed open, helped in part by its base of loyal customers.
“Luckily, you know, we just kind of had a really good foundation of of regular supportive customers,” Maguire said.
But the restaurant industry’s story is not entirely about closures.
“Texas is also far and away leading the nation when it comes to restaurant openings,” Erickson Streufert said.
In July alone, 391 new restaurants opened across Texas, according to RestaurantData. Numbers like those give Maguire reason to remain optimistic about the industry’s future.
“It gives me confidence that, you know, if people are still want open restaurants, they’re seeing opportunities there and they’re seeing demand there,” Maguire said.
For now, Renny’s Bar and Grill remains open, and Maguire hopes to keep it that way.
