“Our community and the restaurant industry lost a legend this week and the Taylor family lost a wonderful son, father and grandfather this week,” said a joint statement from Taylor’s family and Texas Roadhouse sent to CNN on Saturday.
The statement said Taylor died of suicide after battling Covid-19-related symptoms, including severe tinnitus or ringing in the ears, and his suffering had increased in recent days.
Taylor had funded a clinical trial to help members of the military who suffer from tinnitus, the statement said.
“Kent leaves an unparalleled legacy as a number one leader, which is why he often said Texas Roadhouse was a people company that happened to serve steaks,” the statement said.
“He has changed the lives of hundreds of millions of employees and guests over the past 28 years.”
“Kent’s kind and generous spirit was his constant driving force, whether it was quietly helping a friend or building one of America’s great businesses at @texasroadhouse,” Fisher wrote. “He was a maverick entrepreneur who embodied the values of never giving up and putting others first. My deepest condolences to the Kent family and many, many friends.”
Taylor created the idea that later would become Texas Roadhouse on a cocktail napkin, the family statement said.
First opened in 1933, according to the company’s website, Texas Roadhouse has more than 600 locations in the United States and 10 restaurants overseas.