Outback Steakhouse opens on booming Liberty Way corridor

An international chain restaurant has fired up its kitchen and opened for business joining other new eateries here along the booming Liberty Way business corridor.

Butler County’s first Outback Steakhouse — across from Liberty Center on the border of West Chester and Liberty townships — served up lunch and dinner Wednesday in its first full day of operation.

A morning ribbon cutting drew local officials to the new steakhouse whose chain now includes more than 1,300 restaurants in 27 countries in addition to the U.S.

The eatery’s first foray into Butler County picked its Liberty Way location for obvious reasons, said Shae Mills, owner of the Outback Steakhouse at 7530 Foster Lane.

“This community is growing so fast and we just wanted to be part of it,” said Mills, who added “everyone here has been so welcoming.”

The 4,694 square-foot, Australian-themed restaurant, which will employ about 100 workers, is a prototype of future Outbacks with a slightly smaller building than others in the region and nationwide, she said.

The increasingly busy, multi-lane roadway — which also serves as the border between Liberty and West Chester townships next to Interstate 75 — has seen an explosion of national chain restaurants and stores opening in the last two years.

The steakhouse’s opening comes in the wake of nearby first-time restaurants and businesses such as Shake Shack, Torchy’s Tacos, Costco and the scheduled opening next year of Butler County’s first Wawa.

The $350 million Liberty Center, located across the street, opened in 2015 and is the largest retail and residential mixed-use development in Liberty Twp.’s history.

Joe Hinson, president and CEO of the West Chester and Liberty Chamber Alliance, did the ribbon cutting honors at the opening ceremony, which also saw Outback officials present representatives from the nearby Cincinnati Children’s Liberty Campus medical center give a $8,900 check to its oncology department.

Adding the restaurant to the fast-growing Liberty Way and I-75 interchange corridor further reflects the area’s vibrant expansion, said Hinson.

“We see an average of 153,000 vehicles a day going through here (I-75) and so this dividing line (Liberty Way) between West Chester and Liberty townships just continues to grow.”

Credit: Nick Graham

“And when you are able to bring an Outback here, with over 1,300 locations in 27 countries, that says that they (Outback) have done their research and they know how important this area is and they see the growth and potential that is here,” he said.

“We are excited to, once again, bring a well-known, international business to this area.”