Claim Jumper
Encyclopedia
Irvine, California
Irvine is a suburban incorporated city in Orange County, California, United States. It is a planned city, mainly developed by the Irvine Company since the 1960s. Formally incorporated on December 28, 1971, the city has a population of 212,375 as of the 2010 census. However, the California...
with 45 locations in Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
, Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
, Nevada
Nevada
Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...
, Washington, Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
and Oregon
Oregon
Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...
. Founder Craig Nickoloff opened the first Claim Jumper Restaurant in Los Alamitos, California
Los Alamitos, California
Los Alamitos is a small city in Orange County, California. The city was incorporated in March 1960. The population was 11,449 at the 2010 census, down from 11,536 at the 2000 census...
in 1977. Until 2005, CWN Management, Inc., which operates the Claim Jumper chain, had been privately owned by the Nickoloff family. Leonard Green & Partners
Leonard Green & Partners
Leonard Green & Partners is a private equity firm specializing in leveraged buyout transactions, particularly of middle market companies. As of 2010, the firm had with approximately $9 billion in assets under management....
purchased a majority stake in the company in 2005 for a reported $200 million. The company filed for bankruptcy on September 10, 2010. On October 28, 2010, the chain was auctioned off with Landry's Restaurants
Landry's Restaurants
-External links:*...
being the winning bidder.
Claim Jumper restaurants are typically known for the level of detail in their atmospheres. The restaurants feature a California Gold Rush
California Gold Rush
The California Gold Rush began on January 24, 1848, when gold was found by James W. Marshall at Sutter's Mill in Coloma, California. The first to hear confirmed information of the gold rush were the people in Oregon, the Sandwich Islands , and Latin America, who were the first to start flocking to...
theme, although newer locations have not included the numerous "artifacts" of the time period that are prevalent throughout the original stores.
They are known for fairly large portions of their dishes. The large menu features a wide range of foods, including sandwiches
Sandwiches
"Sandwiches" is a song by American electronic band Detroit Grand Pubahs. It reached number 29 in the Hot Dance Club Songs chart.- Track listing :...
, pizzas, and salads, but focuses mainly on meat
Meat
Meat is animal flesh that is used as food. Most often, this means the skeletal muscle and associated fat and other tissues, but it may also describe other edible tissues such as organs and offal...
s such as steaks, and ribs. They have become well known for their signature desserts, most notably their Chocolate Motherlode cake, which comes in six or three layer sizes. Each restaurant also features a full "saloon
Bar (establishment)
A bar is a business establishment that serves alcoholic drinks — beer, wine, liquor, and cocktails — for consumption on the premises.Bars provide stools or chairs that are placed at tables or counters for their patrons. Some bars have entertainment on a stage, such as a live band, comedians, go-go...
" bar which includes signature drinks.
Claim Jumper has licensed its name to frozen food producer American Pie, LLC to create a line of frozen dinners
TV dinner
A TV dinner is a prepackaged frozen or chilled meal that usually comes as an individual portion...
, which are sold in numerous grocery stores.
Claim Jumper has a program once a year called "Tip-A-Cop" which aids the Law Enforcement Torch Run
Law Enforcement Torch Run
The Law Enforcement Torch Run Campaign to benefit the Special Olympics began in 1981 in Wichita, Kansas and is the largest grass-roots fundraising movement for the Special Olympics....
, a day when sheriffs and children with disabilities come in and help serve the guests, with all of the tips donated to the Special Olympics
Special Olympics
Special Olympics is the world's largest sports organization for children and adults with intellectual disabilities, providing year-round training and competitions to more than 3.1 million athletes in 175 countries....
.
In October 2010, Claim Jumper was auctioned off to Landry's Restaurants
Landry's Restaurants
-External links:*...
who had the winning bid. The future of the various locations have yet to be announced.