Bubba Gump Shrimp and Seafood Restaurant to Start Accepting Bitcoin Payments

Many of the restaurant chains operated by parent company Landry's will begin accepting Bitcoin as a payment method for meals.

In an interview with CNBC yesterday, Landry’s Chairman and CEO Tilman Fertitta said that “80 to 90 percent” of the company’s restaurant brands — including Bubba Gump Shrimp Company, Morton’s The Steakhouse, and Mastro’s — will accept Bitcoin (BTC) and other cryptocurrencies within the next 90 days. Fertitta said the move is a step toward bringing cryptocurrencies into the mainstream.

“It’s amazing how easy (crypto) trading is, and it’s here to stay. This is where it is now, it’s inevitable,” Landry’s CEO said.

Inspired by the 1994 film Forrest Gump starring Tom Hanks, Bubba Gump Shrimp Company has locations in the United States, Japan, the United Kingdom, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Mexico, Canada, the Mariana Islands, and Qatar. Fertitta also owns a luxury car retailer in Houston called Post Oak Motor Cars, which has been accepting BTC since 2018.

Some well-known food chains and restaurants are now beginning to accept Bitcoin, but the volatility of many cryptocurrencies can make it difficult to use as a reliable medium of exchange. The first bar and restaurant to accept BTC as a payment method — Room 77 in Germany — closed in October after more than a decade of business, apparently due to pandemic restrictions.