Restaurateur Craig Nickoloff opened the first Claim Jumper in Los Alamitos, California, on September 27, 1977.

[citation needed] The original restaurant had a large menu and an atmosphere inspired by California's Gold Rush of 1849.

[3][4] In October 2010, Landry's, Inc. acquired Claim Jumper, with a bid of $76.6 million.

As of August 2023[update], KRG has locations in California, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington.

[7] Due to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and the fact that part of the business was a buffet, KRG closed some of its locations, including the ones in Long Beach, California, Valencia, California[8],Nashville, Tennessee,[9] and Lynnwood, Washington.