[2][3][4][5] The company was founded in 1971 as Volunteer Capital Corporation by three Nashville businessmen, Jack C. Massey, Earl Beasley Jr. and John Neff Jr.

[1] In April 2020, it reported that J. Alexander's received $15.1 million from the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) as part of the CARES Act, a program intended to assist small businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States.

[9] On July 2, 2021, J. Alexander's announced that it would be acquired by Logan's Roadhouse parent SPB Hospitality for $220 million.

[11] In 2019, the company was the target of a class action lawsuit for racial discrimination.

At a Michigan restaurant, a black customer said she was asked to give up her seat for a white patron.