Since 2023, Sizzler restaurants outside of the United States are owned by Thailand-based Minor International and are not related to the American firm.

The bankruptcy filing does not affect the similarly named Minor International affiliated restaurants that are located outside of the United States.

The chain was founded in 1958 as Sizzler Family Steak House by Del and Helen Johnson in Culver City, California.

[5] Sizzler also introduced a free grilled cheese bread roll at the start of the experience which was intended to line the stomach, curbing appetite.

Sizzler filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 1996 ("to escape costly leases on unprofitable restaurants"), and closed over 130 of its locations.

[12] In June 2011, Sizzler USA announced that a US management group led by the Sizzler CEO would buy the American portion of the chain of 178 restaurants from Pacific Equity Partners with the remaining 100 restaurants located outside of the United States remaining with Pacific Equity Partners.

[16] In September 2020, Sizzler USA announced that they had filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, citing impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, namely forcing it to temporarily close its restaurants' dining rooms.

[28] During the COVID-19 pandemic, the company experimented with the use of robotic waiters in the dining room in December 2020 to minimize physical contact between customers and restaurant staff.

[34] In the 2013 financial year, Collins Foods reported stalling revenue for their Sizzler operations in Australia, blaming the downturn of the casual dining sector in the country.

In an investors meeting by Collins Foods, CEO Graham Maxwell states: "We no longer consider Sizzler to be a strategic growth prospect in Australia and therefore we will not be investing further capital".

[37] Sizzler was in operation in Taipei for twenty years at Tianmu and Da'an from 1990 to 2010, and eventually closed due to negotiation with international franchisee Collins Foods resulting in not continuing the contract.

Thamrin with other locations notably in Jalan Sabang, Mal Kelapa Gading, and Mall Taman Anggrek but was renamed into American Grill in mid-2000s due to expiring licensing rights.

[42] In 2000, more than 60 people became ill and one person died in an outbreak of E. coli O157:H7 that originated at a Sizzler restaurant in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

[44] This ultimately led to Sizzler closing the chain's remaining Midwest locations, including those in Wisconsin, Illinois, and Indiana.