Austin, Texas and Orlando, Fla. — Darden Restaurants (NYSE: DRI) has agreed to acquire Chuy’s Holdings (NASDAQ: CHUY) for $605 million in an all-cash transaction. The Tex-Mex restaurant chain — which owns and operates 101 full-service restaurants across 15 states — will join Darden’s existing restaurant portfolio, which includes Olive Garden, LongHorn Steakhouse and Ruth’s Chris Steak House, among others. Under terms of the merger agreement, Orlando-based Darden will acquire all outstanding shares of Chuy’s at $37.50 per share. The purchase price represents a 40 percent premium to the Austin-based company’s …
