Bloomin' Adventures: The Partners, the Risks, and the Recipe Behind Outback Steakhouse

At nine years old, Tim Gannon was already working, delivering newspapers before sunrise to help his family make ends meet. Most people would have let that be the story. Tim let it be the foundation.

He went on to co-found Outback Steakhouse, create the Bloomin' Onion, and help build six restaurant brands across more than 1,400 locations worldwide. He became a five-time U.S. Open Polo Champion and was ranked number one in the world at fifty. He lost what he had built. And then he rebuilt it.

The teenager who dug pool ditches in Louisiana did not get here by accident. He got here by refusing, at every stage of his life, to treat a setback as a stopping point. From a French kitchen in Aspen to a New Orleans cafe with Al Copeland; from arriving in Tampa with $37 in his pocket to walking onto the polo field at Palm Beach; from the Bloomin' Onion to five U.S. Open championships, three of them in a row.

Bloomin' Adventures is not a business book dressed up as a memoir. It is the real story: raw, unfiltered, and hard-won. The kind of story that reminds you the most important ingredient in any recipe is the person willing to keep cooking.

Written with thirteen-time New York Times bestselling author Don Yaeger, Bloomin' Adventures traces a life built on grit, loyalty, and an unshakable belief that the right team can do anything. From the early days of working kitchens to the boardrooms of a publicly traded company, from the polo fields of Wellington to the pages of Sports Illustrated, this is a story about what happens when ambition meets hard work and refuses to let go.

Author: Tim Gannon
Publisher: Gannon Press
Published: 06/23/2026
Pages: 272
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 0.81lbs
Size: 9.00h x 6.00w x 0.61d
ISBN: 9798994936306


Review Citation(s):
Kirkus Reviews 01/01/0001

About the Author
Gannon, Tim: - Tim Gannon is the co-founder of Outback Steakhouse and the creator of the Bloomin' Onion, which has generated over $1 billion in sales. He and his partners also helped build Carrabba's Italian Grill, Fleming's Prime Steakhouse and Wine Bar, and Bonefish Grill under the Bloomin' Brands umbrella. Tim was named Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year and holds an honorary Doctorate of Business Administration and Food Service Management from Johnson & Wales University. He is a recipient of the Florida Restaurant Association Lifetime Achievement Award and has been inducted into the Museum of Polo and Hall of Fame. At age forty-two, he began playing polo. Within a decade, he founded the Outback Polo team, which Rolex ranked as the world's number one. He won five U.S. Open Polo Championships, competing alongside legends such as Adolfo Cambiaso and Memo Gracida, and was ranked number one in the world at fifty. Tim lives in Wellington, Florida.Yaeger, Don: - Don Yaeger is a thirteen-time New York Times bestselling author, Hall of Fame keynote speaker, and former Associate Editor of Sports Illustrated. He has authored or co-authored more than forty books, partnering with legends such as Walter Payton, John Wooden, and Warrick Dunn. He is the host of the Corporate Competitor Podcast and National Geographic's Storyteller-in-Residence. He lives in Tallahassee, Florida.Ortiz, Deyson: - Deyson Ortiz is a producer and creative director with over thirty years of experience in visual storytelling. He served as production manager for Bloomin' Adventures, shepherding the book from manuscript through publication. He is based in Florida.