$1.4M Restaurant Dispute
Jason Aldean, Luke Bryan Sued for $1.4M Over Nashville Steakhouse Lease Guarantee
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Country stars Jason Aldean, Luke Bryan, and former MLB player Adam LaRoche are facing a $1.4 million lawsuit over the failed E3 Chophouse in Nashville. Parade reports that a Nashville court issued a default judgment of $1,427,000 against the restaurant's operating company, Outlaws LLC, in April 2026 — and now the landlord wants the celebrities to pay up personally.
Landlord Village 21 Investment Partners filed an amended complaint on June 12, 2026, naming all three men as individual defendants, according to In Touch Weekly. The trio allegedly signed personal guarantees on a 10-year lease set to run through August 2029. A judge is scheduled to consider the motion on July 10.
A $4M Restaurant That Lasted Six Years
E3 Chophouse Nashville opened on November 20, 2019, with Aldean, Bryan, and LaRoche on hand for the launch. The 13,000-square-foot, three-story space — complete with a rooftop bar — cost an estimated $4 million to build out, according to Parade. The concept was built around beef from LaRoche's E3 Ranch in Fort Scott, Kansas, marketed as a "ranch-to-restaurant" experience.
The restaurant hit early trouble before it even closed. Whiskey Riff reports that a tax lien was issued against the business on November 3, 2025. By January and February 2026, Outlaws LLC stopped paying monthly rent. On February 19, the restaurant announced it was "evaluating what Nashville needs next" — but the landlord was already sending default notices.
Landlord Moves to Hold Stars Personally Liable
When Outlaws LLC failed to respond in court, a Nashville judge handed down a $1,427,000 default judgment on April 29, 2026, according to Parade. The operating company's lawyers filed a notice of appeal on May 1. But the landlord didn't wait. With Outlaws LLC appearing unable to pay, Village 21 Investment Partners went after the stars directly.
Legal experts say this move is common when a company can't cover its debts. By targeting the celebrities as personal guarantors, the landlord can go after their individual assets. A spokesperson for the ownership group told the Nashville Business Journal that the partners "had no prior knowledge of this complaint until now" and that a "resolution is already being worked towards."
Staff Left in the Dark as Doors Closed
The restaurant officially "paused" operations in February 2026, but employees say they were blindsided. According to Wide Open Country, General Manager Robert Kilborne cited "rising operating costs, increased pricing pressures, and the impacts of higher taxes" as key factors in the closure. The restaurant formally vacated and returned its keys to the landlord in May 2026.
Former staff reportedly learned about the closure without direct warning from ownership. An anonymous post in a hospitality group claimed owners were in town but did not tell workers they were losing their jobs after Valentine's Day weekend, according to reporting cited by Taste of Country. Neighbors in the Hillsboro Village area now worry about a 13,000-square-foot vacant anchor space sitting empty.
What the Lawsuit Could Mean for Celebrity Restaurant Deals
Nashville has seen a boom in celebrity-backed venues — Blake Shelton's Ole Red and Eric Church's Chief's are among the biggest. But E3 Chophouse sat in Hillsboro Village, away from the main tourist strip on Lower Broadway. That location put it in direct competition with established local fine dining, rather than benefiting from heavy tourist foot traffic.
If the landlord wins, the case could set a clear precedent: personal lease guarantees mean personal liability, even for stars with no day-to-day role in operations. TheStreet notes the outcome contrasts sharply with the E3 brand's original "veteran-supporting, humanitarian" mission. Future celebrity investors may push for licensing deals instead of directly signing their names to long-term leases.
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