Industry News: Foodservice

Personnel Updates:ARAMARKannounced the appointment of Steve Reynolds as Exec VP, General Counsel andSecretary, effective 9/4/12.
Carlsonnamed Trudy Rautio as CEO/President; she succeeds Hubert Joly who left tobecome CEO of Best Buy.
Church’s Chicken hired Craig S. Prusher as Senior VP/General Counsel; he was mostrecently at Burger King Corporation.
Compass Group named Charles LaMonica Division President for Morrison Healthcare.
Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc. announced that Executive Chairman Michael A.Woodhouse will be resigning from that position in early November; James W.Bradford will be named Non-Executive Chairman at that time.
First Watchhired Chris Olson as VP of Finance; he was most recently at Ruth’s Hospitality Group.
Garbanzo Mediterranean Grill promoted Bob Bafundo to VP of Franchise Operations.
Hilton Worldwide named CTO Bill Murphy to the position of CIO.
Jack in the BoxChief Marketing Officer Terri Funk Graham resigned; the company is not seekinga replacement.
Liquid Nutrition appointed Evan Brown as CFO.
McAlister’s Deli named Donna Josephson VP of Marketing; she previously served as RegionalMarketing Director for The Wendy’sCompany Inc.
Michael Mina San Francisco’s new Executive Chef is Ron Siegel.
Pizza Hut’s CIO Baron Concours is now CIO of YUM! Brands international operations.
Salsarita’snamed former Bojangle’s executiveChris Bailey as its VP of Franchise Development.
Sbarroappointed Angela Hornsby as Chief People Officer; she was most recently atDineEquity. Sbarro also hired Eric Taylor as VP of International FranchiseDevelopment and Dave Gleason as VP of Franchise Development for North America.
Smashburgernamed Brett Willis as Senior VP of Franchise Sales; he was most recently at Johnny Rockets.
Stonewood Holdings, LLC announced the promotion of Sam Aguilar to RegionalDirector of Operations for the Southwest Florida Region of Stonewood Grill& Tavern.
The Homesteadnamed Sean O'Connell as Executive Chef and Kevin Phenegar as Director of Foodand Beverage.
Tropical Smoothie Café named Scott Pressly as Chairman and promoted MikeRotondo to CEO.
Tropicana Las Vegas Inc. appointed Daniel M. Wade President and COO.
Vail Resorts, Inc. announced that Jeffrey W. Jones, chief financial officer andpresident of the company's lodging, retail and real estate businesses, will beretiring effective 12/ 31/12. The company will begin an immediate search forhis replacement.
Waterford Hotel Group appointed Christopher Flagg as director ofdevelopment.

Financial Focus: Brinker International reported revenues of $2,820,722,000 for the yearending 6/27/12.
SYSCO Corporation reported sales of $42,380,939,000 for the year ending6/30/12.

Mergers &Acquisitions: AMC Entertainment was acquired by Dalian Wanda Group Co. Ltd., China’s largest investorin cultural and entertainment activities.
Benihana Inc.announced the completion of its acquisition by funds advised by the PrivateEquity Group of Angelo, Gordon & Co.; the transaction privatized thecompany.
Darden Restaurants completed its previously announced acquisition of Yard House USA Inc.
Diversified Restaurant Holdings, Inc. announced it executed an agreement to acquire eight Buffalo Wild Wing restaurants locatedin IL and IN. DRH expects to complete the purchase by the end of October 2012subject to customary closing conditions.
Heartland Food Corp. acquired 121 Burger Kingrestaurants from the franchisor, making it the second largest Burger Kingfranchisee in the world.
Reinhart Foodservice Louisiana LLC announced that it entered into an agreement with P.A. Menard, Inc. to acquire certainassets of the latter’s business in New Orleans, LA. The transactionsubsequently closed on 8/20/12. P.A. Menard's operations will be subsequentlyintegrated into Reinhart's New Orleans distribution facility.
Tavistock FREEBIRDS LLC agreed to acquire seven restaurants in the CentralValley of CA from a Qdobafranchisee; the restaurants will be converted to company-owned and –operatedFREEBIRDS WORLD BURRITOS locations.
Tropical Smoothie Café was acquired by BIP Opportunities Fund.
Unique Pizza and Subs Corporation announced that it has signed a Definitive Agreementto acquire privately held Pizza FusionHoldings, with closing expected by the end of the third calendar quarter.Pizza Fusion will become a wholly owned subsidiary of the parent company UniquePizza and Subs.

Industry Insight:Arby's Restaurant Group Inc. awarded FM Facility Maintenance a comprehensivefacilities services contract that will eventually cover more than 1,100corporate Arby’s locations across the U.S.
Buffalo Wild Wings announced an agreement for 22 new restaurants in theMiddle East.
California Pizza Kitchen offices have relocated to 12181 Bluff Creek Drive,5th Floor, Playa Vista, CA 90094; the office number is 310-342-5000.
Caribou Coffeehas begun an on-site growth strategy in one of its core markets by partneringwith Jewel-Osco, one of the largest grocery store chains in the Chicago area.Three locations will open in 2012 and another five in 2013.
Del Frisco's Restaurant Group LLC began trading as a publicly-held company on theNASDAQ Select Market as DFRG.
DineEquity, Inc.announced  the opening of the firstIHOP restaurant in the Middle East,an IHOP in The Mall of the Emirates, in the Al Barsha district of Dubai, UnitedArab Emirates; the opening marks the first of a 40-restaurant developmentagreement for restaurants in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Lebanon, Qatar, theUnited Arab Emirates, Oman, Bahrain and Egypt.
Domino’s Pizza opened its first location in Nigeria.
International Dairy Queen Inc. announced it will add its Orange Julius smoothie brand to all of its Dairy Queen locations byNovember.
Jack in the Boxentered into an agreement to outsource its distribution business and expectsthe transition to be completed by the end of the first quarter of fiscal 2013.
Krispy Kreme Doughnuts will add an additional 80 stores in India over thenext five years.
Mobay Uptown Restaurant and Barbecue in New York, NY, filed Chapter 7 bankruptcy.
OSI Restaurant Partners' parent company Bloomin' Brands began trading on theNASDAQ Global Market as BLMN.
Pollo Tropicalannounced its first franchise development agreement outside the WesternHemisphere – a 10-unit deal to bring the chain to northern India.
Ruth’s Chris Steak House opened locations in Singapore and San Salvador.
The Cheesecake Factory opened its first international location with a storein Dubai.

Real Estate:16 Handles is opened four new locations in the New York metroarea.
Bennigan’s Franchising Company and shopping center owner Brixmor Property Groupformed a strategic partnership to market Bennigan’s franchising opportunitiesat select Brixmor centers; the two companies are now evaluating up to 30potential locations for Bennigan’s restaurants for the initial phase of thepartnership.
Buffalo Wild Wings announced an agreement for four locations in Puerto Rico by the end of2016.
Del Tacoannounced a development agreement for 20 locations in new markets in AL andnorth FL; the first store is planned for early 2013.
Dunkin' Donutsannounced that the company is recruiting franchisees for the markets of Reno,NV; Wichita and Topeka, KS; as well as portions of TX, including territories inthe western, southern and eastern portions of the state that include citiessuch as Amarillo and Corpus Christi. The company expects that restaurants inthese markets will begin to open in 2014. Dunkin’ Donuts also signed amulti-unit store development agreement for 24 new restaurants in AL over thenext several years and four more agreements for 29 restaurants in Houston andWaco between 2013 and 2019.
F2o Holding(dba Fresh To Order) plans to openat least 25 new restaurants in the Carolinas over the next four years and isactively seeking franchisees statewide.
Front Burner Brands (dba Burger21)is targeting the Atlanta area for expansion.
Garbanzo Mediterranean Grill awarded franchise development rights for 10 locationsin OK.
Habit Restaurants LLC announced plans to open four additional restaurantsin Orange County CA by the end of the year.
Jamba Juice Inc. signed a five-store development agreement for CT.
Mama Fu's Asian House plans to open 20 locations across AL in the next fewyears, including six in Birmingham.
Moe’s Southwest Grill will open 25 new locations throughout the Midwest.
On The Border Mexican Grill & Cantina is remodeling its locations, using a quieter colorpalate, a large screened-in patio, and a more open kitchen.
Pancheros Mexican Grill announced five development agreements, adding 39locations, which include its first commitments on the West Coast. The newcommitments will open restaurants in three new states including CA, NV, OR, andadditional units in MN.
Papa John’sis hoping to entice new franchisees by offering an incentive package thatincludes no franchise fee, $50K in equipment, royalty waiver for up to 18months, and $3K food credit with PJ Food Service.
Pizza Patrónhas executed a development agreement with SA Pizza, Inc. to bring eight morestores to the San Antonio area within the next 31 months. Pizza Patron also openedup the San Diego DMA for development and plans to add 15 more locations in themarket. Pizza Patron is also expanding in the Chicago metro area, with 30+locations being projected for the DMA.
Pizza Ranchhas opened its first restaurant in Billings MT that also marks the firstlocation in the state.
Quaker Steak & Lube signed a three-unit development agreement for citiesin ND and SD.
TCBY islooking to add 20 stores in the Dallas/Ft. Worth TX market and 25 stores inChicago in the next three to five years.

GreenInitiatives:Chipotle Mexican Grill said it plans to serve more than 10 million pounds oflocally grown produce for the second year in a row, up from 5 million poundsjust two years ago. Food that is locally grown is fresher and better tasting,and supports local farm communities around the country.
The Holland Inc. (dba Burgerville) developeda list of solutions for reducing water and energy consumption and greenhousegas (GHG) emissions across the company. The solutions include energy managementcontrol systems, onsite renewable energy development, landscaping improvements,appliance upgrades, employee education and awareness programs, and externalstakeholder engagement.
Darden Restaurants issued its second sustainability report noting it has made progress inall areas of sustainability across its more than 1,900 restaurants, 180,000employees and global supply chain. Most notably, the company has exceeded its2015 goal of reducing water consumption in each of its restaurants by 15percent on aggregate and is more than half way toward meeting the same goal forreducing energy consumption in its restaurants. The report includesaccomplishments such as: •Completing new greenbuilding prototypes for Red Lobster,Olive Garden and LongHorn Steakhouse, enabling all newrestaurants to align with Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED)certification standards.•Achieving 100 percent recyclingrate for discarded fry oil, which totaled 20 million gallons in FY11.•Tripling the number ofDarden restaurants that take part in single-stream recycling of glass, plasticsand aluminum.•Increasing Darden's landfilldiversion rate by 14 percent.
Jamba Juice Company announced that is has enhanced its comprehensive eco-sustainabilitystrategy by forming a strategic relationship with the Global Green USA’sCoalition of Resource Recovery (CoRR), an industry working group dedicated toaccelerating waste diversion programs. The alliance will help support JambaJuice® in their efforts to reduce waste and energy consumption and increase theuse of more environmentally friendly materials, including the phasing out ofpolystyrene, which Jamba intends to complete during 2013.
Starbucks isworking with biorefinery scientists to turn its used coffee grounds and bakeryfood waste into bioplastics, laundry detergents and other everyday products.The coffee chain, which has a goal of offering front-of-store recycling in allof its company-owned coffee shops by 2015, has also developed a “closed loop”recycling system in its Chicago stores, shipping used cups to a Green Bay WIfacility where they are mixed with other recyclables and turned into napkinsfor use in Starbucks locations. And it says it’s looking into turning used cupsinto serving trays.