Successful restaurateurs can launch a dynasty of restaurants in a city that supports their vision. These influential entrepreneurs give back to their local communities by hiring locally, sourcing food locally and engaging in local community service.
A successful restaurant empire has a symbiotic effect. The city benefits from fine dining, beautiful venues and catering availability. The restaurants lead economic expansion and revitalization projects in neighborhoods, cities and across the country. Every new build out of a restaurant requires professional services, restaurant equipment and supplies and a diverse workforce. Each of these mid-sized cities has a leading restaurant group that impacts the workforce, economy and culture of the host city.
Charlotte, NC – Bottle Cap Group
Fewer than 50 employees work for this fast-growing restaurant group in Charlotte, NC. Founded in 2009 by three investors, they’ve recently opened Ink N Ivy and Wu’s Cajun Seafood, an Asian-Cajun fusion restaurant. Other ventures include the old-school Diner 24, Southend Station, Whiskey Warehouse, Jack's Corner Tap and Brazwells Premium Pub, along with Vine Nightclub, Sip, Snapper Jacks, Oak Room, Slate, Hot Taco and All American Pub.
Indio, CA – Kaiser Restaurant Group
The Morcus Family has six restaurants with more than 390 employees in their unique businesses in the Coachella Valley. The restaurant group, founded in 1992, focuses on all-natural, high-quality steak, free of antibiotics and hormones, wild and sustainable seafood and pasta meals at their various restaurants. Properties include Kaiser Grille, Hog’s Breath Inn, The Chop House, Jackalope Ranch, Grind Brgr Bar and The Big Fish Grille & Oyster Bar.
Toronto, ON – Gusto 54
CEO Janet Zuccarini founded Gusto 54 in 1996 when she opened Trattoria Nervosa in the Bloor-Yorkville area of Toronto. It is now a globally expanding restaurant group that includes Trattoria Nervosa, Gusto 101, Gusto 54 Catering, Pai Northern Thai Kitchen, Felix Trattoria, Chubby’s Jamaican Kitchen, Kiin and Gusto 501. The privately held company employs more than 500 people and seeks to respect the past while rewriting the rules.
Provo, UT – Heirloom Restaurant Group
Heirloom Restaurant Group is a privately held restaurant group in Provo that employs about 250 people. Colton Soelberg and Joseph McRae started the venture in 2007 after having worked together at the renowned Tree Room at the Sundance Resort. The family of restaurants includes Communal Restaurant, Pizzeria 712, Mountain West Burrito, Heirloom Catering and Cafeteria Co.
Portland, ME – Big Tree Hospitality
Hugos, Eventide and Honey Paw are nationally acclaimed restaurants in Portland run by founders Arlin Smith, Andrew Taylor and Mike Wiley. Taylor and Wiley were nominated for the award Best Chef: Northeast by the James Beard Foundation at Hugo's and went on to open two more restaurants together, adding Wiley as a partner. The three restaurants have made big waves in the Maine dining scene by transforming ordinary dishes to extraordinary. The privately held company focuses on doing the simple things well.
Milwaukee, WI – The Bartolotta Restaurants
With more than a dozen successful restaurants, a busy catering operation and a slew of new concepts on the way, the Bartolotta Restaurants have grown steadily since the opening of Ristorante Bartolotta in Wauwatosa in 1993. Today, the group employs around 1,100 people at its stable of restaurants: Ristorante Bartolotta, Lake Park Bistro, Bacchus, Mr. B’s, Harbor House, Rumpus Room, two Joey Gerard’s locations, Pizzeria Piccola, Northpoint Custard, Miss Beverly’s Deluxe Barbeque and Bartolotta Catering & Events, which handles all catering at Pier Wisconsin and the Grain Exchange downtown.
Boulder, CO – The Big Red F Restaurant Group
Big Red F, created by Chef Dave Query in 1994, has a long history with food in Boulder. Properties include Jax Fish House, Zolo Grill, Centro Mexican Kitchen, Lola Coastal Mexican, West End Tavern and The Post. They use natural meat and source cleaner ingredients, as well as local and natural when possible. They grow a dedicated herb garden to supply the restaurant family and only support environmentally conscious and sustainable fishing sources for their seafood.
Long Island, NY -Bohlsen Restaurant Group
Michael and Kurt Bohlsen, third generation restaurateurs, uphold the family tradition of mixing the essential ingredients for a successful restaurant enterprise, including service, style and cuisine. This privately held restaurant group owns and operates eight well-known dining establishments. For Monsoon, they offer Steak & Sushi, Gold Coast Harborfront Prime and Harbor Club at Prime. For Prime, there is An American Kitchen & Bar. For Vibrant H2O, there’s Seafood & Sushi and An American Chophouse. For Verace, they have True Italian and Pizza Parm Islip.
Richmond, VA – Richmond Restaurant Group
Richmond Restaurant Group, Inc. (RRG), located in Richmond, Virginia, was founded in 1995 by Michelle Williams, Jared Golden and Ted Wallof. Their seven restaurant properties include The Daily Kitchen & Bar, Pearl Raw Bar, The Hard Shell Downtown, The Hard Shell Bellgrade, East Coast Provisions and The Hill Café. The restaurant group has over 500 employees, 30,000 square feet of dining space and has launched 10 unique restaurant concepts. RRG plans to open an 8th restaurant by the end of 2017.
Cincinnati, OH – Boca Restaurant Group
Founding chef and company president David Falk started Boca at just 26 years old. With culinary school under his belt, he opened Boca in Cincinnati’s Northside in 2001. His unique approach to blending haute cuisine with the comfort of grandma’s house took off and helped him launch two more high-performing and distinct concepts. The properties include Boca, Nada and Sotto.
Santa Fe, NM – Santa Fe Dining
The son of a Colorado investment banker, Gerald Peters, came to Santa Fe in 1966 to attend St. John's College and eventually married into a prominent Santa Fe family. In addition to his privately held restaurant group, Peters has an art gallery and other significant property holdings around Santa Fe. The group owns and operates Chama River Brewing in Albuquerque, as well as La Casa Sena, La Cantina, Rio Chama Steak House and the Blue Corn Cafes in Santa Fe, Rooftop Pizza, 35 North Coffee, Maria’s, Draft Station and Kelly’s Brew Pub.
Vancouver, BC – Glowbal Restaurant Group
Glowbal Restaurant Group is all about fresh, vital and vibrant concepts. Glowbal, COAST Restaurant, Italian Kitchen, IK2GO, Trattoria, Black+Blue, The Roof, The Fish Shack and Nosh make up the group’s portfolio of restaurants. The inventive, celebrated restaurant group was founded in 2002, is privately held and employs around 500 people.
Seattle – Heavy Restaurant Group
Founded in 2001, Larry and Tabitha Kurofsky create, develop and operate restaurants, an event space and a catering company throughout Seattle and the Eastside. Their first restaurant was the Purple Café and Wine Bar in Woodinville, WA. Heavy Restaurant Group oversees five restaurant concepts and eight locations in the greater Seattle area, including Purple Café and Wine Bar, Barrio Mexican Kitchen & Bar, Lot No. 3, The Commons and Cast Iron Studios.
Kalamazoo, MI – Millennium Restaurant Group
Millennium Restaurant Group is a partnership formed by a group of restaurateurs from the Kalamazoo, Michigan, area in 2000. The group focuses on casual restaurant concepts with a creative kitchen. Martell’s, Epic Bistro, Central City Tap House, Centre Street Tap House, The Union Cabaret and Grille, Panini Express, Fieldstone Grill, The Wine Loft, Cityscape Events Center, The Idler Riverboat and Millennium Catering make up their properties.
Alexandria, VA – Neighborhood Restaurant Group
The Neighborhood Restaurant Group was founded in 1997. What began modestly as the Evening Star Cafe, a rollicking corner restaurant in Alexandria’s Del Ray neighborhood, has now grown to include 16 restaurants, a wine shop, a bakery, a butcher shop, a full-service catering business and Arcadia, a nonprofit sustainable farming and food initiative. The group currently employs nearly 700 people.
Baltimore, MD – Atlas Restaurant Group
Headquartered in Baltimore, the Atlas Restaurant Group owns and operates several of the city's top restaurants. Ouzo Bay Greek Kouzina in 2012, Azumi in the Four Seasons Hotel in 2014, Loch Bar in the Four Seasons Hotel followed and Ouzo Bay Boca opened in 2017. Atlas Restaurant Group owner Alexander Smith plans to open Tagliata, an Italian Chophouse in the summer of 2017.
The Atlas Restaurant Group also owns the Harbor East Deli, the area's premier fast-casual restaurant, serving the best soups, salads, pizza and sandwiches. The Atlas Restaurant Group has helped elevate Baltimore's dining reputation and by the end of 2017, will be Baltimore's largest privately held Baltimore-based restaurant group, employing over 500 people in nine different establishments.
Jackson Hole, WY - Fine Dining Restaurant Group
Leading culinary minds Gavin Fine and Roger Freedman opened their restaurant group in 2001. Based on his success after opening Rendezvous Bistro, the restaurant group expanded to include Bistro Catering (2003), the Q Roadhouse & Brewing Co. (2006), Il Villaggio Osteria (2008), the Kitchen (2011), Park City's Silver (2011) and most recently expanded on the wine and craft beer sides of the business with Bin22 in downtown Jackson, WY, and Roadhouse Brewing Co. The carefully crafted menus emphasize simplicity and the utilization of seasonal flavors and ingredients.
Greenville, SC – Table 301
Carl Sobocinski opened his first restaurant in 1997. A modern Southern restaurant fits into the food scene perfectly and kicked off a series of successful ventures. Nosedive, Passerelle, Lazy Goat, Southern Pressed Juicery, Soby’s on the Side and Jianna now complete the portfolio. Papi’s Tacos, a joint venture with one of his co-founders, is expected to equal the success of the other properties and give another boost to the local restaurant scene.
St. Louis – Bailey’s Restaurant
David Bailey helms the ship, which is home to Rooster, Bailey’s Chocolate Bar, Bridge Tap House, Bailey’s Range, Small Batch and The Fifth Wheel. This restaurant empire began with a little help from his friends, who literally cleaned up the vacant space, painted the walls and made the artwork for his first venture.
Baileys’ Restaurants is now vital to the St. Louis food scene, employing more than 300 people and serving more than 500,000 customers each year. The restaurants depend upon a unique central kitchen and bakery to provide most ingredients from scratch. The restaurant group is grateful to the city for its success and gives back more than $50,000 annually to local active nonprofit groups and organizations.
Columbus, OH – Cameron Mitchell Restaurants
Cameron Mitchell is said to have mapped out his career goals at his mother's dining room table. After his first successful venture, he diversified and expanded his empire. The company that started from a proud mom’s dining room table began to run the table with a string of successes. Mitchell’s successes in business and a keen understanding of the restaurant industry have earned him countless awards and acknowledgments.
Cameron Mitchell Restaurants has grown to 34 sites and 15 different concepts while remaining privately-held. The properties include Cameron’s, Cap City Fine Diner & Bar, The Guild House, Hudson 29 Kitchen + Drink, M at Miranova, Martini Modern Italian, Marcella’s, Ocean Prime, Molly Woo’s Asian Bistro, The Pearl Restaurant, The Barn at Rocky Fork Creek and The Avenue Steak Tavern. The company also has a thriving catering business in Columbus.
Nashville, TN – Strategic Hospitality Group
Strategic Hospitality, founded in 2006 and owned by brothers Benjamin and Max Goldberg, is a Nashville-based hospitality company responsible for helping to shape the city’s dining landscape by continuously introducing innovative, one-of-a-kind concepts. Properties include many unique options. Paradise Park is a kitschy honky tonk on Lower Broadway. The Patterson House is a sophisticated speakeasy-style cocktail lounge, specializing in hand-crafted artisan cocktails. Aerial is a glass-encased rooftop private event space overlooking downtown Nashville. Merchants Restaurant is located in a historic building on the corner of 4th and Broadway in downtown Nashville. The Catbird Seat is an intimate, interactive and chef-run restaurant. There’s also Pinewood Social, a third space, bar and restaurant with six bowling lanes and an outdoor space, complete with two dipping pools. Le Sel, located in Midtown, is a fresh take on French cuisine. Bastion is a cocktail bar and hang out in Wedgewood Houston. The Band Box is a 4,000-square-foot outdoor bar and restaurant located in the right field of First Tennessee Park, home of the Nashville Sounds.
Atlanta, GA – Buckhead Life Restaurant Group
Atlanta-based and nationally acclaimed Buckhead Life Restaurant Group owns and operates 10 award-winning, extremely popular restaurants in Atlanta. The company, founded and run by legendary restaurateur, Pano Karatassos, has dominated the Atlanta dining scene for more than 30 years and is currently planning an additional expansion. The restaurants include Atlanta Fish Market, Buckhead Diner, Bistro Niko, Buckhead Bread Company & Corner Café, Chops Lobster Bar, Kyma, Pricci and 103 West.
Virginia Beach, VA – Zero’s Subs
Zero’s Subs opened in Virginia Beach, VA, in 1967, and very quickly became a local icon. Gene Schmidt started the chain based on the simple idea of providing oven-baked, fresh, hot submarine sandwiches to his customers. Eventually his brother and cousin joined the company. They were so successful in the Hampton Roads region of Virginia that in 1996 they began franchising the restaurants. Currently, they have over 30 locations throughout the Southeast.
Norfolk, VA – Pollards Chicken
Pollards has been a Norfolk favorite for decades. The restaurant actually started in 1953 as a catering service run from the kitchen of Elizabeth Pollard and was called Betty Pollard’s Catering. Her two sons, Clyde and Robert, opened the first brick-and-mortar sit-down location in 1967. Pollards has won the Best of Hampton Roads Gold Winner award for the best eatery in the area for an unprecedented 21 years in a row. Pollards still offers catering and recently added online ordering through their website.
Dallas-Fort Worth – The Fiesta Restaurant Group
Actually started in Miami, the Fiesta Restaurant Group quickly moved to Dallas and has since become one of the dominating food service companies in the area. The Group operates Pollo Tropical and Taco Cabana. These popular brands are known for fast-casual dining, made-from-scratch entrees and fresh salsa bars. Both brands offer online ordering and drive-through service.Final Thoughts
Restaurateurs with vision can launch an empire in a city that supports them. These restaurant empires became so successful the restaurant groups they launched have had an influence on the city itself. Some of these groups sparked a vibrant food scene; others have been influential on the economic revitalization of an entire neighborhood. Any way you look at it, these cities and restaurant groups have a supportive effect on the diversity, vibrancy and happiness of their communities.7 years ago
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