COMPANYHISTORIES
NAIC 722110

Restaurants, Full Service

How the companies in this industry began, and the forces that shaped them.

80companies1799–1999founding years78still active2no longer operating
§ 01

The industry over time

Companies foundedEconomyTechnologyEnvironmentHistory
FoundedGreene King plc
1799
FoundedYoung & Co.'s Brewery, P.L.C.
1890
1903
TechnologyThe Wright brothers achieve powered flight.
1914
EconomyWorld War I begins; global trade reorders.
FoundedRestaurant Associates Corporation
1919
FoundedColonial Williamsburg Foundation
1928
1939
EconomyWorld War II begins; wartime production surges.
1945
EconomyThe war ends; a long global expansion begins.
1947
TechnologyThe transistor is invented.
FoundedAsahi Breweries, Ltd.
1949
1955
EconomyMcDonald's franchising begins, remaking fast food.
FoundedIHOP Corporation
1958
TechnologyThe integrated circuit is demonstrated.
1962
EnvironmentSilent Spring launches the modern environmental movement.
FoundedPortillo's Restaurant Group, Inc.
1963
FoundedBass PLC
1967
FoundedRuby Tuesday, Inc.
1972
1975
TechnologyThe personal-computer era begins.
FoundedAutogrill SpA
1977
FoundedMatt Prentice Restaurant Group
1980
1981
TechnologyThe IBM PC launches and sets a standard.
FoundedBuffets, Inc.FoundedWolfgang Puck Worldwide, Inc.
1983
1984
TechnologyApple ships the Macintosh; the GUI era begins.
FoundedJohnny Rockets Group, Inc.
1986
1989
HistoryThe Berlin Wall falls; global markets open up.
FoundedElior SA
1991
TechnologyThe World Wide Web is released to the public.
FoundedHOB Entertainment, Inc.
1992
FoundedLandry's Restaurants, Inc.
1993
TechnologyThe Mosaic browser brings the web to everyone.
FoundedMohegan Tribal Gaming Authority
1995
TechnologyWindows 95 launches; the internet goes mainstream.
1997
EnvironmentThe Kyoto Protocol sets the first climate targets.
2004
TechnologySocial media and Web 2.0 take hold.
2007
TechnologyThe iPhone launches the smartphone era.
2010
TechnologyCloud computing goes mainstream for business.
2015
EnvironmentThe Paris Agreement sets global climate targets.
2020
EconomyThe COVID-19 pandemic upends the global economy.
2022
EconomyInflation spikes; central banks raise rates sharply.
2023
TechnologyGenerative AI reaches mainstream business use.
§ 02

The companies

SWH Corporation →
Active
A subsidiary of Bob Evans Farms Inc., SWH Corporation is a Tustin, California-based company that operates the Mimi's…
Greene King plc →
Active · founded 1799 · United Kingdom
Located in eastern England, Greene King plc maintains a tradition of brewing beer in Bury St.
Bonnier AB →
Active · founded 1837 · Sweden
Bonnier AB is one of the Nordic region's leading media groups, losing out the top spot to Finland's SanomaWSOY in 2001.
Fuller Smith & Turner P.L.C. →
Active · founded 1845 · United Kingdom
While its larger U.K.
Whitbread PLC →
Active · founded 1889 · United Kingdom
Whitbread PLC is one of the leading players in the U.K.
Young & Co.'s Brewery, P.L.C. →
Active · founded 1890 · United Kingdom
1581: Humphrey Langridge operates the Ram Brewery.
Casino Guichard-Perrachon S.A. →
Active · founded 1898 · France
Casino Guichard-Perrachon S.A., or Groupe Casino, is one of France's largest retailers--battling it out with Carrefour…
Suntory Ltd. →
Active · founded 1907 · Japan
Suntory Ltd.
Phillips Foods, Inc. →
Active · founded 1914
Phillips Foods, Inc.
Restaurant Associates Corporation →
Active · founded 1919
Based in New York City, Restaurant Associates Corporation (RA) is a subsidiary of Compass Group USA, a unit of the…
Odakyu Electric Railway Co., Ltd. →
Active · founded 1923 · Japan
Odakyu Electric Railway Co., Ltd.
Rallye SA →
Active · founded 1924 · France
Rallye SA is one of France's--and the world's--top retail groups.
Maid-Rite Corporation →
Active · founded 1926
Maid-Rite Corporation's franchise restaurants have been serving their signature "loose meat" ground beef sandwiches…
Palm Management Corporation →
Active · founded 1926
Palm Management Corporation operates 30 upscale steakhouses in major U.S.
Colonial Williamsburg Foundation →
Active · founded 1928
The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation operates the oldest and largest (174 acres) outdoor living history museum in the…
Strauss-Elite Group →
Active · founded 1934 · Israel
Merging two of Israel's oldest and largest food companies in 2004, the Strauss-Elite Group has become that country's…
Uno Restaurant Holdings Corporation →
Active · founded 1943
Uno Restaurant Holdings Corporation is the controlling body for a group of companies that operate and/or franchise a…
Yamazaki Baking Co., Ltd. →
Active · founded 1948 · Japan
Yamazaki Baking Co., Ltd.
Asahi Breweries, Ltd. →
Active · founded 1949 · Japan
Asahi Breweries, Ltd.
Waffle House Inc. →
Active · founded 1955
According to a 2000 Nation's Restaurant News article, Joe Rogers, Jr., claimed that Waffle House had "successfully…
Embers America Restaurants →
Active · founded 1956
Embers America Restaurants, which began as a single-unit neighborhood restaurant in the mid-1950s, has transformed…
Bob Evans Farms, Inc. →
Active · founded 1957
Bob Evans Farms, Inc.
IHOP Corporation →
Active · founded 1958
IHOP Corporation operates and franchises the International House of Pancakes restaurant concept in the United States…
Flanigan's Enterprises, Inc. →
Active · founded 1959
Flanigan operated his business under three names during the 1990s.
VICORP Restaurants, Inc. →
Active · founded 1959
VICORP Restaurants, Inc., is a U.S.
Sanrio Company, Ltd. →
Active · founded 1960 · Japan
Japan's Sanrio Company, Ltd.
Donatos Pizzeria Corporation →
Active · founded 1963
Donatos Pizzeria Corporation is a subsidiary of McDonald's Corporation, part of the fast-food giant's specialty food…
Portillo's Restaurant Group, Inc. →
Active · founded 1963
Mentioning "Portillo's" in the Midwest garners instant recognition and makes mouths water.
Del Taco, Inc. →
Active · founded 1964
Del Taco, Inc.
Carlson Restaurants Worldwide →
Active · founded 1965
Carlson Restaurants Worldwide boasts a roster of 820 restaurants in 55 countries, with annual sales exceeding $2…
Cremonini S.p.A. →
Active · founded 1966 · Italy
Cremonini S.p.A.
Bass PLC →
Active · founded 1967 · United Kingdom
Conceived as a single brewery in the late 18th century, Bass PLC was in the process of a historic transition at the…
Grupo Eroski →
Active · founded 1969 · Spain
Grupo Eroski is the distribution arm and the largest part of Spain's powerful cooperative group Mondragon Corporacion…
Red Robin Gourmet Burgers, Inc. →
Active · founded 1969
Red Robin Gourmet Burgers, Inc.
New World Development Company Limited →
Active · founded 1970 · Hong Kong
Since its founding in 1970, New World Development Company Limited has been a leader in Hong Kong's bustling commercial…
J. Alexander's Corporation →
Active · founded 1971
J.
Ruby Tuesday, Inc. →
Active · founded 1972
Ruby Tuesday, Inc.
Peter Piper, Inc. →
Active · founded 1973
Peter Piper, Inc.
Chi-Chi's Inc. →
Defunct · founded 1975
Chi-Chi's Inc., owned by Prandium Inc., is a chain of 130 Mexican full-service restaurants that can be found in…
Romacorp, Inc. →
Active · founded 1976
Romacorp, Inc.
Autogrill SpA →
Active · founded 1977 · Italy
Autogrill SpA is the world's leading operator of travel restaurant facilities.
Hard Rock Cafe International, Inc. →
Active · founded 1977
Without rival for years, themed restaurant phenomenon Hard Rock Cafe International, Inc.
Ryan's Restaurant Group, Inc. →
Active · founded 1977
Ryan's Restaurant Group, Inc., operates more than 300 restaurants in the southern and midwestern United States.
McCormick & Schmick's Seafood Restaurants, Inc. →
Active · founded 1979
McCormick & Schmick's Seafood Restaurants, Inc.
Matt Prentice Restaurant Group →
Active · founded 1980
The Matt Prentice Restaurant Group runs more than a dozen eateries in the metropolitan area of Detroit, Michigan, and…
Sierra Nevada Brewing Company →
Active · founded 1980
Sierra Nevada Brewing Company is one of the top ten beer makers in the United States and the country's largest…
Hotel Properties Ltd. →
Active · founded 1981 · Singapore
Singapore's Hotel Properties Ltd.
Zingerman's Community of Businesses →
Active · founded 1982
Zingerman's Community of Businesses encompasses a delicatessen, a full-service restaurant, a catering service, a…
Accor S.A. →
Active · founded 1983 · France
Paris-based Accor S.A.
Buffets, Inc. →
Active · founded 1983
Buffets, Inc.
El Pollo Loco, Inc. →
Active · founded 1983
El Pollo Loco, Inc.
McMenamins Pubs and Breweries →
Active · founded 1983
McMenamins Pubs and Breweries owns and operates more than 50 establishments in Oregon and the state of Washington and…
Mendocino Brewing Company, Inc. →
Active · founded 1983
Mallya's interest in MBC stemmed from his ambitions as a businessman.
Wolfgang Puck Worldwide, Inc. →
Active · founded 1983
Wolfgang Puck Worldwide, Inc., brings the trademark cuisine of one of America's most celebrated chefs to an audience…
Bertucci's Corporation →
Active · founded 1984
Bertucci's Corporation, a casual-dining chain, owns a collection of full-service Italian restaurants that operate under…
Hooters of America, Inc. →
Active · founded 1984
Hooters of America, Inc.
Avado Brands, Inc. →
Active · founded 1986
Known until 1998 as Apple South, Avado Brands, Inc.
Cooker Restaurant Corporation →
Active · founded 1986
Cooker Restaurant Corporation is a 37-unit casual dining restaurant chain, with locations in Florida, Michigan, Ohio,…
Johnny Rockets Group, Inc. →
Active · founded 1986
Johnny Rockets Group, Inc.'s restaurants offer American nostalgia with a menu of basic American food, served in a…
5 & Diner Franchise Corporation →
Active · founded 1987
Mesa, Arizona-based 5 & Diner Franchise Corporation operates some 20 freestanding 1950s style, family-friendly diners…
Luminar Plc →
Active · founded 1987 · United Kingdom
Luminar Plc is the United Kingdom's leading nightclub owner and operator, with more than 250 nightclubs, bars, and…
Deschutes Brewery, Inc. →
Active · founded 1988
Deschutes Brewery, Inc.
Elior SA →
Active · founded 1991 · France
Elior SA is one of the top three contract catering groups in Europe--and number one in France and Spain.
Worldwide Restaurant Concepts, Inc. →
Active · founded 1991
Worldwide Restaurant Concepts, Inc.
Bad Boy Worldwide Entertainment Group →
Active · founded 1992
Bad Boy Worldwide Entertainment Group is owned by Sean Combs, an entertainment and media dynamo whose many business…
Gate Gourmet International AG →
Active · founded 1992 · Switzerland
Gate Gourmet International AG is a leading supplier of in-flight food service for the global airline industry.
HOB Entertainment, Inc. →
Active · founded 1992
HOB Entertainment, Inc.
Lone Star Steakhouse & Saloon, Inc. →
Active · founded 1992
Lone Star Steakhouse & Saloon, Inc.
Mashantucket Pequot Gaming Enterprise Inc. →
Active · founded 1992
Mashantucket Pequot Gaming Enterprise Inc.
The WesterN SizzliN Corporation →
Active · founded 1992
Foti stayed on as CEO of the combined company, which received a major financial boost in June 2000 when it reached a…
Ameristar Casinos, Inc. →
Defunct · founded 1993
Ameristar Casinos, Inc.
Landry's Restaurants, Inc. →
Active · founded 1993
Landry's Restaurants, Inc.
Texas Roadhouse, Inc. →
Active · founded 1993
Texas Roadhouse, Inc.
Buca, Inc. →
Active · founded 1994
Buca, Inc.
Rock Bottom Restaurants, Inc. →
Active · founded 1994
Rock Bottom Restaurants, Inc.
Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authority →
Active · founded 1995
The Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authority operates the Mohegan Sun casino for the Mohegan Tribe of Indians of Connecticut.
Richtree Inc. →
Active · founded 1996 · Canada
Richtree Inc.
Caffè Nero Group PLC →
Active · founded 1997 · United Kingdom
Caffè Nero Group PLC ranks as one of the three largest operators of espresso shops in the United Kingdom, trailing…
Cosi, Inc. →
Active · founded 1999
Cosi, Inc.
SanomaWSOY Corporation →
Active · founded 1999 · Finland
Finland's SanomaWSOY Corporation leapt onto the broader European media scene with the 2001 acquisition of VNU's…
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