Carrabba's is another Sullivan-Gannon-Basham success. Started in 1993 with development and roll-out of a Houston-family trattoria and timed perfectly to take advantage of the growing popularity of Italian food, the moderately priced collection now numbers 65, with 27 in Florida. Other chains cradled in our state include the following:
Burger King, a behemoth with 10,200 outlets worldwide, recently decided to keep its headquarters in south Florida, within 35 miles of its current south Miami-Dade County 80-acre campus complete with a Burger King University. It has also made major design and decor changes, the first in 30 years, with prototypes being tested in Weston and among the 43 units in Orlando.
Durango Steak House is a Clearwater creation with 17 links, all in Florida, but it cannot lay claim to the kind of meteoric expansion as its Clearwater cousin Hooters, which was launched by six local businessmen in a tatty biker bar back in 1983. Durango is strictly moderate-priced and family-oriented.
First Watch, based in Sarasota, is a daytime-only operation serving breakfast, lunch and brunch, obviously an idea whose time has come. There are now 33 in Florida and five other states, including Arizona and California, serving the likes of Southwest-spiced omelets, Floridian French Toast, Key West Crepes and my favorite, the spinach salad sprinkled with nuts and bleu cheese.
Hops is another Tampa-incubated success story, developed by David Mason and President/CEO Tom Schelldorf, who opened their first grill and on-site brewery in Clearwater in l989. Today Hops has 52 grain-to-glass microbreweries on view, found as far west as Denver and as far north as Minneapolis, with 28 in Florida. Kitchens are also on display, producing a variety of such temptations as burgers and burritos, salmon and Jamaica-spiced top sirloins and crunchy salads to go with the handmade brews.
Kenny Rogers Roasters was a Fort Lauderdale-based idea whose time had not come. The company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in March 1998 and was later purchased by Westbury, N.Y.'s Nathan's Famous, an 82-year-old company with 26 company-owned outlets, 166 franchisees and more than 400 other places that market its signature hot dog. Nathan's in November made another major move on a Fort Lauderdale-based company when it purchased 30% of the stock of Miami Subs, proposing merger of the two. Miami Subs currently has 192 restaurants, co-branding with Arthur Treacher's, in 16 states and Central and South America.
Loop Pizza Grill started in Jacksonville in 1981 when Mike and Terry Schneider decided to dress up fast food in the style of an upscale neighborhood cafe, such as the neighborhood of San Marco where they put their first, building an enthusiastic legion of fans with designer pizzas California style, great burgers and Chicago hot dogs, and salads as super as gorgonzola walnut and cajun chicken served in baked-to-order focaccia bread. No wonder they now have 14 restaurants, 12 in Florida.
Melting Pot is another Tampa baby, born in 1975 and grown to a total of 46 restaurants, 15 of them in Florida. Under the leadership of the Johnston brothers, Mike, Mark and Bob, it has come a long way since that first Pot in Maitland, which had just two items on the menu - beef and cheese fondue. Now there's everything from seafood to Andouille and smoked duck cognac sausages, shiitake and portabello mushrooms, Surf & Turf for dipping in Court Bouillon broth. All this is prelude to the chocoholic's dream dessert - s'mores, brownies, dark and white chocolate, ready for the dipping.
Pofolks, based in Panama City, started re-inventing itself three years ago with new owners, Chairman Peter Sostheim, Bill Hall and Grant Givens, concentrating on smaller locations of 3,000 to 4,000 square feet and the perfection of signature dishes that deliver on the promise of "Hearty, Homestyle Cooking," reasonably priced and delivered with lots of smiles in a nostalgia-laden, fun setting. There are 30 units, five in north Florida and three others in-state. But there will be more as the management team starts scoring on the franchise front - 15 slated for Illinois.
Red's Backwoods BBQ, based in Boca Raton, is a real newcomer, opening its first prototypes in Boca Raton and West Palm Beach in 1997, featuring St. Louis-style ribs, chicken and pork that's been dry-rubbed and slow-cooked over wood chips. Main man is Chairman and CEO Bruce Wunner, who put in 33 years as a McDonald's corporate executive and speaks confidently about expanding his present trio of Florida BBQs with links in Georgia and South Carolina and working up to a total of 400 within five years. With great sauces, Brunswick stew, 15-bean soup, apple-studded baked beans and pecan-coated catfish on the menu, I take him seriously.
Roadhouse Grill is another Fort Lauderdale-based national presence. It reported in February four consecutive quarters of profitability, a sure indication that new management concentrated on making money. They recently opened three more outlets and are planning another 12 to 15 in the next year. The count now for this winner that revived the old peanut shells on the floor approach to decor, with stacks of steaks on display and grill chefs smoking up a storm, is 56.
Shells, yet another Tampa triumph, has half-a-hundred beachheads, including 32 in Florida, and a slogan of "Great Casual Seafood," adding a bit of fun to family feeding with splashy colors, oversize fish hanging about and such words of wisdom as "Take Time to Smell the Flounders," "Walk Softly and Carry a Big Snook," advising their guests that "What You Eat Is More Important Than What You Wear." What I eat is the clam-loaded chowder, the fish spread, seafood pasta and fresh fish flattered on the grill.
Tu Tu Tango is an 8-year-old Miami-based mini-chain currently on a national rollout after successes in Coconut Grove and Aventura Mall in Miami-Dade as well as Orlando, Atlanta and California's Orange County. Tango Group founder and Chairman Bradley Weiser expects openings this summer in Columbus, Ohio, and south Florida's Sawgrass Mills, where it will form an integral part of the shoppertainment complex, fulfilling the Tu Tu Tango theme of artist garret on New Year's Eve and offering tapas-style temptations with a welcome variety of routine-smashing appetizers and entrees.