Problems for Ritz-Carlton deal (Jamaica)

The Ritz-Carlton branded hotel located in Rose Hall, Montego Bay, which is owned by former beauty queen and attorney Michele Rollins, may well undergo a management contract buyout by the Sheila Johnson-led Salamander Hospitality, but any deal will be met by legal impediments which could see the Ritz-Carlton brand tied to the hotel for decades

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McDonald’s Accused of Selling Cancer-Causing Chicken

Oct. 21 (Bloomberg) -- McDonald’s Corp.,Burger King Holdings Inc. and Friendly Ice Cream Corp. were accused in a lawsuit of selling chicken they know contains a chemical that can cause cancer even in small amounts

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NY City sues Tavern on the Green operators over name

The city sued the operators of Tavern on the Green Wednesday in U.S. bankruptcy court in an effort to regain control over the name of the famed eatery.
Tavern on the Green filed for bankruptcy protection last month, claiming that its largest asset is the trademark it holds for the restaurant’s name, which has an estimated value of $19 million.

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Regent Inns sold in management buyout

Regent Inns chief executive John Leslie has led a management buyout of 60 of the group’s venues from administrators in a pre-pack deal.
Leslie headed a team comprising of a number of senior Regent Inns executives to acquire the units, which currently trade as Walkabout bars, Old Orleans restaurants and Jongleurs comedy venues.

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Brinker International Reports First Quarter Fiscal 2010 EPS

DALLAS, Oct. 20 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Brinker International, Inc. (NYSE: EAT) announced first quarter fiscal 2010 earnings per diluted share of $0.17 compared to $0.20 for the first quarter of fiscal 2009, before special items and excluding Romano's Macaroni Grill® (reconciliation included in Table 2). On a GAAP basis, earnings per diluted share decreased to $0.15 from $0.23 for the first quarter in the prior year

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Krispy Kreme Expanding in Caribbean

[2009-10-21] Krispy Kreme Doughnut Corporation announced that it entered into a franchise development agreement with Dominspec, S.A. for the development of 14 Krispy Kreme shops over the next five years in the Dominican Republic. Dominspec, S.A. is a quick-service restaurant conglomerate that operates Burger King and Papa John's restaurants in the Dominican Republic.

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Papa Bello buys Baltimore-based deli to develop new concept

Papa Bello Enterprises announced today that the company has signed a letter of intent to acquire Pastore's of Rosedale Inc., a Baltimore-based restaurant, deli and bakery chain. The announcement comes shortly after the restaurant's announcement to acquire Middle-Eastern themed Kebab Café.

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Domino's shutters eight Phoenix stores

Domino's had expanded quickly in the Phoenix area and is now closing eight of the 25 company-owned locations there, according to azcentral.com.

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Expedia pulls all Choice Hotels International inventory off its Web sites

On October 15, Expedia pulled all Choice Hotels International inventory off its Web sites after contract negotiations broke down. A few Choice hotels that have independent contracts with Expedia still can be found its sites, but just a handful.

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MGM Mirage takes huge charge

CHICAGO (MarketWatch) -- MGM Mirage said Tuesday it will take a nearly $1 billion charge in the third quarter to write-down the value of its massive CityCenter project in Las Vegas -- the same day that its controlling shareholder announced it was exploring "other alternatives" to its investment in the gambling and resort giant

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Pizza Hut going after wings market

Dallas-based Pizza Hut, a division of Yum! Brands, is making a strong move into the national chicken-wing market – one of the hottest sectors in retail food. Company president Scott Bergren announced the national launch of Pizza Hut's WingStreet brand on Oct. 19, joined by Dallas Cowboys’ wide receiver Roy Williams at a Pizza Hut franchise in Frisco run by Mike Baird.

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Miami’s Swank Shore Club Goes Delinquent

Things aren’t so sunny for New York developers Philip and Michael Pilevsky at their swank Miami Beach hotel The Shore Club, which recently went delinquent on its $111.5 million securitized mortgage.

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Billionaire investor Kerkorian considers options for MGM Mirage stake he calls 'undervalued'

Kerkorian, 92, MGM Mirage's majority stockholder until this year, said through his investment firm Tracinda Corp. that he is "exploring the possibility of strategic partnerships or other alternatives" for his stake in the Las Vegas-based casino company.

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SONIC REPORTS YEAR-END 2009 EARNINGS

- Net income per diluted share for the quarter totaled $0.28 versus $0.33 in the year-earlier quarter;
- System-wide same-store sales declined 4.5% for the fourth quarter; same-store sales at partner drive-ins (those in which the company owns a majority interest) declined 5.3% in the quarter;
- System-wide new drive-in openings totaled 41 compared with 58 in the fourth quarter last year, reflecting primarily the company's recent decision to slow partner drive-in development in conjunction with its refranchising initiative; franchisees opened 40 drive-ins versus 45 drive-ins in the same period last year; and
- The refranchising of 11 partner drive-ins during the quarter; these transactions bring to 205 the total number of drive-ins refranchised during fiscal 2009.

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P.F. Chang's Reports Third Quarter Earnings

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 21, 2009-- P.F. Chang’s China Bistro, Inc. (NASDAQ: PFCB) today reported consolidated income from continuing operations(1) of $6.2 million for the third quarter ended September 27, 2009 compared to $7.7 million for the third quarter of the prior year. Net income (2) for the third quarter of fiscal 2009 totaled $6.2 million compared to $3.0 million for the third quarter of the prior year.


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