Burger King makes management changes

Burger King Holdings said Monday it has made numerous changes to its senior management team.
The shuffle comes a little more than a month after Burger King announced it was being acquired by affiliates of 3G Capital.

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Darden expands to Middle East with franchise deal

Darden's Restaurants Inc. is working with Americana Group to develop and run its Red Lobster, Olive Garden and LongHorn Steakhouse brands in the Middle East.
Terms were not disclosed.
"The Middle East is an attractive, growing market that has shown a strong affinity for American brands, especially American dining brands," Darden Chairman and CEO Clarence Otis said in a statement.

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Device explodes in McDonald's toilet in Sydney

A SMALL home-made device exploded in a toilet in the restroom of a fast food outlet in western Sydney but no one was injured, police say.
The device was detonated in the men's toilet cubicle at a McDonald's restaurant on High St in Penrith at around 9.10pm last night.
"The explosion damaged the toilet cistern and an air vent," NSW police said today in a statement.
"There was nobody in the restroom at the time.

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McWeddings are on the way

HONG KONG - Starting next year, happy couples have the chance to share wedded bless with up to 100 guests at certain Hong Kong McDonald’s restaurants.
The fast-food chain started taking reservations Oct. 12 for ceremonies that will begin Jan. 1, 2011.
In a statement announcing the ‘McWeddings,’ a McDonald’s spokesman said the ceremonies will “provide an interesting choice for couples who enjoy special wedding concepts.”
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Mayoral Candidate calls for sale of Baltimore Hilton

Baltimore Circuit Court Clerk Frank M. Conaway Sr. is lobbying City Council to sell the taxpayer-funded Hilton Baltimore Convention Center Hotel, which is projecting to finish 2010 with a $9.8 million deficit.
Conaway, who announced plans to run for mayor Oct. 1, said it is now “obvious to me that the city should cut its losses” and sell the $305 million hotel to an entity with more experience in the hospitality industry.

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Shimao, Hilton to jointly develop 8 hotels in China

Oct. 25, 2010 (China Knowledge) - U.S.-based Hilton Worldwide recently signed a strategic cooperation agreement with Shimao Group, the parent of Chinese developer Shimao Property Holdings Ltd<0813>, to jointly develop hotels in eight Chinese cities, sources reported.

The cities include Tianjin, Nanjing, Wuhan, Shenyang, Qingdao, Yantai and Wuxi.

The eight hotels are expected to start operation during the period from 2011 to 2014.

Christopher J. Nassetta, president and CEO of Hilton Worldwide said that the company plans to open more than 100 hotels in China in the next five years.

Since 1988 when the hotel operator entered China, Hilton Worldwide has managed 14 hotels in the fast-growing market, added Nassetta.

Sometimes a customer can be even more terrifying than a ghost.

Haunted restaurants are not shocking. Old restaurants, like old homes and castles, hold ghosts: Josephina's Italian Restaurant in Denver is haunted by a depressed 1920s showgirl; Willow Steakhouse & Saloon, outside Stockton, Calif., is built on the site of an old collapsed mine, where dozens died (but never remained put); stories of mysterious drifters and disappearances have been attached to White Horse Tavern in Newport, R.I., since it opened in 1673; and frankly, if you own an old restaurant and it doesn't boast occasional sightings of a ethereal lady in white at the top of the second-floor landing (a fairly common sighting), you're lacking. But you know what is shocking?
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BJ's Restaurants, Inc. Reports Financial Results for the Third Quarter of Fiscal 2010

HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif., Oct 21, 2010 (GlobeNewswire via COMTEX) -- BJ's Restaurants, Inc. /quotes/comstock/15*!bjri/quotes/nls/bjri (BJRI 35.03, +1.09, +3.21%) today reported financial results for the third quarter of fiscal 2010 that ended on September 28, 2010.

Highlights for the third quarter compared to the same quarter last year were as follows:

  --  Total revenues increased 24% to $128.8 million

  --  Comparable restaurant sales increased 6.7%

  --  Net income increased 75% to $5.5 million

  --  Diluted net income per share increased 67% to $0.20

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Gordon Ramsay’s guards against Father in Law

Ramsay, 43, had banned former business adviser Chris Hutcheson, 62, from his restaurants.

Friends said "a bombshell" piece of news was to blame - but did not elaborate.
The two men first fell out over profits, expansion and the Hell's Kitchen star's alleged seven-year affair with Sarah Symonds, 40. It was revealed this week that Hutcheson had quit as CEO of Gordon Ramsay Holdings

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Mouse in Ramsays Restaurant

GORDON Ramsay has hit double trouble - reportedly calling in TV Dragon Peter Jones to save his business and finding a MOUSE in one of his top eateries.

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Fazoli's to Open First Wal-Mart Restaurant

[2010-10-25]   America's largest retailer is turning to America's largest premium quick-service Italian restaurant to offer its shoppers a new dining option. Fazoli's announced today that the popular Italian restaurant will open in early January 2011 in a Wal-Mart in St. Louis. It will be the first Fazoli's located within a retail store.

Fazoli's, a Parents magazine 10-best fast-casual family restaurant, is opening in leased space in the Wal-Mart Supercenter located at 3270 Telegraph Rd. The 2,000-square-foot restaurant will seat approximately 50 guests.

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Dennis Rodman Continues To Be the Worst Hotel Guest On the Planet

Yes, it's happened again. Dennis Rodman should just avoid all hotels from now on because there is something about a hotel that makes him go nuts and get kicked out.

The latest victim is the Surf and Sand Hotel in Laguna Beach, Calif. Fresh off hosting a pool party at the Hotel Indigo East End, Rodman was staying at the Surf and Sand and filming a UK reality show when he got "drunk and disorderly" at the hotel bar.

TMZ reports that after being told, several times, by security to be quiet and stop bothering guests, police were eventually called. Rodman was then escorted out of the hotel, carrying a pair of giant moon boots too.

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Banks Market Hilton, Extended Stay Mortgage Debt

Oct. 25 (Bloomberg) -- Bank of America Corp. and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. are marketing bonds tied to debt left over from the 2007 buyout of Hilton Worldwide in the largest sale of commercial-mortgage bonds of 2010.

The $2.66 billion unrated offering matures in as soon as 2.86 years, according to a person familiar with the sale, who declined to be identified because terms aren’t public.

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Hotels Seek Clearer Guidelines for Online Reviews

The 35 million hotel reviews posted on TripAdvisor reveal everything from snooty staff to filthy toilets, and sometimes the reviewer’s overly picky standards.
But those comments can also cross the line between honest criticism and unsubstantiated, inflammatory claims, with potentially damaging consequences for some hotels

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InterContinental Hotels Group PLC Announces Third Quarter Americas RevPAR Growth at annual conference for hotel owners

InterContinental Hotels Group's ("IHG") annual conference for hotel owners in the Americas region commences this week. Details of revenue per available room (RevPAR) for IHG's brands in the Americas for July, August and September 2010, for the third quarter 2010 and for the nine month period to 30 September 2010 will be disclosed at this conference and are tabled below.
RevPAR growth in the Americas region accelerated through the third quarter to 6.7% driven by occupancy growth of 3.8 percentage points and rate growth of 0.8% as business travellers continued to return in greater numbers. Rate growth improved through the quarter.
Holiday Inn and Holiday Inn Express RevPAR growth accelerated in the third quarter driven by the success of the relaunched hotels which are strongly outperforming those hotels that have not completed the relaunch. Third quarter RevPAR growth at hotels which completed the relaunch grew by 7.9% at Holiday Inn and 6.8% at Holiday Inn Express. In the US, these hotels now sit at a 36% and 20% RevPAR premium to their respective industry segments.
IHG's full third quarter results will be announced at 7am UK time on 9 November when further commentary will be provided.
 

Americas Comparable RevPAR Growth (constant currency)	July 2010	August 2010	Sept 2010	Third Quarter 2010	Nine months to 30 Sept 2010
InterContinental	13.8%	9.7%	11.7%	11.8%	8.1%
Crowne Plaza	5.1%	5.4%	6.0%	5.5%	4.6%
Holiday Inn	6.1%	5.6%	7.3%	6.3%	3.0%
- relaunched (557 hotels)				7.9%	4.7%
- not relaunched (240 hotels)				2.2%	(1.1)%
Holiday Inn Express	6.3%	6.7%	6.3%	6.4%	3.3%
- relaunched (1,347 hotels)				6.8%	3.8%
- not relaunched (244 hotels)				3.9%	0.0%
Staybridge Suites	4.7%	9.7%	9.9%	8.0%	6.3%
Candlewood Suites	4.6%	6.5%	7.6%	6.2%	1.8%
Hotel Indigo	9.2%	10.7%	15.7%	11.8%	9.6%
Total Americas	6.4%	6.5%	7.3%	6.7%	3.9%