Upscale Restaurant Chains

CHAIN Reaction

*High-end restaurants are putting brand extension on the front burner.

words by > Nancy Davidson

Blame it on Wolfgang Puck, one of the first chefs to become a household name. He successfully opened a chain of casual fast-food dining outlets as well as nine (and counting) fine-dining establishments, all while maintaining the esteemed reputation of his fl agship Spago restaurant in Beverly Hills, recently rated number four on Gourmet magazine’s list of the top 50 US restaurants.

But what’s wrong with a top chef using his image to create a restaurant empire?

Th ere’s a certain expectation that a fine-dining restaurant should be held to a diff erent standard than other eateries—and other businesses. Because chefs are oft en viewed as artists rather than business people, there’s a feeling that the chef should be in the kitchen, overseeing every dish that comes out and coming up with new culinary innovations every night.

In spite of such romantic notions, though, restaurants are businesses, too. And one way for chefs and owners to make more profit is to leverage a successful concept. “Wolfgang Puck was able to brand Spago to represent a lifestyle,” says Jennifer Baum, president of Bullfrog and Baum, a restaurant public relations firm. And more and more restauranteurs are following in his footsteps, establishing not just diff erent concepts under one management group, but also developing a clear and distinct brand—a single image that can be expanded, applied and developed all over the country, and even internationally.

Off the Menu

Successful restaurant extensions don’t necessarily start out with a careful business plan. The expansion of Joël Robuchon’s L’Atelier restaurants to New York, London and Tokyo was a response to a demand created when French chef Robuchon came out of retirement to open his unique epicurean counter-style restaurant in Paris. “He had no intention of being in the States,” says Baum, but aft er years of developing a relationship with MGM Grand president Gamal Aziz, it was as if he broke through an invisible barrier. “Once Robuchon stepped foot in the US, Ty Warner got the bug and started talking to him about opening [at the Four Seasons] in New York,” Baum says.

Similarly, chef Tom Colicchio’s Craft restaurant wasn’t created with expansion in mind. The idea grew out of his desire to present food the same way he would in his own home. The concept turned out to be something people wanted—that could be translated to a lot of markets. His first brand extensions, however, could be found on a single block in Manhattan. The pricey and well received Craft spawned Craft bar, a moderately priced wine bar and café next door, and the cleverly named ’wichcraft sandwich shop.

Like Wolfgang Puck’s “Express” restaurants, ’wichcraft benefits from a trickledown eff ect, reaching an audience who might not be able to aff ord to eat at Craft . “Th e idea was to take all our learnings from fine-dining and put it between two slices of bread. Every sandwich is a fully composed, portable meal. We use ingredients similar to Craft bar and Craft , share purveyors and ingredients, all prepared in a centralized kitchen,” enthuses Jeff rey Zurofsky, a partner in ’wichcraft .

“If Craft is the 7 Series BMW, then ’wichcraft is the 3 Series,” he says. “It’s one way to enter the brand.” ’wichcraft benefits from Craft ’s reputation, but the less expensive eatery also has to maintain the same standards. “We can’t jeopardize the brand and Tom’s name.”

Set Menu

The people behind Chef Laurent Tourondol set out specifically to brand BLT (Bistro Laurent Tourondol). The first—BLT Steak—reconceived the idea of a steakhouse and really struck a cord. It was clear that the BLT restaurant group was on to something.

Each BLT in New York has a diff erent menu, a diff erent design and even a diff erent target audience, but there are identifiable elements to each one. BLT Fish has a casual downstairs and a fancy upstairs; BLT Prime is a sophisticated, modern steakhouse; and BLT Burger is a high quality burger joint in a rustic atmosphere.

“There’s a certain energy, an accessibility of the menu, a casualness and a little bit of folly,” says Baum, who represents the BLT Restaurant Group, “like ice cream sundaes at BLT Steak.” In his hometown, diners know the chef, but when BLT Steak opens in DC, Dallas, LA and Puerto Rico, diners might have a conception of the BLT brand, but not necessarily of the chef behind it.

Along with brand recognition, however, comes a set of expectations. And ironically, meeting those expectations oft en means tweaking the concept to meet the demands of the local market.

Global Menu

“If you are doing a new concept and trying to create something original, especially in fine dining, you have to first focus everything on just that restaurant, not think about duplicating the idea elsewhere,” according to Rick Wahlstedt, a partner in Japonais, an Asian-fusion restaurant chain in Chicago, New York and Las Vegas. “Once the bones of the idea, the design, the cuisine, menu, service, what it stands for are really intact, then you tweak it for diff erent cities. You have to look at what people are used to paying, portion size, the degree of spiciness and presentation,” Wahlstedt says.

Th e challenge is to find the right management team and staff to be able to deliver an equivalent experience, according to Craft ’s Grieco. “We’ve been lucky so far,” she says, “to have been able to develop chefs and managers in New York who are willing to travel or take trips back and forth, to make sure the quality of the food and service is where we want it to be.”

Local Menu

A brand new Craft just opened in Dallas. It’s very similar to the original, with a similar menu, signature design elements like exposed-filament light bulbs, glass cabinets and wooden dining tables. They’re not going for cookie-cutter, but the diff erent locations clearly relate to one another. Grieco also emphasizes the need to understand and adapt to the local market. “We don’t want to come in like some arrogant New York restaurant. We want to be considered a Dallas restaurant.”

While some consumers may always believe that a restaurant won’t be as good if the chef whose name is on the front door isn’t in the kitchen, people are starting to understand that there are lots of talented professionals toiling away behind the aprons of celebrity chefs, many well-trained to follow the course set by the head chef and CEO.

“Chefs can be businessmen as well,” says Baum. “If the food is good, the food is good.” And in the restaurant business, that’s the bottom line.