Granite City Food & Brewery Ltd. is building a new Granite City Food & Brewery in Franklin, Tennessee. The Company recently signed a long term lease with Drury Development Corporation to have the restaurant located adjacent to the new Drury hotel now being built in Franklin. The new restaurant will feature a contemporary upscale design recently developed by the Company, with the first opening in Troy, Michigan in April 2012. The new Granite City Food & Brewery will be built in the Franklin/Cool Springs area of Tennessee, nine miles south of downtown Nashville. The restaurant will be located in the new Spring Creek Center, in the heart of the best and fastest growing suburban residential, retail and office market the in greater Nashville area. This area is the dominant regional retail draw in Tennessee with 5.3 million square feet of retail and restaurants. Opening in the summer of 2012, the restaurant’s newly designed interior will feature a wrap-around indoor/outdoor bar, an exposed kitchen, a central wood-fired pizza oven and our signature on-site brewery. In addition to more than 90 made from scratch menu items that have come to define Granite City, the menu will also feature regional favorites with locally sourced ingredients.
“We are excited to bring our concept to Tennessee. We combine the best attributes of an upscale dining experience with great, friendly service and attractively-priced, high quality hand-crafted food and beverages,” said Rob Doran, CEO. “Granite City restaurants have shown great success in a variety of cities and states, and we feel confident that the folks in Franklin will enjoy our unique and affordable offering, highlighted by our award winning beer.”
About the Company
In May 2011, Granite City sold $9.0 million of convertible preferred stock to Concept Development Partners (CDP) in partnership with Dallas-based private equity firm, CIC Partners, and entered into a $10.0 million credit facility with Fifth Third Bank. Of the new capital, $7.05 million was used to purchase a majority of the shares of common stock of Granite City’s then majority shareholder, DHW Leasing, L.L.C. The transaction brought the Company capital, new leadership, and several new, experienced board members, including Mike Rawlings, former President of Pizza Hut, a Founding Partner of CIC Partners, and current Mayor of Dallas, Lou Mucci, former CFO of BJ’s Restaurants, Michael Staenberg, President of THF Realty, Fouad Bashour, a Founding Partner of CIC Partners, and Rob Doran, former Executive Vice President of McDonalds’s. Rob Doran now serves as the Company’s CEO. Since CDP’s investment, the Company has been developing growth plans for existing Granite City restaurants as well as the construction of new Granite City restaurants, such as the recently announced Troy, Michigan location set to open in early 2012.
In late 2011, the Company acquired the assets of five Cadillac Ranch restaurants and related intellectual property, and Fifth Third Bank increased the Company’s credit facility by $12.0 million. The Company has entered into an agreement to acquire the assets of a sixth Cadillac Ranch restaurant, the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania location, subject to issuance of the required liquor license.
Granite City Food & Brewery is a modern American restaurant and brewery. Everything served at Granite City is made fresh on site using high quality ingredients, including Granite City’s award-winning signature line of craft beers. The extensive menu features moderately priced favorites served in generous portions. Our attractive price point, high service standards, and great food and beer combine for a memorable dining experience. Granite City Food & Brewery Ltd. opened its first restaurant in St. Cloud, Minnesota (the “Granite City”) in 1999 and currently operates 26 Granite City restaurants in 11 states and 5 Cadillac Ranch restaurants in 4 states. Additional information about Granite City Food & Brewery can be found at the Company’s website (www.gcfb.net).
