The Ground Round Grill & Bar, located at 1290 Ryan’s Road in Worthington, MN, was named 2015 Restaurant of the Year by the national chain. The award is based on overall results, contribution to the brand and community it serves, and the overall quality of its operations. The Worthington, MN Ground Round has served its community for more than a decade and continues to upgrade its offerings and results, including this year with interior renovations to the dining and bar areas. “The 2015 year was a record year for the restaurant and their 7th year in a row of growing sales over the prior year. Bob Rieckhoff is a veteran, high performing GM for our brand and we also count on their team to serve as one of our menu test locations for the brand,” states Jack Crawford, President & CEO of Ground Round Independent Owners Cooperative (IOC), who presented the award to the Worthington Ground Round at the brand’s annual convention in Clearwater, FL in late February.
Joining Bob at the convention and representing their team was Judy Rieckhoff, owner and a founding member of Ground Round IOC, LLC. In accepting the award, Bob commented, “I accept this award for our whole team, who all play a part in our results and we are proud of our entire staff who work hard every day in serving our guests!” The Ground Round Grill & Bar in Worthington, MN has been open for more than 10 years and employs more than 50 full time and part time employees from the local area.
The Ground Round IOC Cooperative represents a group of independent franchise owners who purchased the Ground Round Franchise Rights and Trademarks in 2004. Since their brand acquisition, the group is now debt free and expanding, with 3 new openings in 2015. Ground Round offers a unique franchise model whereby its franchisees not only own their own franchise, but can purchase and own an ownership/membership share in the overall future and growth of the brand as well. Ground Round operates restaurants in 10 states spread across the Midwest and Northeast areas of the United States, with headquarters based in Freeport, ME. Worthington is one of seven Ground Round restaurants in Minnesota. Other Minnesota locations include Bemidji, Farmington, Grand Rapids, Rochester, Waconia and Winona. Also nearby is a Ground Round restaurant in Brookings, SD. For more information, visit www.groundround.com.
