TGI Friday

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St. Cloud, MN. 56301
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T.G.I. Friday's History

T.G.I. Fridays History

Updated February 2009

1965

The first T.G.I. Fridays restaurant opens in New York City at the corner of First Avenue and 63rd Street. T.G.I. Fridays on Manhattans upper East Side quickly becomes THE meeting place for single adults, totaling $1 million in revenues its first year.

The first T.G.I. Fridays menu was a chalkboard.

1970

Memphis, Tennessee becomes the location for the second T.G.I. Fridays.

1972

T.G.I. Fridays opens in Dallas in the spring of 1972. As in New York and Memphis, T.G.I. Fridays took the city by storm. The Dallas restaurant nets a record-setting $2 million in revenues its first year.

After this dramatic success, the Dallas franchise joins the T.G.I. Fridays restaurant in New York to take the concept nationwide, excluding Manhattan. T.G.I. Fridays Group, Inc. (Dallas) merges into TGI Fridays Inc. (New York.)

T.G.I. Fridays starts its tradition of welcoming Friday in at midnight on Thursday night. Every Thursday night is like a New Years Eve party, with champagne, confetti and noisemakers.

Thursdays are always the big deal at Fridays, since thats when the usually packed-anyway restaurant has its midnight gala with balloons and champagne.
Dallas Times Herald, March 30, 1972

Bar where the Singles Mingle (local swingles) hang outFridays is the present phenomenon on the Dallas scene.
Dallas Times Herald, April 25, 1972

Fridays in Old Town is one of the highest volume restaurants in Texas.
Dallas Times Herald, October 19, 1972

1973

It all began modestly enough. An unmarried New York City perfume salesman named Alan Stillman decided that the coolest way to meet the stewardesses in his neighborhood would be to buy a broken down beer joint, jazz it up with Tiffany lamps and mod young waiters and christen it with an eye toward attracting the career crowd the T.G.I.F. (Thank God Its Friday) crowd. Within one week the police had to ring Fridays (as it quickly became known) with barricades to handle the nightly hordes of young singles. Hundreds of blatantly imitative emporiums soon opened their doors in scores of major cities and an industry was born.
Newsweek, July 16, 1973

T.G.I. Fridays restaurant at Old Town (Greenville Avenue) in Dallas marks its one-year anniversary by selling everything on the menu for 1/10th the price.

T.G.I. Fridays restaurant opens in the Houston Galleria on July 24. Seven astronauts, led by Alan Shepard, attend the restaurants grand opening.

1974

After months in the test kitchen, T.G.I. Fridays restaurants introduce what will become all-time favorite Loaded Potato Skins.

1975

TGI Fridays Inc., which has grown to 12 restaurants in nine states, is acquired by Carlson Companies, Inc.

1978

T.G.I. Fridays restaurant is introduced in Florida, Illinois, Missouri and Colorado.

1982

Assistant Travel Writer, Judy Williamson, reports that T.G.I. Fridays is the grand-daddy of the singles barsplaces come and places go but Fridays endures.
Dallas Morning News, February 7, 1982

1983

Loaded Potato Skins are the most popular appetizer and Chicken Marsala is the best-selling entre at T.G.I. Fridays.

T.G.I. Fridays restaurants introduce Fridays Flings and Smoothies, flavorful, non-alcoholic drinks. A company spokesperson says, We introduced Smoothies in celebration of the 1984 Summer Olympics. They add another option for guests who decide not to order alcohol.

Mocha Mud Pie is the dessert of choice.

1984

The T.G.I. Fridays restaurant chain grows to 105 restaurants.

1985

The T.G.I. Fridays restaurant chain celebrates its 20th anniversary.

TGI Fridays Inc. signs their first international development agreement with Whitbread & Co. PLC of London.

1986

Whitbread & Co. PLC opens the first international T.G.I. Fridays restaurant in Birmingham, England.

1987

T.G.I. Fridays restaurant debuts in London/Covent Garden. This restaurant ranks as the highest-dollar-volume restaurant in the chain.

1989

TGI Fridays Inc. enters into its first international joint venture to operate T.G.I. Fridays in Asia.

1990

The T.G.I. Fridays restaurant chain grows to 169 restaurants worldwide.

The T.G.I. Fridays restaurant chain celebrates its 25th anniversary.

1991

20 T.G.I. Fridays restaurants open in the USA, and two are added to the international portfolio.

Booths are added to T.G.I. Fridays restaurants, and the interior wood is lightened to brighten the atmosphere.

1992

T.G.I. Fridays is voted #1 in menu variety by diners surveyed by Restaurants & Institutions magazine.

The first T.G.I. Fridays opens in an airport Pittsburgh.

The Seoul Yang Jae T.G.I. Fridays restaurant sets a new worldwide weekly sales record with $185,958 USD.

1993

The T.G.I. Fridays restaurant chain grows to 243 restaurants in the USA and 20 in the international marketplace.

Nations Restaurant News profiles Carlson. Southwest Editor Ron Ruggless reports, From its inception in 1965, T.G.I. Fridays celebrated its name, Thank Goodness its Friday. But the 1980s changed the market, with romantic affairs yielding to family affairs.
Nations Restaurant News, March 29, 1993

1994

T.G.I. Fridays restaurants are now located in eight countries.

The London/Covent Garden T.G.I. Fridays restaurant breaks the worldwide weekly sales record with $214,168 USD. Only to be followed by the London/Haymarket T.G.I. Fridays restaurant who set the bar even higher with $247,385 USD.

The T.G.I. Fridays restaurant chain celebrates the opening of the 300th restaurant, which is located in Seoul, Korea.

TGI Fridays Inc. signs an agreement to expand into the Peoples Republic of China, marking the 50th country where T.G.I. Fridays restaurants will operate.

1995

The T.G.I. Fridays restaurant chain celebrates 30 years of being the worlds favorite gathering place for food, fun and cheer.

TGI Fridays Inc. reaches $1,000,000,000 in system-wide revenues.

T.G.I. Fridays restaurants open in eight new countries: Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Indonesia, Panama and Switzerland. T.G.I. Fridays restaurants are now located in 23 countries worldwide.

Fridays Front Row Sports Grill opens in Orlando, Florida. Celebrities on hand for the grand opening festivities included supermodel Kathy Ireland; ESPN commentator Chris Berman; football star Vinny Testaverde, and basketball great Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

Success magazine ranks TGI Fridays Inc. as one of the top 100 franchisors.

Restaurant Business magazine names Fridays Hospitality Worldwide Inc. as Employer of Choice.

Fridays American Bar opens in Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport and Makati, Philippines.

1996

T.G.I. Fridays restaurant debuts in Idaho the 45th state for T.G.I. Fridays.

T.G.I. Fridays restaurants open in ten new countries: Argentina, Cyprus, Honduras, India, Kuwait, South Africa, Sweden, Thailand, Turkey and United Arab Emirates.

Development agreements are signed for 26 new countries: Aruba, Austria, The Bahamas, Bonaire, Costa Rica, Curacao, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Haiti, Hong Kong, Hungary, Israel, Jamaica, Macau, Nicaragua, Poland, Russia, Slovenia, Slovakia, Trinidad and Tobago, Uruguay, Venezuela, Vietnam and Zimbabwe.

For the second consecutive year, Success magazine ranks TGI Fridays Inc. as one of the top 100 franchisors.

1997

Jack Daniels Grill makes national debut!

The Fridays Front Row Sports Grill in Orlando sets a new worldwide daily sales record on Superbowl Sunday with $56,650!

The most popular appetizer at T.G.I. Fridays restaurant is Loaded Potato Skins, the most popular entre line is Jack Daniels Grill and the most popular dessert is Oreo Madness.

Scandinavia welcomes the first T.G.I. Fridays restaurant in Stockholm and the first Fridays American Bar in Oslo.

T.G.I. Fridays becomes the first American casual dining restaurant chain to open a restaurant in Moscow, Russia.

The Fridays USA brand reaches $1 billion in system-wide sales.

More than 125 individual restaurant sales records are broken in 1997 a new Company record.

Fridays Hospitality Worldwide receives the Enterprise Award for Best Business Practices in the Going International category.

1998

To prepare the company to expand its operations beyond the current concepts into new concepts and possible acquisitions, Fridays Hospitality Worldwide changes its holding name to Carlson Restaurants Worldwide Inc.

The 100th international T.G.I. Friday's restaurant debuts in Edinburgh, Scotland, and the 500th T.G.I. Friday's restaurant opens in Plymouth, Minnesota.

TGI Friday's Inc. signs a development agreement with Watami Food Service Co., Ltd. which will result in the development of T.G.I. Fridays restaurants in Japan.

TGI Fridays Inc. signs a milestone agreement with Compass Group PLC for the development of T.G.I. Fridays restaurants and Fridays American Bar units in airports across Europe and the Asia Pacific (with the exception of the UK), as well as in Canada and South Africa.

1999

During the first quarter, T.G.I. Friday's restaurants debut in Bogota, Colombia and Fortizza, Malta.

2000

T.G.I. Fridays restaurants open in Dublin, Ireland and Budapest, Hungary.

Fridays American Bar debuts in the London/Heathrow Airport, and a T.G.I. Fridays restaurant opens in the Indianapolis International Airport.

T.G.I. Fridays launches its newly redesigned website www.fridays.com.

2001

Fridays Front Row Sports Grill opens at Miller Park in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

T.G.I. Fridays restaurants debut in two new countries Iceland and Saudi Arabia.

T.G.I. Fridays Web Site receives the Golden Web Award from the International Association of Web Masters and Designers.

The T.G.I. Fridays chain receives NRNs MenuMasters Award for Best Limited Time Offer for Island Recipes.

The Oxford Valley T.G.I. Fridays restaurant was voted Best Gourmet Burger by the readers of The Courier Times.

2002

Richard Snead is appointed President of Carlson Restaurants Worldwide, and is featured on the cover of Chain Leader.

By the end of 2002, there were 522 Fridays restaurants in the USA and 191 international locations, for a total of 713 restaurants. System-wide sales for 2002 were $2.1 billion.

Minneapolis St. Paul magazine recognized the Minneapolis Airport T.G.I. Fridays restaurant for having the Best Burgers at the airport.

T.G.I. Fridays becomes the first casual dining restaurant chain to debut a day-parted menu.

The Buffalo T.G.I. Fridays restaurant received 1st Place in the Best After Work Hangout by the Bee Group Newspapers.

Restaurant Hospitality recognizes the T.G.I. Fridays restaurant chain as a Merit Award winner in their Best Kids Menu contest.

The Las Vegas T.G.I. Fridays restaurants were the Review-Journal-Sun Readers Pick for Best Late Night Dining and Best Appetizers.

Minnesota Parent recognized T.G.I. Fridays restaurants for having a great kids menu and fun birthday parties.

Los Angeles City Search readers voted the Magic Johnsons Fridays in Ladera as Top 10 Best After Work Bar.

2003

TGI Fridays Inc. signs development agreement with Out In The Boonies, Inc. to develop the first T.G.I. Fridays in Alaska!

T.G.I. Fridays announces the first-of-its-kind partnership with Atkins Nutritional Approach.

The revitalization of the T.G.I. Fridays begins.. New restaurant design, new menu, new lighting, new music!

Carlson Restaurants Worldwide acquires 10 T.G.I. Fridays restaurants in Taiwan.

2004

T.G.I. Fridays was voted as Best Airport Food and Beverage Operator by Airport Revenue News in the 2004 Best Concessions Award.

T.G.I. Fridays was recognized for its beverage innovation by Nations Restaurant News at the Nightclub & Bar Show.

The Effingham T.G.I. Fridays received several recognitions in the recent Effingham Daily News Readers Poll. The restaurant was voted Best Dessert, and also received honorable mention for Favorite Ice Tea, Favorite Milk Shake, Favorite Hamburger, Favorite French Fries, Favorite Onion Rings, Favorite Salad, Favorite Italian Food, Favorite Seafood, Favorite Romantic Restaurant, and Favorite Restaurant To Take Out Of Town Guests.

Anne Varano, SVP of HR and Communications, was honored for leadership excellence at the annual Elliott Conference. Presenting the award was Mary Boltz Chapman, editor-in-chief of Chain Leader.

Richard Snead, president and CEO, was named a Golden Chain Award recipient by Nations Restaurant News.

T.G.I. Fridays revitalization program is profiled in Nations Restaurant News.

T.G.I. Fridays recruiting program is recognized at MUFSO with the prestigious PAPA award.

2005

The T.G.I. Fridays brand celebrates 40 years with a fabulous celebration at the annual Global Leadership Conference held on Paradise Island, Bahamas at the Atlantis Resort.

The revitalization of the T.G.I. Fridays brand makes headlines across the US.

T.G.I. Fridays beverage program awarded Cheers magazines Best Spirits Program award at the 2005 Cheers Beverage Conference.

SVP HR and Communication Anne Varano was featured in HR Innovator magazine where she discussed her laser-focused HR business strategy.

Angela Hornsby, VP HR for T.G.I. Fridays USA, was named a 2005 WFF Emerging Leader by the Womens Foodservice Forum at their annual conference for her achievements, innovation and industry leadership.

Carlson Restaurants Worldwide was named a finalist in five categories for the American Business Awards. The nominations included: Best Business Turnaround, Best Overall Company, Best HR Team, Best Executive President and CEO Richard Snead, and Best HR Executive Anne Varano.

T.G.I. Fridays was awarded the EAT and EAR Award for Best TV Advertising Campaign among concepts with sales greater than $500MM.

T.G.I. Fridays USA was recognized at the annual People Report Conference with the coveted Catalyst Award. The award recognizes a company that has made significant advances in its people practices, and has sustained those results for at least one year.

Pick Up Stix was named Best Chinese Restaurant in East County by The Californian regional newspaper.

2006

T.G.I. Fridays is recognized as one of Americas Greatest Brands.

Carlson Restaurants Worldwide was awarded the 2005 HR Service Excellence award by HR Solutions, Inc. This award recognizes the best HR departments in North America.

Carlson Restaurants Worldwide and T.G.I. Fridays were selected by the Dallas Business Journal as one of the Best Places to Work in Dallas Ft. Worth.

Carlson Restaurants Worldwide was named a finalist in four categories for the American Business Awards. The nominations include Best Overall Company, Best Executive President and COO Mike Archer, Best HR Team and Best HR Executive Anne Varano.

T.G.I. Fridays was awarded the 2006 SPIRIT Award by the National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation and Nations Restaurant News. The award recognizes companies for their dedication to improving guest satisfaction by improving employee satisfaction.

2007

Carlson Restaurants Worldwide acquires 45 T.G.I. Fridays in the UK from Whitbread PLC.

T.G.I. Fridays was honored by Texas Governor Rick Perry as one of the Best Companies to Work For in Texas.

T.G.I. Fridays debuts Right Portion Right Price, providing guests with more choices. The offerings were a huge hit and received record media coverage including hits on ABC Nightline, USA Today, Chicago Tribune and The New York Times.

Mike Archer, president and COO for T.G.I. Fridays USA, was honored with The Texas Diversity Councils DiversityFirst Leadership Award. This prestigious honor is awarded annually to individuals who demonstrate outstanding accomplishments in the promotion and advancement of diversity through inclusion and strong leadership.

T.G.I. Fridays was honored by the Dallas Business Journal as one of the Best Places to Work in Dallas Ft. Worth for the second consecutive year.

Carlson Restaurants Worldwides Crisis Communication Plan received an Award of Distinction from the 13th Annual Communicator Awards.

The CRW Communication Team was honored by the Association of Marketing and Communication Professionals with three Platinum Hermes Creative Awards for its Crisis Communication Plan, Strategic Communication Plan and Video/Internal Communication Program.

Carlson Restaurants Worldwide was recognized by the American Business Awards as the Best HR Organization. CRW was also named a finalist in Best Overall Company, Best Communications Team and Best Corporate Communicator Amy Freshwater.

T.G.I. Fridays in the UK begins brand revitalization.

Carlson Restaurants Worldwide names John Neitzel President and COO for International

T.G.I. Friday's opens 300th International restaurant

T.G.I. Friday's USA annnounces national partnership with the Make-A-Wish Foundation

T.G.I. Friday's wins "Most News Coverage" in League of American Communications Professionals 2007 Magellan Awards

T.G.I. Friday's "Right Portion, Right Price" publicity campaign wins Platinum Award from LACP; named Top 50 (#6) Publicity Campaigns of 2007

2008

T.G.I. Friday's honored as one of "Best Companies to Work for in Texas" for second consecutive year.

T.G.I. Friday's teams up with Food Network "Utimate Recipe Showdown" - features five best-in-class recipes as determined by national recipe contest in its 600+ US-based restaurants

T.G.I. Friday's USA receives 2008 Texas Public Relations Association Silver Spur Award for "Right Portion, Right Price" publicity campaign, tops in the Media Relations category

T.G.I. FRIDAY'S RESTAURANTS LAUNCHES 'GIVE ME MORE STRIPES' GUEST RECOGNITION PROGRAM

2009

For the second year, T.G.I. Friday's teams up with Food Network "Utimate Recipe Showdown" - features five best-in-class recipes as determined by national recipe contest in its 600+ US-based restaurants

T.G.I. Friday's throws the World's Largest Inauguration Party on January 20.

T.G.I. Friday's hosts "The Game We Can't Name Eve" party on January 31.

Nick Shepherd succeeds Richard Snead as President and CEO of Carlson Restaurants Worldwide

Give Me More Stripes has more than one million members.