Hakkasan acquires US-based restaurant group EHRGP
Restaurant group Hakkasan has expanded its food and beverage operation in the USA by acquiring a controlling stake in Enlightened Hospitality Group (EHGRP), a San Diego-based hospitality development company.
The company has also bought the Stingaree nightclub in San Diego.
The deal means that Hakkasan now has a majority share in all of EHGRP's restaurants including Searsucker (San Diego, Del Mar and Austin) and Herringbone (San Diego and Los Angeles), which will be owned and operated and in a strategic partnership with the original development team.
Immediately following the acquisition, both groups will embark on their first venture together with the launch of Herringbone at Mondrian Los Angeles opening in January 2014.
Nick McCabe, chief operating officer of Hakkasan Ltd said: "We are delighted to welcome Enlightened Hospitality Group into the Hakkasan Ltd family as we move forward with our plans for expansion in USA. This is an exciting time for everyone involved and our first priority will be to expand upon the success of EHGRP's current venues by introducing the existing brands into additional markets both domestically and internationally."
James Brennan, chief executive of Enlightened Hospitality Group added: "The partnership between Enlightened Hospitality Group and Hakkasan Ltd is the ideal culmination of more than a decade-long career in the hospitality industry for me, and most certainly marks a personal high. My experience with the Hakkasan team has been nothing but first class, and I look forward to helping to build a major international hospitality company."
EHGRP based in San Diego and was founded in 2010 by James Brennan and executive chef Brian Malarkey. Their portfolio includes: Searsucker (San Diego, CA), named by OpenTable Inc. as the #2 "Hottest New Restaurant in the Country" in 2011; Herringbone (La Jolla, CA) also named by OpenTable Inc. as a "Top 100 Hot Spot Restaurant in the Country" in 2013; Searsucker Austin, TX, Searsucker Del Mar, CA and the soon-to-open Herringbone Los Angeles, CA. It also manages and operates Stingaree, and Campine, A Culinary + Cocktail Conspiracy, a catering and event production company.
Hakkasan was founded in London in 2001 and has since expanded globally to Miami, Abu Dhabi, Mumbai, Dubai, New York, Doha, San Francisco, Las Vegas and Beverly Hills, with an offering in Shanghai to open soon. It is owned by Tasameem, an Abu Dhabi-based investment company.
