Leawood’s Houlihan’s Restaurants Inc. to be sold to New York company

Leawood’s HRI — parent company of such restaurants as Houlihan’s, J. Gilbert’s Wood-Fired Steaks and Bristol Seafood Grill — is being acquired by York Capital Management in New York.

The seller is an affiliate of Goldner Hawn Johnson & Morrison (GHJ&M). Financial terms were not disclosed, but the transaction is expected to close in December.

Founded in 1972, HRI is a diversified restaurant holding company with more than 90 company-owned and franchised locations across the country. Houlihan’s restaurants are in the casual dining category, and the J. Gilbert’s Wood-Fired Steaks, Bristol Seafood Grill and Bar, and Devon’s Seafood Grill and Bar brands are in the fine-dining category.

York Capital is partnering with Michael Archer, an industry veteran and Fairway resident, who is personally investing alongside York and other members of the management team and will become chief executive officer of HRI when the transaction closes. Archer previously was president of Applebee’s Neighborhood Grill & Bar under Dine Equity, president of TGI Friday’s, chief operating officer of Sullivan’s Steakhouse and chief operating officer of Del Frisco’s Restaurant Group and president of Morton’s The Steakhouse.

Once the deal is complete, Bob Hartnett, the current chief executive officer and chairman of HRI, will leave his position but has agreed to remain involved with HRI in a consultant role.

In a statement, Archer said of HRI: “We are extremely impressed with the company’s quality of food and service, high guest satisfaction, and value proposition and believe there is tremendous opportunity for growth.” He added that York will provide capital and members to the management team to support the expansion.

In a statement, Hartnett said: “I believe that York Capital and Mike Archer represent ideal partners to continue growing and evolving HRI and its concepts.”

In the Kansas City market, HRI has Houlihan’s in Leawood, Lee’s Summit, the Northland, Fairway, Olathe and Overland Park; Bristol Seafood Grill in Leawood and in the Power & Light District; and a J. Gilbert’s in Overland Park.

It has about 50 employees at it headquarters at 8700 State Line Road and 10 employees in regional operations management. The new owners plan to keep the HRI headquarters in Leawood.

York Capital Management, which was founded in 1991, is a global private investment firm. It manages about $25 billion in assets across public and private investment strategies. York Capital employs about 60 investment professionals and more than 200 total employees globally, located primarily in New York, London and Hong Kong.

The famed Gilbert/Robinson restaurant group opened Houlihans’s Old Place in 1972, in a Country Club Plaza space that had been Tom Houlihan’s Men’s Wear. It grossed more than $100,000 per month on an average $4.80 check in its first few months. Houlihan’s, along with the competitor T.G.I. Friday’s, set the tone for the casual restaurant phenomenon and the company quickly expanded.

But Gilbert/Robinson Inc. sought bankruptcy court protection to reorganize in 1991. HRI had numerous owners between the 1978 sale by founders Joseph Gilbert and Paul Robinson and Goldner Hawn Johnson & Morrison’s 2006 purchase. The Minneapolis-based company injected $28 million into HRI and arranged an additional $40 million in financing to spur a national expansion.

This story was originally published November 9, 2015 at 2:10 PM with the headline "Leawood’s Houlihan’s Restaurants Inc. to be sold to New York company."