Gordon Ramsay North America, the Dallas-based company behind the celebrity chef’s U.S. operations, has named Norman Abdallah as CEO, the company announced Friday.
Abdallah most recently served as CEO of Southlake, Texas-based Del Frisco’s Restaurant Group Inc., which was taken private in an acquisition by private-equity firm L Catterton in 2019.
Prior to joining Del Frisco’s, Abdallah was the operating partner for private-equity firm CIC Partners, focusing on restaurant portfolio companies.
In 2019, Gordon Ramsay signed a deal with private-equity firm Lion Capital to expand Gordon Ramsay restaurant concepts across the U.S.
In addition to the 24 international restaurants in the Gordon Ramsay Restaurants portfolio, Gordon Ramsay North America has 10 restaurants in the U.S., including Las Vegas, Atlantic City, Baltimore, Lake Tahoe and Kansas City, in partnership with Caesars Entertainment.
Gordon Ramsay North America said it will focus on scaling dining concepts including outdoor and take-out, as the company taps into several of Gordon Ramsay’s U.S. and international key brands, including Gordon Ramsay Street Pizza, Gordon Ramsay Bread Street Kitchen, Gordon Ramsay Fish & Chips, Gordon Ramsay Pub & Grill and Gordon Ramsay Steak.
"With Gordon Ramsay and Lion Capital fueling growth, we’re positioned to open top-tier experiential and chef-driven concepts throughout the United States… ,” Abdallah said in a statement Friday.
Abdallah, left, has served as interim CEO of Dinosaur BBQ, president and CEO of Romano’s Macaroni Grill, and president and CEO of Restaurants Unlimited. He is also the co-founder and former CEO of Fired Up Inc., the parent company of Carino’s Italian.
Ramsay, in a statement, added: “We have an amazing, supportive partner in Lion Capital, and took our time to find the absolute right person to pilot our multi-layered concept in America.”
Privately owned Gordon Ramsay Restaurants, founded in 1997, has 17 restaurants in London and 17 in other countries, including the United States, France, Dubai and Singapore. Brands also include Bread Street Kitchen, Gordon Ramsay Pub & Grill, Gordon Ramsay Steak and Gordon Ramsay Hell’s Kitchen.
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