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Public Company, Headquarters Location
Orlando, FL 32859-3330 United States
(407)245-4000,
http://www.dardenrestaurants.com
Company Description: Darden Restaurants Inc. was incorporated in Florida in March 1995, and is the parent company of GMRI Inc., which was initially founded as Red Lobster Inns of America Inc in 1968. Red Lobster, founded by William Darden, opened its first restaurant in Lakeland, Florida, in 1968. Since then, the company has expanded to include over 1700 restaurants in the U.S. and Canada. As of May 2008, the company operated 1,667 restaurants in 49 states, including 651 Red Lobster, 647 Olive Garden, 305 LongHorn Steakhouse, 32 The Capital Grille, 23 Bahama Breeze and seven Seasons 52 restaurants, as well as two specialty restaurants: Hemenway's Seafood Grille and Oyster Bar and The Old Grist Mill Tavern. In Canada, the company operated 35 restaurants, including 29 Red Lobster and six Olive Garden restaurants. Through its subsidiaries, the company owns and operates all of its restaurants in the U.S. and Canada, except three. Those three restaurants are located in Central Florida and are owned by joint ventures managed by the company. Additionally, as of May 2008, the company franchised five LongHorn Steakhouse restaurants in Puerto Rico to an unaffiliated franchisee, and 27 Red Lobster restaurants in Japan to an unaffiliated Japanese corporation.
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