Portillo's Restaurants

Last updated
Portillo's Restaurant Group, Inc.
Portillo's
Company type Public company
Nasdaq:  PTLO
Industry Restaurants
Genre Fast casual
FoundedApril 9, 1963;60 years ago (1963-04-09) in Villa Park, Illinois [1]
FounderDick Portillo
Headquarters Oak Brook, Illinois, United States
Number of locations
86
Key people
Michael Osanloo, CEO
Products
RevenueIncrease2.svgUS$517  million (2021) [2]
Owner Berkshire Partners (72%)
Number of employees
About 6,000 [3]
Website www.portillos.com

Portillo's Restaurant Group, Inc. [4] is an American fast casual restaurant chain based in the Chicago area that specializes in serving Chicago-style food such as hot dogs, Maxwell Street Polish, and Italian beef. The company was founded by Dick Portillo on April 9, 1963, in Villa Park, Illinois, under the name "The Dog House".

Contents

In addition to 46 locations in the Chicago metropolitan area and Northern Illinois, the chain also has six locations each in the Phoenix metropolitan area and the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex; four locations each in central Illinois and the Indianapolis metropolitan area; three locations each in the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area,Tampa metropolitan area, and Greater Orlando; two locations each in the Milwaukee metropolitan area, Madison metropolitan area, Metro Detroit, and Southern California; and one location each in the South Bend metropolitan area, Fort Wayne, the Quad Cities, and Tucson.

History

Portillo's was founded in 1963 by Dick Portillo. [5] After returning from serving in the Marines, Portillo gathered money from his savings and an investment from his brother Frank to open a hot dog stand. [6] They bought a 12-foot trailer that had no restroom and no running water. They named it "The Dog House". [6] The Dog House operated on North Avenue in Villa Park. [7] At first the stand lost money and a solution was needed. Portillo snuck into one of the back rooms of a competitor and wrote down where they were purchasing their product. [6] He continued the process of learning by visiting different competitors. By 1967, The Dog House, now in good financial standing, was upgraded to a larger trailer and was renamed "Portillo's". [8] In 1970, he partnered with Harold Reskin and opened up his second location in a shopping mall that Reskin owned. [6] Between 1972 and 1989, he opened up a second restaurant under the name "Barney's" that specialized in BBQ meals. In 1983 Portillo's opened up its first drive thru in Downers Grove. [9] [ failed verification ] In the 90's Portillo's had profited by more than $50 million with 25 stores around the Chicago area. [6] In 1993, he experimented with a few ideas by combining his concept stores Barney's and Barnelli's with a Portillo's restaurant. In 1994, the first Portillo's within Chicago city limits opened at the intersection of Clark and Ontario St. [6] [10] In 1995, Portillo opened Key Wester Fish & Pasta House in Naples, Florida. [6] In 1996, Portillo brought the Key Wester Fish & Pasta to Naperville. In 2000, Portillo opened another concept restaurant called Luigi's House. [6] The Portillo's chain grew again in 2010 with Honey-Jam Café. [11]

In 2014, Portillo sold Portillo's to Berkshire Partners. The new owners are planning to open five to seven restaurants each year. Portillo has been buying the land for new sites, which he then leases back to the company. [3]

The company filed to go public in 2021. [12] Its initial public offering sold 28% of the company as stocks traded on the Nasdaq as of October 21, 2021, with private equity firm Berkshire Partners retaining the remainder of the ownership. [13]

A Portillo's Chicago-style hot dog Chicago-style hot dog.jpg
A Portillo's Chicago-style hot dog

Outside Illinois

Portillo's had licensed restaurants in Tokyo, Japan, in the late 1980s and early 1990s. The Japanese locations all eventually closed. [14]

Portillo's first California location opened on October 11, 2006, at the Buena Park Downtown shopping center in Buena Park. The second California location opened in 2008 in Moreno Valley.

Portillo's opened its first Florida location in 2016 in the Tampa suburb of Brandon, Florida, and a second location that same year in the University Square neighborhood in Tampa. The chain generated publicity with a tongue-in-cheek open letter on its website on June 16, 2015, the day after its hometown NHL team, the Chicago Blackhawks, beat the Tampa Bay Lightning to win the 2015 Stanley Cup. The stunt received newspaper coverage in both cities. "It's official. Portillo's is coming to Tampa in 2016. Tampa residents spent years peppering us with requests to build a restaurant—you really put us in a pickle. So we're thrilled we're finally making our way to Florida," Portillo's letter said, showing the chain's ironic humor. "Let's be frank: No matter whose jersey you're wearing, everyone will be welcome. We hope you don't have a beef against us or our hometown team." [15] The locations in Tampa and Brandon have a 1930s Prohibition theme. [16]

The Minneapolis-St. Paul region's first location opened in Woodbury in mid-summer 2017. Shortly thereafter in early fall 2017, the chain's first restaurant in the Indianapolis Metropolitan Area commenced operations in Fishers. [17] Many former Chicagoans have moved to both regions. In 2018, Portillo's opened its second and third restaurants in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area (Maple Grove and Roseville, Minnesota) [18] as well as its third and fourth Indiana locations (Mishawaka and Indianapolis) [19] [20] in 2018.

Portillo's in Davenport, Iowa Portillo's - Davenport, Iowa.jpg
Portillo's in Davenport, Iowa

Portillo's opened its first restaurant in the Madison, Wisconsin, area and in the Davenport, Iowa/Quad Cities area (the first location in Iowa) in early 2019.

Portillo's added a new location in Sterling Heights, Michigan, in Metro Detroit which will be the first location within Michigan. It opened in March 2021. [21] [22]

Portillo's announced a new location in the Orlando, Florida, area, located at the corner of Palm Parkway and Daryl Carter Boulevard in Lake Buena Vista. It opened in June 2021. [23]

In December 2021, Portillo's submitted plans to build a new restaurant at Santan Village in Gilbert, Arizona. [24]

In April 2022, Portillo's opened their fourth location in Florida. It is located in St. Petersburg, featuring a 50s theme, and is their third in the Tampa metropolitan area. A location in West Kissimmee was announced the same month and is their second in the Orlando area, and fifth overall in Florida. In December 2023, the sixth Portillo's in Florida, and third in the Orlando area, opened in Clermont.

In January 2023, Portillo's opened its first location in Texas. It is located in the Dallas Fort Worth Metroplex suburb of The Colony, at the intersection of SH 121/Sam Rayburn Tollway and Destination Drive at the Grandscape complex. [25]

In February 2023, Portillo's opened the fifth and sixth locations in Arizona, located in Tucson and Gilbert.

In March 2024, the company announced it would open two new restaurants in the Houston area—one in Richmond at The Grand at Aliana and the other at the Willowbrook Mall. [26]

Honey Jam Cafe

In 2010, Portillo Restaurant Group launched the Honey Jam Café concept, [27] [28] an upscale pancake house similar to Walker Brothers Pancake House in both ambiance and menu [29] as a breakfast and lunch cafe. [29] The Batavia, Illinois location closed in 2019. [30]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hard Rock Cafe</span> Chain of restaurants

Hard Rock Cafe, Inc. is a chain of theme bar-restaurants, memorabilia shops, casinos and museums founded in 1971 by Isaac Tigrett and Peter Morton in London. In 1979, the cafe began covering its walls with rock and roll memorabilia, a tradition which expanded to others in the chain. In 2007, Hard Rock Cafe International (USA), Inc. was sold to the Seminole Tribe of Florida and was headquartered in Orlando, Florida, until April 2018, when the corporate offices were relocated to Davie, Florida. As of July 2018, Hard Rock International has venues in 74 countries, including 172 bar or cafe-restaurants, 37 hotels, and 11 casinos.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rainforest Cafe</span> Jungle-themed restaurant chain

Rainforest Cafe is a jungle-themed restaurant chain owned by Landry's, Inc., of Houston. The first location opened in the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota, on February 3, 1994. By 1997, the chain consisted of six restaurants, all in the United States. The first international location opened in London, England in June 1997. In 1998, it was planned to build 12 additional restaurants in the United States, seven in Mexico, and five in the UK, for a total of 22 restaurants by 2008.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Publix</span> American supermarket chain in the southeastern United States

Publix Super Markets, Inc., commonly known as Publix, is an employee-owned American supermarket chain headquartered in Lakeland, Florida. Founded in 1930 by George W. Jenkins, Publix is a private corporation that is wholly owned by present and past employees and members of the Jenkins family. Publix operates throughout the Southeastern United States, with locations in Florida (867), Georgia (212), Alabama (90), South Carolina (69), Tennessee (58), North Carolina (54), Virginia (20), and Kentucky (1). Kentucky is the most recent addition to the Publix footprint, with the company's first store in that state having opened on January 10, 2024, in Louisville.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">White Castle (restaurant)</span> American fast food restaurant chain

White Castle is an American regional hamburger restaurant chain with 345 locations across 13 states, with its greatest presence in the Midwest and New York metropolitan area. Founded on September 13, 1921, in Wichita, Kansas, it has been generally credited as the world's first fast-food hamburger chain. It is known for its small, square hamburgers referred to as "sliders". The burgers were initially priced at five cents until 1929 and remained at 10 cents until 1949. In the 1940s, White Castle periodically ran promotional ads in local newspapers which contained coupons offering five burgers for ten cents, takeout only. In 2014, Time named the White Castle slider "The Most Influential Burger of All Time".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Disney Springs</span> Shopping mall in Florida, U.S.

Disney Springs is an outdoor shopping, dining, and entertainment complex at the Walt Disney World Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Florida, near Orlando. First opened in 1975 as Lake Buena Vista Shopping Village, it has been expanded and rebranded over the years as Walt Disney World Village (1977), Disney Village Marketplace (1989), and Downtown Disney (1997), becoming Disney Springs in 2015. A similar complex is being developed on the opposite side of Walt Disney World called Flamingo Crossings.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Cheesecake Factory</span> American restaurant chain

The Cheesecake Factory Incorporated is an American restaurant company and distributor of cheesecakes based in the United States. It operates 219 full-service restaurants: 206 under the Cheesecake Factory brand and 13 under the Grand Lux Cafe brand, not including the number of restaurants operated under the North Italia nor any of Fox Restaurant Brands' names. The Cheesecake Factory also operates two bakery production facilities—in Calabasas, California, and Rocky Mount, North Carolina—and licenses two bakery-based menus for other foodservice operators under the Cheesecake Factory Bakery Cafe marque. Its cheesecakes and other baked goods can also be found in the cafes of many Barnes & Noble stores.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Firehouse Subs</span> US-based restaurant chain

Firehouse Restaurant Group, Inc., doing business as Firehouse Subs, is a Canadian-owned American fast casual restaurant chain based in Jacksonville, Florida that specializes in submarine sandwiches. It was founded in 1994 by former firefighter brothers Chris and Robin Sorensen. Since December 15, 2021, it has been a subsidiary of Restaurant Brands International, which also owns the chains Burger King, Popeyes, and Tim Hortons.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville</span> Casual dining American restaurant chain

Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville is a United States–based hospitality company that manages and franchises a casual dining American restaurant chain, retail stores selling Jimmy Buffett–themed merchandise, and hotels.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Walker Bros.</span> Restaurant chain in Illinois

Walker Bros. is a series of pancake houses in the Chicago area. They developed as a franchised spin-off of The Original Pancake House, founded in Portland, Oregon, in 1953 by Les Highet and Erma Hueneke; the Walker Bros. version has been in business for over 45 years. Like the original, they are known for their apple pancakes, French toast, and omelettes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brown's Chicken & Pasta</span> Chicago-based fast-food restaurant chain

Brown's Chicken & Pasta, also known simply as Brown's Chicken, is a chain of fast food restaurants specializing in fried chicken. It is based in the Chicago metropolitan area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rio Bravo Cantina</span> Tex-Mex Mexican restaurant chain

Rio Bravo Cantina was a Tex-Mex style Mexican restaurant serving the southern United States and Michigan from its opening in 1985 until its closure in 2004. The company relaunched in August 2015, only to close again 18 months later.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cheeseburger in Paradise (restaurant)</span> Defunct Casual dining restaurant and former chain

Cheeseburger in Paradise was a casual dining theme restaurant chain in the United States that operated between 2002 and 2020. The chain started in 2002 as a partnership of American musician Jimmy Buffett's company, the Orlando, Florida-based Margaritaville Holdings LLC, and OSI Restaurant Partners, with Buffett licensing the name and Outback Steakhouse operating the franchising of restaurants. After a change of ownership in 2012, most of the restaurants were closed by 2014. The last location closed in September 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Melting Pot (restaurant)</span>

The Melting Pot is a chain of franchised fondue restaurants in the United States and Canada. The Tampa, Florida based company has 97 locations as of January 2021. The Melting Pot menu contains various cheese fondues, wines, salads, entrees of meat and seafood served with dipping sauces and oil or broth to be cooked in, and chocolate fondues. It is part of Front Burner Brands.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Toddle House</span>

Toddle House was a national quick service restaurant chain in the United States, which specialized in breakfast but was open 24/7. Lunch and dinner entrées included soups and salads and various sandwiches. Much of their business was takeout.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lou Malnati's Pizzeria</span> American pizza chain

Lou Malnati's Pizzeria is an American Chicago-style pizza restaurant chain headquartered in Northbrook, Illinois. It was founded by the son of Rudy Malnati, who was instrumental in developing the recipe for Chicago-style pizza, and it has become one of the Chicago area's best-known local lines of pizza restaurants. Lou Malnati's operates a division of its company called Lou Malnati's Presents Tastes of Chicago, a partnership with Portillo's Restaurants and Eli's Cheesecake, which ships Chicago-style cuisine nationally.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tubby's</span> American restaurant chain and franchise

Tubby's is an American restaurant chain and franchise based in Clinton Township, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit, Michigan. Founded in 1968 in nearby St. Clair Shores, the chain operates more than 70 stores throughout Michigan, primarily in the Detroit metropolitan area. The chain primarily serves submarine sandwiches and salads, own specific chips, along with soft drinks, french fries and soup, and is known for its grilled subs.

Previously known as Ker's WingHouse Bar & Grill, WingHouse Bar & Grill is a restaurant chain based in Florida. It was created and founded by Ed Burnett, with financial support for expansion provided by investor Crawford Ker. The establishment is known for its distinctive concept as a "breastaurant," featuring servers known as "WingHouse Girls."

Giordano's is an American pizzeria chain that specializes in Chicago-style stuffed pizza. Brothers Efren and Joseph Boglio founded Giordano's in 1974 in Chicago, Illinois. The pizzeria has since expanded to over 65 locations in Colorado, Florida, Indiana, Iowa, Minnesota, Ohio, Nevada, and Wisconsin. The chain has also expanded to offer catering and ship frozen pizzas in the United States.

Ocean Prime is a steakhouse and seafood restaurant concept owned by Cameron Mitchell Restaurants, consisting of 18 restaurants in 14 states plus Washington, D.C. Mitchell's Ocean Club opened in August 2006, starting the Ocean Prime brand in Columbus, Ohio, and the first Ocean Prime outside of Ohio opened in Troy, Michigan in June 2008. Other locations include Beverly Hills, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Las Vegas, Naples, New York City, Orlando, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Tampa and Washington, D.C. Ocean Prime Sarasota will open late 2024 and Ocean Prime Nashville will open in 2025.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Newk's Eatery</span> Restaurant chain in the United States

Newk's Eatery is an American chain of fast casual cafés which operates over 100 restaurants in 13 states.

References

  1. ↑ "Our Story | Portillo's". Portillos.com. Retrieved 2016-04-28.
  2. ↑ "P.F. Chang's chief executive Michael Osanloo named Portillo's CEO". Restaurant Business. Retrieved May 1, 2021.
  3. 1 2 "Why Portillo's new CEO won't mess with success". Dailyherald.com. 3 April 2016. Retrieved 2016-04-28.
  4. ↑ "Portillo's Restaurant Group, Inc". Encyclopedia.com . International Directory of Company Histories. 2006. Retrieved 2018-06-27.
  5. ↑ "A piece of Portillo's history can be found in Rockford". wrex.com. WREX . Retrieved 2015-11-09.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "History of Portillo's Restaurant Group, Inc. – FundingUniverse". www.fundinguniverse.com. Retrieved 2015-11-18.
  7. ↑ "Portillo's - History, Tradition and .... Hot Dogs!". The Chicago El Stop Food Hunt Project. 14 November 2012. Retrieved 2015-11-18.
  8. ↑ "Spotlight on Portillo's | The Dish | Tastes of Chicago". www.tastesofchicago.com. Retrieved 2015-11-18.
  9. ↑ "History | Portillos". jobs.portillos.com. Archived from the original on 2015-10-30. Retrieved 2015-11-09.
  10. ↑ "History of Portillo's". portillos.com.
  11. ↑ "How Dick Portillo built a hot dog stand into an empire". Daily Herald. 5 July 2015. Retrieved 2015-11-18.
  12. ↑ Patton, Leslie (27 September 2021). "Hot-Dog Restaurant Chain Portillo's Files to Go Public on Nasdaq". Bloomberg.com. Retrieved 28 September 2021.
  13. ↑ Zumbach, Lauren (October 21, 2021). "For loyal Portillo's customers, IPO puts a new item on the menu: shares in a favorite company". Chicago Tribune.
  14. ↑ "FindArticles.com - CBSi". findarticles.com. Retrieved 27 December 2017.[ dead link ]
  15. ↑ "Iconic Chicago restaurant consoles Lightning fans in Tampa location announcement". Tampa Bay Tribune. 17 June 2015. Archived from the original on 18 June 2015. Retrieved 19 June 2015.
  16. ↑ "All Locations". Portillo's. Retrieved May 1, 2021.
  17. ↑ Tuohy, John. "How to order from the menu at Fishers Portillo's grand opening". The Indianapolis Star. Retrieved May 1, 2021.
  18. ↑ "Nice to Meat You, Maple Grove. Portillo's is opening January 23rd!". Portillo's. Retrieved May 1, 2021.
  19. ↑ "Mishawaka, you're in luck! Portillo's is coming in 2018". Portillo's. Retrieved May 1, 2021.
  20. ↑ "Nice to Meat You, Indianapolis. Portillo's is coming this year!". Portillo's. Retrieved May 1, 2021.
  21. ↑ https://www.portillos.com/michigan/ Portillo's: Portillo's is Motoring into Michigan!
  22. ↑ Haddad, Ken (Jul 7, 2020). "Chicago-based Portillo's opening first Michigan restaurant in Sterling Heights". WDIV. Retrieved May 1, 2021.
  23. ↑ "Portillo's is Coming to Lake Buena Vista, FL!". Portillo's. Retrieved May 1, 2021.
  24. ↑ Frigerio, Josh. "Chicago restaurant Portillo's submits plans to build restaurant in Gilbert" . Retrieved 15 February 2022.
  25. ↑ "Portillo's Announces First DFW Location Will Be in The Colony" . Retrieved 2 March 2022.
  26. ↑ Klein, Danny (2024-03-07). "Portillo's Headed to Houston Market in 2024". QSR Magazine. Retrieved 2024-03-07.
  27. ↑ "What's the big idea? Breakfast" . Retrieved 27 December 2017.
  28. ↑ Placek, Christopher (December 21, 2017). "Honey-Jam Cafe opening in Arlington Heights as replacement for Aurelio's". Daily Herald. Retrieved December 27, 2017.
  29. 1 2 Williams, Amy E. (2010-11-08). "New restaurant in Batavia will serve up breakfast, lunch items - Daily Herald". Prev.dailyherald.com. Retrieved 2017-12-27.
  30. ↑ "Honey-Jam Cafe in Batavia closes". www.kcchronicle.com. Archived from the original on 2019-03-06. Retrieved 2019-03-04.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.