Portillo's Restaurants
 |
|
| Industry | Restaurants |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1963 in Villa Park, Illinois |
| Headquarters | Oak Brook, Illinois, USA |
|
Number of locations
|
41 |
|
Key people
|
Dick Portillo, Founder Keith Kinsey, CEO |
| Revenue | US $300 million (2013) |
|
Number of employees
|
About 4,600 |
| Website | portillos.com |
Portillo's is an American restaurant chain that specializes in serving Chicago-style food. The company was founded by Dick Portillo in 1963 in Villa Park, Illinois under the name "The Dog House". Portillo's is located primarily in the Chicago metropolitan area, and also has two locations each in Arizona, Florida, southern California, and Wisconsin, and a single location in Minnesota, opening in July 2017. In 2014, Dick 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.
Portillo’s was founded in 1963 by Dick Portillo. After returning from serving in the Marines, Dick gathered money from his savings and from an investment from his brother Frank to open a hotdog stand. They bought a 12-foot trailer that had no restroom and running water. They named it “The Dog House”. The Dog House operated on North Avenue in Villa Park. At the beginning stages, the stand was losing money and Portillo needed to find a solution. Portillo went to do some research one day on how other competitors were operating and snuck into one of the back rooms of a competitor and wrote down where they were purchasing their product. He continued the process of learning by visiting different competitors. By 1967, The Dog House was in good standing, was upgraded to a larger trailer, and was renamed “Portillo’s”. In 1970, Dick Portillo partnered with Harold Reskin and opened up his second location in a shopping mall that Reskin owned. Between 1972 and 1989, In 1987 Dick 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, IL. In the 90’s Portillo’s was profiting more than $50 million with 25 stores around the Chicago area. In 1993, Dick 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 in Chicago opened up at the intersection of Clark and Ontario St. In 1995, Portillo expanded Key Wester Fish & Pasta House in Naples, Florida. In 1996, Portillo brought the Key Wester Fish & Pasta to Naperville. In 2000, Portillo opened up another concept restaurant called Luigi’s House. The Portillo’s chain grew again in 2010 with Honey-Jam Café. In 2016, Portillo's opened its first restaurant in Brandon, FL, a suburb of Tampa. The Portillo Restaurant Group plans on adding more locations in Hillsborough & Pinellas counties in the future.
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Wikipedia