M&A Deal Summary

Darden Acquires Cheddar’s Casual Cafe

On March 27, 2017, Darden acquired restaurant Cheddar’s Casual Cafe from L Catterton Partners for 780M USD

Acquisition Highlights
  • This is Darden’s 3rd transaction in the Restaurants sector.
  • This is Darden’s largest (disclosed) transaction.
  • This is Darden’s 3rd transaction in the United States.
  • This is Darden’s 1st transaction in Texas.

M&A Deal Summary
Date 2017-03-27
Target Cheddar’s Casual Cafe
Sector Restaurants
Buyer(s) Darden
Sellers(s) L Catterton Partners
Deal Type Add-on Acquisition
Deal Value 780M USD
Advisor(s) Morgan Stanley (Financial)
DLA Piper (Legal)

Target

Cheddar’s Casual Cafe

Irving, Texas, United States
Cheddar’s Casual Cafe, Inc. is a multi-concept casual dining restaurant company offers appetizers, salads, soups, burgers, sides, sandwiches, steaks, ribs, desserts, and entrees; and beverages, such as sweet tea vodkas, amaretto, lemonades, landslide martinis, spicy mango mojitos, margaritas, and fruit infused teas.

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Buyer(S) 1

Buyer

Darden

Orlando, Florida, United States
Category Company
Founded 1968
Sector Restaurants
Employees177,895
Revenue 10.5B USD (2023)
DESCRIPTION
Entrance to Darden's corporate headquarters in Orlando, Florida.
Entrance to Darden's corporate headquarters in Orlando, Florida.

Darden is a large full-service restaurant company that owns and operates more than 2,100 restaurants. Darden is recognized for a culture that rewards caring for and responding to people. Darden's restaurants includes Olive Garden, LongHorn Steakhouse, Bahama Breeze, Seasons 52, The Capital Grille, Eddie V's and Yard House. Darden was formed in 1968 and is based in Orlando, Florida.

DEAL STATS #
Overall 3 of 4
Sector (Restaurants) 3 of 4
Type (Add-on Acquisition) 3 of 4
State (Texas) 1 of 1
Country (United States) 3 of 4
Year (2017) 1 of 1
Size (of disclosed) 1 of 4
PREVIOUS DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2014-05-16 Red Lobster

Orlando, Florida, United States

Red Lobster is a seafood restaurant concept operating more than 700 restaurants across the U.S. and Canada and a growing international franchisee footprint. Red Lobster is focused on delivering freshly prepared, high-quality seafood dishes at reasonable prices including an extensive menu featuring fresh fish, shrimp, crab, lobster, scallops, and other seafood and non-seafood options. Headquartered in Orlando, Florida, the Red Lobster team comprises more than 58,000 associates.

Sell $2.1B
FOLLOWING DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2023-05-03 Ruth s Hospitality Group

Winter Park, Florida, United States

Ruth's Hospitality Group is an American restaurant company that owns and operates several upscale dining establishments across the United States and internationally. The company is best known for its flagship brand, Ruth's Chris Steak House, which specializes in high-quality steaks, seafood, and other classic American fare. With over 150 locations in various countries, Ruth's Hospitality Group has built a reputation for providing a luxurious and welcoming dining experience, with an emphasis on personalized service and attention to detail. In addition to its flagship brand, the company also operates other fine dining concepts, such as Mitchell's Fish Market and Eddie V's Prime Seafood, catering to a diverse range of tastes and preferences. Ruth's Hospitality Group was founded in 1965 and is based in Winter Park, Florida.

Buy $715M

Seller(S) 1

SELLER

L Catterton Partners

Greenwich, Connecticut, United States

Investor Investor Investor Investor Investor

Category Growth Capital Firm
Founded 1989
PE ASSETS 30.0B USD
Size Mega
Type Sector Agnostic
DESCRIPTION

L Catterton is a private equity firm that targets investments in consumer-related companies located throughout North America. L Catterton looks for businesses with identifiable brands and operating in 'defensible and extensible' positions within growth industry segments. Specific sectors of interest include branded consumables, food/beverages, consumer services, restaurants, media and marketing, household durables, specialty retail, mass merchant retail, and luxury/apparel. Prospective transactions include management buyouts, recapitalizations, turnarounds, and growth financings. L Catterton was formed in 1990 and is based in Greenwich, Connecticut.

DEAL STATS #
Overall 42 of 101
Sector (Restaurants) 7 of 13
Type (Add-on Acquisition) 18 of 45
State (Texas) 4 of 7
Country (United States) 39 of 75
Year (2017) 1 of 7
Size (of disclosed) 3 of 13
PREVIOUS DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2017-03-27 TULA

New York, New York, United States

TULA is an innovative skincare brand, TULA empowers women to live healthier, balanced, and more beautiful lives by transforming their beauty regimen. Built on the understanding that the same ingredients that are good for your internal health are also great for your skin, TULA products use Probiotic Technology to deliver skin-nourishing benefits. TULA was founded in 2014 and is based in New York City.

Buy -
FOLLOWING DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2017-03-30 Rhone

Stamford, Connecticut, United States

Rhone offers a full line of style-driven men's activewear made from innovative fabrics with exceptional performance qualities. Rhone was founded in 2014 and is based in Stamford, Connecticut.

Buy -
Mergr

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Legal