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Philip “Phil” J. Hickey
Former CEO, Rare Hospitality
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Phil Hickey served as Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of RARE Hospitality until October 1, 2007, at which time RARE Hospitality was acquired by Darden Restaurants, Inc.
RARE Hospitality International, Inc., until October 2007, was an Atlanta-based restaurant company whose concepts included LongHorn Steakhouse, a casual dining western-themed restaurant and The Capital Grille, an elegant award-winning upscale steakhouse. In 2006, The Capital Grille was voted, by readers of Consumer Reports magazine, as the #1 restaurant concept in the U.S.A. LongHorn Steakhouse and Capital Grille have both received recognition in recent years from People Report for their superior performance in management retention.
RARE operated over 300 restaurants, employed 20,000 people, and served over 55 million guests in the last year. RARE Hospitality has been recognized for its achievements: Forbes magazine’s “200 Best Small Companies in America,” Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s “Georgia’s 100 Best in Business” and Business Week’s “Hot Growth Companies.”
As a veteran of more than 30 years in the industry, Phil Hickey has experienced the restaurant business from many perspectives. He has been an entrepreneur, single restaurant owner-operator, has co-founded a restaurant company and taken it public; has grown a concept from 6 to 50 restaurants, and led RARE Hospitality since 1997. Phil joined RARE as President/Chief Operating Officer; became CEO in 1998, and added the Chairman title in 2001. From 1997 to 2007, Phil and his team grew RARE Hospitality’s market capitalization from $90 million to $1.3 billion.
In 2005, Phil Hickey received the Golden Chain Award from Nation’s Restaurant News, as well as the “Chain Leadership Award” from Chain Leader magazine. In 2002, Phil was named “Restaurateur of the Year” by the Georgia Hospitality and Travel Association, and in 2004 Phil was inducted into the “Wall of Fame” at the Michigan State University of Hospitality Business.
Phil received a Bachelor’s degree in Hospitality Business from Michigan State University. At Belmont University, he has served as an adjunct instructor at the Massey Business School. He has served on the Board of Directors of the Atlanta Convention & Visitors Bureau, Hemisphere, Inc., the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce, and the Georgia Tourism Foundation.
He currently serves on the Board of Directors of the National Restaurant Association, the Board of Advisors of the Hospitality Business Programs at Michigan State and Georgia State University. A frequent guest lecturer at colleges and universities, Phil Hickey is co-author of the book, “Managing Service in Food and Beverage Operations.” He is a founding board member to the YMCA Community Action Project, an active member of YPO and the World President’s Organization, and serves as Chairman of the Board of Councilors of the Jimmy Carter Center in Atlanta.
Phil is a consultant to the hospitality industry with multiple clients including Darden Restaurants. He resides in Santa Rosa Beach, Florida with his wife, Reedy.
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