Star power: despite the chance of being distracted by high-profile high jinks, operators continue to see the benefits of teaming up with celebs

Nation's Restaurant News,  Jan 28, 2008  by Stephen Shuck

• E-mail
• Print
• Link

During the third season of the acclaimed HBO series "Curb Your Enthusiasm," the show's creator, Larry David, and real-life actors Ted Danson and Michael York were portrayed as they struggled to open a trendy, celebrity-owned eatery in Los Angeles.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Over the course of the season, the wannabe restaurateurs were called upon to deal with a strange array of challenges, such as a corpse-sniffing dog, a cook who lies about his baldness and an executive chef afflicted with Tourette's Syndrome. On the restaurant's opening night, the chef ends up triggering a obscenity-laced, communal free-for-all that, in real life, would have sent any self-respecting operator scrambling for good legal representation.

In real life, celebrity-backed restaurants rarely must endure the kind of bizarre events that plagued the "Curb Your Enthusiasm" crowd. Yet this past year certainly was fraught with its own share of high-profile scandals, meltdowns and controversies involving those in the spotlight. Celebrities Britney Spears, Lindsay Lohan and Michael Vick have all made headlines for things that had nothing to do with their respective professions.

And, curiously enough, several of them also have had interests in the restaurant business.

Spears, whose media exposure this year has focused, among other things, on her questionable parenting skills and high-profile divorce, closed her short-lived Southern eatery Nyla in New York in 2003.

Vick, recently sentenced to 23 months in prison for operating an illegal dog fighting business, was one of the investors for the East Point, Ga.-based wine restaurant, The Tasting Room. Wachovia Corp., claiming Vick and another investor defaulted on the restaurant's $1.3 million loan, currently is suing him.

Rumors also have circulated that Lohan, whose year included of two stays in a rehabilitation center, is considering opening a restaurant in Los Angeles.

But even acknowledging the potential for an overheated celebrity scandal, most operators are not afraid to work with some of today's hottest names.

Clearly, a big-name celebrity can be counted on to help attract business to a restaurant, particularly when it first opens and the operation is still 'hot?

On the other hand, operators say, customers often are not aware that a celebrity has invested in an establishment.

"Celebrities are associated with our restaurant, but only on an investor level," says Lonnie Moore, co-founder of the Los Angeles-based Dolce Group. "Besides the crowd who reads 'US Weekly' or 'In Style,' our restaurants are frequented by foodie types and locals who don't even know the celebrity involvement."

Moore and his lifelong friend, Mike Malin, who gained stardom on the CBS reality show "Big Brother," oversee The Dolce Group. In 2003, they opened Dolce Enoteca e Ristorante with a number of celebrity backers including "That 70s Show" alums Ashton Kutcher, Laura Prepon, Danny Masterson and Wilmer Valderrama. Chris Masterson of "Malcolm in the Middle," Dule Hill of "The West Wing," and "Scream" veteran Jamie Kennedy also are investors.

The restaurant group also is the operator of Geisha House, a futuristic Japanese eatery with locations in Hollywood and Atlanta; Ketchup, an upscale American restaurant in West Hollywood; and Bella Cucina Italiana, located in Los Angeles.

Moore is so confident in his relationship with his celebrity investors that contracts are not needed to protect the restaurant if one of the A-list stars suddenly becomes embroiled in a scandal.

"The celebrities that are invested with The Dolce Group are our friends first, our investors second," he says. "We are confident that the great reputation of each of our restaurants is strong and will remain that way despite the possibility of any personal scandals or controversies of any of our investors being presented."

Other investment groups, however, do choose to protect themselves from the possibility of a celebrity scandal. Bob McCarthy, vice president of concept development of Celebrity Ventures Inc., says contracts usually are drawn up enabling a restaurant to sever ties with a celebrity in case a situation proves too embarrassing or harmful.

Celebrity Ventures Inc., a Fort Lauderdale, Fla.-based restaurant group, also has worked on concepts featuring former Heisman Trophy winner Eddie George and recently retired Pittsburgh Steelers' running back Jerome Bettis. In addition to insisting on contractual protection, the company also seeks out upstanding athletes, McCarthy says.

'The athletes that we deal with predominantly have a strong track record with their personalities," he says. 'We deal with hall of fame people, not just hall of fame athletes."

Other sports celebrities who have invested in or run successful restaurant operations themselves include Michael Jordan, Earvin "Magic" Johnson and Randy White.