Just days after closing two of their lower performing restaurants, San Diego celebrity chef Brian Malarkey and partner James Brennan announced Monday that a global hospitality firm had acquired a majority stake in their company.
The investment by London-based Hakkasan Ltd., should help provide the capital needed to fuel the duo’s ambitious plans to rapidly expand the Searsucker and Herringbone restaurant brands, launched just a few years ago. Their company, Enlightened Hospitality Group, never contemplated expansion onto foreign soil, but that will likely change with its alliance with Hakkasan, Brennan said.
“While going international was never on our growth plan, the sky is now the limit,” said Brennan, who formerly operated several nightclubs before transitioning into restaurant development. “We were already well capitalized but this takes it to a completely different level.”
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