Carrabba's Italian Grill Honored as Best Italian Restaurant by Restaurants & Institutions Consumers' Choice

TAMPA, Fla., Sept. 21  /PRNewswire/ -- Carrabba's Italian Grill was recently honored with the Platinum Award (first place) in the best Italian restaurant category in Restaurants & Institutions magazine's annual Consumer Choice awards.

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"This is a significant honor for Carrabba's," said Steve Shlemon, president. "Our family is proud of the success of our restaurant, and the number of lives that we've touched across the country over the past twenty years."

The Restaurants & Institutions annual awards program recognizes restaurants that are selected through a national survey of more than 3,100 restaurant customers.  Diners were asked to rate nearly 120 chain restaurants on eight customer satisfaction points: food quality, menu variety, value, service, atmosphere, cleanliness, reputation and convenience.  Winners are named in 13 menu categories.  This was the 26th year for this annual award to be presented.

Co-founders Johnny Carrabba and Damian Mandola, hosts of the popular PBS cooking show series, Cucina, established Carrabba's legacy of delivering fresh, flavorful food and warm hospitality when they opened the first Carrabba's in Houston, Texas in 1986. Family recipes and the use of only the finest ingredients have been at the core of the restaurant's success. OSI Restaurant Partners, Inc. (NYSE:OSI) purchased the rights to expand Carrabba's in 1993.

There are presently 217 Carrabba's Italian Grill restaurants throughout the country.  For more information and locations, visit http://www.carrabbas.com/. 

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DATASOURCE: Carrabba's Italian Grill



CONTACT:  Stephanie L. Amberg, Vice President of Public Relations of OSI

Restaurant Partners, Inc., [phone]



Web site:  http://www.carrabbas.com/ 

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