Hooter's Executive Opening Multiple Moe's Southwest Grill And Mama Fu's Noodle Houses In Dallas And Houston Markets

DALLAS AND HOUSTON, TX (Wednesday, November 05, 2003) - Raving Brands, a portfolio of fast casual restaurant brands, announced today that they've sold 23 Moe's Southwest Grill and six Mama Fu's Noodle House restaurants to Restaurants of America, Inc., the parent corporation of many Hooters chain franchises. The restaurants will open in the Dallas and Houston, TX markets beginning in November 2003.

Less than three years old, Moe's Southwest Grill has become the country's hottest Fresh Mex quick casual concept, outpacing category leaders in McDonald's Chipotle and Wendy's Baja Fresh. Mama Fu's Noodle House, a Pan-Asian restaurant that offers "FU nominal" Vietnamese, Korean, Thai, Chinese and Japanese food selections opened its first store in Atlanta, GA in June 2003 and has 165 franchises signed to date.

"Mama Fu's is following suit with Moe's, with plans to have 50 opened by close of 2004," says Darin Kraetsch, Executive Vice President, Mama Fu's. "While Mama Fu's is a young brand, we are beginning to get national interest from the likes of restaurant veterans like Jim Hammond."

Jim W. Hammond Jr., CEO of Restaurants of America, Inc. is one of the most successful people in the restaurant business, having been with Hooters since 1987 as President and Chairman of the Board of Neighborhood Restaurants of America, Inc., which is now Hooters of America, Inc., the franchisor. In 1989, Mr. Hammond started Restaurants of America, Inc., which is the parent corporation for Hooters franchises located in Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado and Minneapolis/St. Paul.

"It's exciting for us to buy into new restaurant experiences such as Moe's Southwest Grill and Mama Fu's Noodle House," says Hammond. "What these restaurants offer is a solid recipe for success: great food, high energy atmosphere and simplicity of operation."

The atmosphere of both restaurants is a definite success-factor. Moe's draws rave reviews from its fans, who enjoy the eclectic, upbeat personality with music from The Grateful Dead and Jimi Hendrix piping through speakers along with artwork from local artists. Appealing to a more health-interested public, Moe's food is so fresh; there are no freezers or microwaves at any of the locations. There's no animal fat or lard in any item on the menu and everything is made fresh daily. Moe's offers burritos, tacos, quesadillas and salads with a choice of grilled tofu, chicken or steak. Moe's also offers a few vegetarian items, a kid's meal and adult beverages.

The eclectic, high-energy atmosphere of Mama Fu's Noodle House is family-friendly and while their authentic Wok-cooking is standard, none of the menu items contain MSG. Mama Fu's also offers adult beverages - a variety of wine and beer.

"Restaurants of America, Inc. and people like Jim Hammond are some of the most reputable, successful names in the industry," explains Martin Sprock, founder and chief, Raving Brands. "When you have that caliber of industry icons purchasing 29 restaurants, it reflects positively on the Moe's and Mama Fu's brands."

Their first Moe's Southwest Grill will open in November 2003 in Lewisville, TX, outside Dallas. The first Mama Fu's Noodle House will open in Addison, TX in January 2004. Subsequent Mama Fu's and Moe's will open in both the Dallas and Houston areas.

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